Older house/Renovation/purchase

[Bubblegun]

I did a similar thing to what you’re considering. I bought a 20 year old, 3-storey, 180m2 house, and had the following done prior to moving in:

Exterior

• Roof central pillar replacement
• Roof tile replacement/repair where necessary
• New roof paint
• Siding replacement/repair where necessary
• New caulking for all windows
• New coat of paint for third floor + any other exposed siding
• New waterproofinging coats for four balconies
• Pressure wash

Interior

• new kitchen (straight, just under 3m)
• new bath unit (1620 size)
• new wood floorboards (1st and 2nd floors)
• underfloor heating for 2nd floor living room
• new underfloor insulation for entire first floor
• new main bathroom sink unit w/shelving (180cm long)
• new secondary sink unit
• two small toilet-side sink units
• complete replacement of wallpaper
• new genkan shelf unit for shoes
• lighting – new LED units throughout
• conversion (removal) of one large closet into floor space

Cost: 11m yen, rolled into the mortgage. btw, the shop that did our renos put some pics up on their website, if you’re interested: https://www.actyhome.com/reform/allreform-0.html. As you can see, we tried to keep it clean and simple, more of a spruce-up than a full re-design.


Tips? I have many, but here’s a couple important ones:

• Get at least three estimates. I got one from a big name place, a regional mid-size player, and a small local shop. I went with the local shop, and not just because their estimate was the lowest. Being a big customer for a small shop has its benefits. In order to properly assess and ensure estimate comparisons are apples to apples, you need a solid understanding of what you want to do. So make up a list, and give the same conditions to each shop. Don’t just give them the list though, walk through the house with the person and describe to them what you want to do. Observe how well they listen, and how closely they actually examine the state of what needs to be done, that will all be part of your assessment. Of course, leave leeway to see how creative/helpful they can be as well. You will need to talk to these people over several meetings lasting 1-2 hours each, so make sure you like them.
• The devil is in the details. Request catalogues, pore over them, go to showrooms, and just really get into the weeds of sorting through the different options and configurations. Generally, a base grade of a higher-end line will be far superior to a high-spec version of a mid-line range, without much difference in costs. Understand which options are worth shelling out for (like a solid stone floor for your bathroom) and which are just expensive fluff/vanity options.

As for the inspection, there was a previous thread on this here, but definitely do it. It will help you better understand the house and to prioritize what you need done. It will also likely serve as excellent material to aid you in price negotiations, because they will find several things. I ended up negotiating about 10% off the price of the house.

That looks very nice. To be honest some of those rooms probably didn't even need done. But what you have done looks better.

You've certainly given us food for thought. While I may not go for 11 million, im sure a lot can be done with less. I'm sure we could put down a new floor, wallpaper, which we have done before.More serious things id leave to the experts. Love the outside of your building,
but didn't see any before after shots of that.

We might also consider a place that has already been re-done up, depending on the price and I could use my full deposit to bring the home loan down.

[yakushika]

Our place is second hand, and is about 30 years old, wooden construction, in the country. We've had it painted and the roof re-sealed and some internal changes made. That apart, very little expenditure beyond normal wear and tear - in fact less than on our new apartment in Tokyo. There are well built second hand places out there so it is worth looking. It is worth sounding out vendors - some just want to sell and will consider any bid. You can also find vendors who will sell you the house and its furniture/ contents.

JA have a good ant protection plan and do a thorough survey, and we found cheaper than Duskin and others, but the 5 year plan was a couple of hundred thousand yen if I remember correctly. They did do a full check and survey of our foundations which was reassuring.

I would spend some time finding a good builder. It sounds like you have some immediate plans and will then do more as time goes on. Getting a good relationship with a reliable builder who is on your wavelength is priceless. They can also manage all the other contractors for you - electricians, plumbers etc. If possible, they should be involved in the purchase - a builder might find things that a survey won't and will also be a reality check on your plans if for example you are considering an extension. They should know the building regulations.

[Bubblegun]

Our place is second hand, and is about 30 years old, wooden construction, in the country. We've had it painted and the roof re-sealed and some internal changes made. That apart, very little expenditure beyond normal wear and tear - in fact less than on our new apartment in Tokyo. There are well built second hand places out there so it is worth looking. It is worth sounding out vendors - some just want to sell and will consider any bid. You can also find vendors who will sell you the house and its furniture/ contents.

JA have a good ant protection plan and do a thorough survey, and we found cheaper than Duskin and others, but the 5 year plan was a couple of hundred thousand yen if I remember correctly. They did do a full check and survey of our foundations which was reassuring.

I would spend some time finding a good builder. It sounds like you have some immediate plans and will then do more as time goes on. Getting a good relationship with a reliable builder who is on your wavelength is priceless. They can also manage all the other contractors for you - electricians, plumbers etc. If possible, they should be involved in the purchase - a builder might find things that a survey won't and will also be a reality check on your plans if for example you are considering an extension. They should know the building regulations.

Thanks for your reply. Again food for thought!
Would you mind sharing your costs for the work done, and how much your place was?
I was wondering since you live out in the country, how far your kids are from the local schools? How do all the kids get to school? I know where I live some schools let junior high school kids go by bike?
We've been looking at places, but some are at least a few kilometers away, and up a hill or two, and that's another balancing act.

Not just distances, but also hight.Now! wow.

Happy wife....Less strife- happy Life.

[yakushika]

We don't have children so I can't help you there, but I do see the local children getting the bus or walking to the junior school which is in the next village, about 3km. High school is a 30 minute bus ride away at least. Actually that is exactly the same as my bus journey to school from the age of 11 - 18.
As for costs, work we've had done has ranged from ¥200,000 projects to ¥1,800,000. The biggest project was a complete refurbishment of part of the house for my father in law to move into - he is mild Alzheimer, and requires care, so we spent what was necessary to give him what he needs. It was a complete refit of part of the property, new bathroom and toilet and a lot of barrier free facilities.

[yakushika]

I guess what I am saying is you can get quite a lot done for a reasonable price and quality, both when purchasing and when renovating. Of course if you want something really specific or unusual you are likely to have to pay a lot for it. Builders are not always keen to try something new or use non standard fittings.

[captainspoke]

... It was a complete refit of part of the property, new bathroom and toilet and a lot of barrier free facilities.

Not sure if you were able to take advantage of it, but for older people (this prefecture/city, at least) there is some gov't money available for retrofitting a place to be safer and more user-friendly. My in-laws had their bath redone once, and also some railings (手すり) in the main hall of the house, and also on the approach--from the property line up and into the genkan. From what I know, this is one-off, so that you can have something done once, it will be supported, but a later reform of the same will not be. This also applies to younger folks who have an actual/formal disability (障害者 classification), where for mobility other issues there is some money for reform to adapt to that.

[yakushika]

Thanks, yes, we got some financial support. I might post elsewhere on the issues around caring for an elderly relative in the Japanese system, which offers quite a lot of support but is still onerous on the family I think. In our case money is not the problem, since he has a good pension (former teacher) and we got all the powers of attorney done early in the process. It is more about what we have to do to look after him and how it impacts on our life.

I don't want to sidetrack this excellent thread on the issues of older houses and renovation. I just mentioned this to give some idea of what projects can cost.

[Bubblegun]

Thanks, yes, we got some financial support. I might post elsewhere on the issues around caring for an elderly relative in the Japanese system, which offers quite a lot of support but is still onerous on the family I think. In our case money is not the problem, since he has a good pension (former teacher) and we got all the powers of attorney done early in the process. It is more about what we have to do to look after him and how it impacts on our life.

I don't want to sidetrack this excellent thread on the issues of older houses and renovation. I just mentioned this to give some idea of what projects can cost.

Thanks for sharing your experience there. Very helpful, and I think the part about occupational therapy help I assessments and changes to the home is certainly worthy of starting a new Subject, as I am sure we may all find sharing those costs, getting support helpful either today or in the future.

I wasn't sure if kids walked, used public buses, school buses or used bikes going to schools. I've only ever seen kindergarten buses. The one thing what worries me is that killer heat in the summer and small kids walking in that heat.....it can get pretty a dangerous.

[Bubblegun]

An update on pre-mortgage applications.

The first place said yes. They'll give us a 25 year mortgage, flexible rate, and we can borrow 9 million yen+ We add out deposit on top. This offer is good for 6 months.

The second place and I quote "we can't give a pre-mortgage to a foreigner", but the wife says they'll consider it afterwards. (which is their euphemism for "NO". But since they just weren't polite enough to say "NO" we might just apply again, when we find a place and see what happens.

The third place just gave us an outright. Naaaaaaah.

So its just look for something, now that we have a concrete figure to work with.

[Haystack]

An update on pre-mortgage applications.

The first place said yes. They'll give us a 25 year mortgage, flexible rate, and we can borrow 9 million yen+ We add out deposit on top. This offer is good for 6 months.

The second place and I quote "we can't give a pre-mortgage to a foreigner", but the wife says they'll consider it afterwards. (which is their euphemism for "NO". But since they just weren't polite enough to say "NO" we might just apply again, when we find a place and see what happens.

The third place just gave us an outright. Naaaaaaah.

So its just look for something, now that we have a concrete figure to work with.

What fixed rate did they quote you? Was the assessment based purely on income and not existing assets?