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Renovate for Sale

We pay for the work. You pay us back out of the sale.

An inherited house that needs work usually sells to cash buyers, at a cash buyer's price. If we think fixing it would make the estate more than it costs, we fund the work ourselves and take the cost back plus 20% of the uplift on completion. Nothing comes out of the estate up front.

The problem

A tired house loses two ways at once

Most probate properties have not been touched for years. A house that needs work is only sellable to cash buyers, because a lender will not lend against it - and cash buyers know it. The offers come in low, and they come in low because they can.

The alternative is worse for most executors: finding builders, funding the work out of your own pocket while the estate is frozen, and project-managing it from wherever you live.

We take that discount off the table by doing the work ourselves and waiting to be paid.

How it works

What we actually do

It starts with a phone call and a look at the house. Nothing is committed until you have seen the numbers in writing.

  • We tell you promptly whether we think there is value in renovating - including when there is not
  • We estimate the cost of the work and the likely uplift in value, and show you both in writing
  • We fund the work in full. Nothing comes out of the estate up front
  • We take the cost of the works back, plus 20% of the uplift, out of the sale
  • We manage the whole job through our own network of contractors
  • We market and sell the finished house, and do the legal work in-house
  • The renovation cost comes out of the sale proceeds on completion

Not sure whether the house is worth doing up? That is the call to make.

A confidential conversation, and an honest answer either way.

Call 0808 196 5200

Questions

The things executors ask us first

What do you charge for funding the work?

20% of the uplift. We recover what the work actually cost, plus 20% of the increase in value it created - so if the work does not lift the value, there is nothing to take a share of. Both numbers are in writing before you agree to anything, and neither comes out of your pocket up front.

What happens if the work does not add what you thought?

We carry that. Our estimate of the uplift is our risk, not yours - that is the whole point of us funding it rather than lending you the money to fund it.

Do I have to sell with you afterwards?

Yes - the arrangement only works because we recover the cost from the sale we handle. If you would rather keep your own agent, we can still talk, but this particular service is a package.

Can you do this before probate is granted?

Usually yes, if you are the named executor. Securing, clearing and improving the property can generally start before the grant arrives, so that the house is ready to sell the moment it does. We check your circumstances first.

What kind of work do you take on?

Anything from a clear-out and a redecoration to a full refurbishment of a house no lender would touch. What matters is not the size of the job, it is whether the finished value covers the cost with enough left over to be worth the delay.

How long does it add?

It depends entirely on the house - some of the projects below took five weeks, others a few months. We give you an expected timescale before you agree to anything, and the sale is prepared in parallel rather than afterwards.

Who insures it while the work happens?

We make sure the property is properly insured throughout. An empty probate property is often uninsured or under-insured without anyone realising, which is a risk to the estate whether or not you renovate.

See what we have done before

Six real projects, with what each one cost the estate and what it made.

Read the case studies
Or call 0808 196 5200