buying a new flat -v- buying an old flat, gutting it out and doing it up

[scosa]

Hello,

We are a young couple, first time buyers, planning to buy a house. We are both currently working here, and will be here for few years. We have no clue where to start, but we have popped into a few different agents to get a feel of the the market.

we are after 2 bedroom, large lounge/kitchen... around 1000+ sq feet. anything from Happy Valley, Wanchai, Sheung Wan, Kennedy Town would be good for us. budget around the 4-5mill mark.

we are humming over either buying one of those newer apartments (with all the flash facilities/clubhouse but house would be smaller) OR buying in an older building with bigger space, gutting the place out and doing it up ourselves. has anyone ever done this before? is it worth the time and physical effort?

ANY advice would be appreciated! thanks!

[Boris]

"gutting the place out and doing it up ourselves"
There are several downsides to DIY in HK.

Waste disposal - very different with no skips but waste put in small bags then the decorators lorry disposing. There are no primary building watse disposal companies here as far as I can judge. Man with a van maybe but a much more of a logistical operation than you might think.

Space to live. Because of the smaller size of apartments and all being in blocks there is no lock up garage or much spare place to put your stuff. You will have to hire a good size stirage unit for the duration of your refit if your going to still live in the apartment. Best way is to buy , gut, decorate, move in.

Purchase of materials. There are no one stop DIY shops here. Even B&Q which is closing down, has not the range you may used to seeing elsewhere. Hard materials like plaster products are area specific. It will take you a while to source and understand your products with delivery another logistic headache.

The best way is to look at a series of craftsmen and source the " design items " yourself. DO NOT ignore the Shenzhen market as it will save you a fortune. The stuff you see in HK is much aimed toward the higher end and the majority is import. Local decorating firms will bring in " normal quality " items from Shenzhen which is the reason for most public traders here showing stuff you can't get there.

[chowfun]

If you have any sort of normal full-time day job, skip the DIY and buy a newer apartment. DIY will take up a tremendous amount of time and energy. At the end, you will surely have dozens of unfinished projects and exposed wiring/walls.

[Skyhook]

I don't agree about the buying of a new apartment over renovating and greatly enhancing an older place, well beyond what some would generically consider nice.

We gutted our new Village house recently and replaced everything, and I have some photos listed here Hong Kong GeoExpat - DIY - Renovation & Decor

If Scosa would like some detailed experienced info, feel free to contact me via Private message and I will be happy to give you some worthwhile tips.

Our renovation took 2 months to complete, which we timed the settlement of our old rejuvenated apartment, to coincide with completion.

I really enjoy renovating property, I find it very satisfying each time, especially at the point of sale .

The key to a great renovation is employing a reliable project manager to take care of everything, warts and all.

It's not as hard as some make out, if you are organized and know what you want to do. Add a dash of sensible creativity and use reliable/high quality materials and you'll be happy.

Good luck and happy renovating

[UK/HKboy]

i would defintely agree with rennovating an older apartment, but make sure you do plan to stay there for a while to enjoy it.

if i just bought a new flat, the actual size would be smaller (new flats have lower efficiency), it would look very generic (all the flats in new apartments tend to have the same colour scheme, kitchen units, bathrooms etc etc. and developers, for some reason, seem to think white, white and more white makes a place look cool - probably cos of the Apple Ipod or something...), and it may not have everything you need.

for my recent rennovation, i chose stuff that i wanted e.g. rain shower, oven, and also stuff that would make my flat look nice e.g. darker floors because my flat is open and gets quite alot of natural light.

it defintely requires time - not just doing the rennovation if you are doing it yourself, or even regularly keeping on top of the project manager, but also for those days walking up and down the roads with interior design and decoration shops.