When you have lived somewhere for over twenty years, it is hard to comprehend the sudden lurches in values when neighbouring houses suddenly show a sold sign, after significantly not displaying a for sale one first. There are lots of small enclaves on the development near me and each has three houses, of differing finish but basically they are four or five bedroomed executive detached . . . so not to be sniffed at. The prices new did vary dramatically – the house my family bought was one of the less expensive 4 bedroomed, it had no running water to the utility and no proper fireplace and chimney but neither of those points worried us at the time. Other than that we had everything everyone else had but for £30K less. Now in this current year some 24 years later, there is no such price differential because the houses have mostly been updated reshaped and generally upgraded even more. A neighbour for example had the whole of the back of her kitchen and dining room taken out and it all made open plan; the old utility was recommissioned and made much more useful with running water and cabinets and the main room was fantastically appointed with the latest kitchen design. The blue cabinets may date sooner than my white but they look gorgeous. Knowing what the previous neighbour paid for her house, the value today has outstripped two of the bigger five bedroomed houses that have not been upgraded and still offer the very basic developer supplied cabinets and flooring. One of the things I still love about my design is the useful front bay that is deep enough to put a sofa or piano in. And all my front windows still have the pretty lead pane finish – very countryfied!
There have only been 4 properties change hands near me in 20 years but they have all been spread over a longer period but it is good to see them all equalling out in value as families decide on which feature is needed now.