Finding a house in central Oxford for under £300,000 is hard enough but when you are looking for a period property with character features, a large garden and potential for another one or two bedrooms, it is nigh on impossible.
After seeing lots of ugly ducklings and tiny box-like houses, I found our dream home on the market for just £250,000.
Filled with tons of potential and character in a prime spot in Marston, I knew before stepping foot in it that this was the one.
Much to my disappointment, so did everyone. An open day at the property finished with 14 offers over the asking price and proceeded to sealed bids.
After a few sleepless nights, we were overjoyed to hear we had won the bid with our offer, which was £56,895 over the asking price. However, that was certainly not the last of it.
We ran into a plethora of obstacles including damp, rodent infestation and four attempts from other buyers to gazump us. The worst hurdle was the mortgage review which wanted to knock £60,000 off our agreed offer.
Most people who have gone through the process of purchasing their own property will know that finally completing is one of the best feelings in the world.
It should lift the pressures of the world right off your shoulders, unless you have bought a completely derelict project.
Day one of any new project can be daunting, but when that project contains ammunition in the shed, worms, rats and broken glass, it makes you want to run in the other direction.
As an interior designer, I usually see chip wallpaper and outside toilets as a fun design conundrum. But when I know I’ll be homeless in eight weeks, the pressure is seriously on.
The house is in a dilapidated state with no kitchen, an outside toilet, wood stuck to the walls for added insulation, carpets that were laid in the 1950s, and the garden has weeds up to your shoulders.
After paying hugely over the asking price, our original design budget took a massive hit, leaving just £35,000.
From my experience £35,000 seems more than a little tight to strip a house completely, purchase and install new kitchens, bathrooms, electrics, lighting and flooring, and all before August 1.
After developing numerous houses for clients, I’m filled with so much excitement to finally complete my own but with such a tight time-frame and limited budget, I’ve soon realised this little house is going to be my biggest challenge yet.
Over the next eight weeks, I’ll be writing a fortnightly column here in The Oxford Times and a weekly blog at www.oxfordtimes.co.uk to update you on my journey of transforming a derelict mess into our dream home.