What you need to know before buying a unique home

If your dream home is as unique as you are, the financial reality might be trickier than you expect.

Publication date: 04 June 2025
Reading time: Three minutes

Not every home purchase or renovation is straightforward and with many dream homes having unique features (which is what can make them attractive!), you may find yourself with a long list of questions from lenders. We explain what you can do if you’re facing some of the most common snags.

Maybe there are multiple legal titles to deal with. Perhaps there are unique features that make the purchase less straightforward. Maybe the property is listed, or has other restrictions that limit what you can do.

Anna Taylor, District Certified Mortgage Adviser, regularly deals with requests from people looking to buy their dream home.

In our short article, she addresses some of the common challenges buyers might face if a property is more individual than usual.

Listed properties

The challenge: Listed buildings can be more expensive to repair and maintain as only certain materials can be used. Additionally, any alterations, internally and/or externally will require listed building consent which can increase the cost of works.

Anna says: “In one case I dealt with, the buyers were restoring a 200-year-old manor house that had been reduced to a bare shell. They stayed on site in a caravan to keep their own housing costs low during the build, and kept us, the quantity surveyor, and the architect updated at every stage of the restoration.”

What to do: As with any case, the individual circumstances of the customer are key. But, for example, a building survey completed before the mortgage application is submitted will allow any issues to be brought to the surface, so the lender can fully understand the property when assessing the lend.

Lenders will always want to minimise any nasty surprises, so the more you (and they) know about your particular property, the better.

Sustainable properties

The challenge: Getting a mortgage on a property built from unusual materials, with the rise in demand for ecologically sustainable living, means mortgage lenders are having to reassess their approach as designs and building materials become less traditional.

Anna says: “Probably the most unusual case I have looked at is a house made of straw, although it did have a steel internal structure. I suspect we’ll see much more of these types of requests going forward so it is really exciting to be at the forefront.”

What to do: Ensure that you approach a lender that’s comfortable with ‘non standard construction’ and that you have fully researched the property. Ordinarily you’ll need warranties and building regulation sign off as a minimum.

An ancient monument in the garden

The challenge: Many parts of the UK are blessed with examples of our heritage. For property buyers, this might mean a mix of designations — the site has both listed and scheduled ancient monument status – and one or both might not be in a good state of repair. Lenders will want to be certain that the clients would have enough liquid funds to cover any initial repairs and the ongoing maintenance.

Anna says: “One of our customers bought a property with an ancient monument in the grounds. The property itself was Grade II listed too, but was in a state of disrepair. Remediation work was needed immediately, working with bodies such as English Heritage to make sure the monument was repaired in a suitable manner.”

What to do:

Make sure:

A full building survey is conducted with a structural engineer’s report if necessary.
You engage suitable professionals early for all work, and ask for fixed quotes if possible.
You have sufficient liquidity to cover all work; ongoing maintenance as well as a contingency, as renovations of these types of property are rarely straightforward!

Property with multiple legal titles

The challenge: You may be thinking of combining multiple properties into one — for example, several apartments being returned to their original state as a single house, or separate properties being merged, like two semi-detached houses being combined into one home.

Or it could be the other way round — the ownership of a property (including its land) being split into more than one title. Whichever it is, you could be facing one purchase with multiple titles. It’s not uncommon but it can make a purchase tricky.

Anna says: “Eight years ago our customer stood in a field dreaming of turning it into a dream home, complete with stables and equestrian facilities. In this case, planning permission was granted in stages and so financing the project would have to follow suit.

“Alongside securing finance, we supported the customer with due diligence on the builders and collaboration with the architect and quantity surveyor, so the customer had a clear picture of costs and scale from day one.”

What to do:

Firstly, we would always recommend speaking to your solicitor, and when you submit your application make sure your lender is aware that your chosen property has multiple titles.

For smaller refurbs, some buyers may be able to seek equity release from the current property rather than applying for development funding, although it depends on their circumstances.

Mortgage applications at Handelsbanken are dealt with in-branch, where key decisions are made by someone who knows you. Find out about our mortgage offering.