When some people move into a new house all they want to think about is what changes they would like to make to the decor in order to make it truly reflect their personality and interior design style and taste.
Because not everyone wants to do any major DIY, preferring to just get a paint brush out and add their style via accessories, furniture and soft furnishings. For many the thought of borrowing or hiring power tools and renovating a house is the stuff of nightmares.
But with the Covid-19 pandemic having a substantial effect on the housing market it can be a challenge to find a reasonably priced home at the lower end of the market that is 'move-in' ready.
READ MORE: Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen's unusual family living arrangements in country mansion
Wales has consistently been the top region in the UK to experience the highest increase in average house prices, even with the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggesting a slowing of the market rises. Find out more about that here.
Nationwide Building Society states that although house prices have been increasing at double-digit rates so far in the first four months of 2022, they could start falling again as budgets are put under pressure by the rising cost of living. Inflation reached a 40-year high in the year to April 2022, hitting nine per cent as measured by the Consumer Prices Index.
With the uncertainty about the future of the economy, the rising cost of living squeezing house hunters' budgets, and mixed property expert predictions, plus Wales remaining the hottest spot for house price increases in the UK, finding a cheaper house in our nation is now significantly more difficult than pre-Covid times.
Of course, there are still ways to buy a property on a budget, including shared ownership and accessing schemes such as Help to Buy - Wales. And if you are happy to get stuck in with the DIY, have a renovation budget to get professionals involved, or love the idea of buying a wreck and transforming it into a stunner, then the property auctions are the place for you, and where you will find the majority of the cheapest houses for sale in Wales.
But if DIY and building work sound like the worst scenario that you can think of, there are still houses for sale in Wales for under £150,000 where all the stress and sweat of a renovation project has been done for you.
Of course, a survey will assist in flagging up any potential issues with a property before you buy it, but on the surface these homes for sale for £150,000 and under, look ready to welcome you as their new owner without a power tool in sight.
Holywell, Flintshire: £100,000
Between Rhyl on the coast to the north and Mold further inland to the south, this market town is well positioned for the beauty of Wales including the Dee Estuary plus the cities of north west England.
And this refurbished terrace house is well positioned for the town's high street too; it's just around the corner. There's nothing to do here regarding DIY, just a perfect first-time buyers home that offers comfort and convenience.
There's an open-plan lounge and kitchen on the ground floor that features a clever half-wall, meaning the opportunity to add more lower kitchen cupboards on one side, and some visual separation between the two zones of cooking and relaxing.
Add a spacious double bedroom and shower room on the first floor, plus off-road parking and a chain free purchase for the potential new owner and this house is potentially a carefree package. Just choose your own personal interior design style, and off you go living a stress-free, DIY-free life in this budget friendly abode.
The house is for sale for offers over £100,000 with estate agent Adore Properties, Bolton, call them on 01942 818033 to find out more.
Llanelli, Carmarthenshire: £109,950
If you want character as well as a modern home, then maybe this distinctive property is the one for you. The mid-terrace has been given a spruce up throughout but has some period features remaining too, including its unusual and engaging arched facade design and ceiling beams in the open-plan lounge.
The newly fitted kitchen has space for a small breakfast table as well as space for the modern appliances needed, with the bathroom found next door, off a rear hallway. Upstairs the house can boast two, double bedrooms.
The easy maintenance rear courtyard garden is surrounded by walls and has steps up to a seating area where there is one final, happy surprise - a front row seat over the garden wall to the local bowling club, so you can watch the match from the comfort of your own deck chair.
The house is located just a short drive away from the Carmarthenshire coast as well as Trostre Retail Park and strolling distance to the town centre and is on the market for offers in the region of £109,950 with John Francis, call their Llanelli branch on 01554 773051 to find out more.
Near Machynlleth, Gwynedd: £112,000
If you think you can't get a unique history and a stunning rural location for this budget, this stone cottage is going to disagree with you. A slice of Grade II listed history as one home in this pretty row of four terraces is offered here, as a former slate miner's cottage.
The estate agent describes the location as being about a mile from the slate mining village of Corris and within the small hamlet of Tanygraig, which seems to have more sheep than people - it's an idyllic rural setting if that is what you yearn for.
For more facilities, Machynlleth can be found to the south and Dolgellau to the north, but for more peace, for a good price and only your choice of paint colour for the walls to consider, this pretty cottage is a pretty good property proposition.
The house has a sitting room with so much character to adore including slate fireplace, ceiling beams and flagstone floor. There's a kitchen, rear utility and lobby area, and shower room at the back that leads to a cute, sunny courtyard. Upstairs there are two double bedrooms.
To the front of the property is a slate forecourt with ample space for alfresco dining looking out over the fields of sheep and undulating hills. There is also a detached, lawn garden area found about 90 metres away.
This house with history is on the market for offers in the region of £112,000 with Morris Marshall & Poole, call the Machynlleth branch on 01654 702472 to find out more.
Rhayader, Powys: £115,000
A compact budget won't get you a country mansion, but it could get you a slice of it at this cute courtyard cottage. It is a one bed home that is nestled within the communal grounds of a country estate as your front and back gardens, so there's plenty of space outside to enjoy.
The abode is found in the heart of Carreg Llwyd Place, a select development of ten properties in total, just a stone's throw from the centre of the popular town of Rhayader.
There's plenty of scope to make this pretty mews cottage your own too; but don't worry not with DIY but with just the positioning of correctly proportioned furniture.
The open-plan kitchen, diner and lounge can accommodate all three functions if the layout of the space is designed well. The cottage has a double bedroom, a shower room, its own designated courtyard space and two parking spaces within the estate's grounds.
The vendors have informed the estate agent that The Mews currently has a restrictive covenant in place that prevents the property from being let out, so what a gem for a first-time buyer to call their own escape to the country home without a country estate sized budget.
The Mews is for sale for £115,000 with James Dean estate agents, call their Builth Wells branch on 01982 552537 to find out more.
Rhondda Valleys: £135,000
Plenty of time for you to walk the hills and mountains of the Rhondda Valleys from this base as your home - everything has been done for you so you'll have no evenings and weekends booked out for wallpaper stripping and woodwork sanding.
And while you're out and about, you could find extra excitement at Zip World, wander over to the waterfalls within the Neath Valleys and pop down to Cardiff for an exhausting shopping expedition, because what will be waiting for you when you come back is literally nothing to do - just a fully modernised three bed home.
Downstairs there is a substantial lounge diner that leads into the stunning new kitchen, which in turn flows out into the rear garden. This outdoor space is a neat and tidy blank canvas, so if you did want to add some work to your 'to do' list and add some value and colour too, the garden is waiting for your soon-to-be green fingers.
Upstairs the renovation project has successfully managed to create a good sized shower room rather than a downstairs version which is so common in this style of traditional valleys house, plus keep three bedrooms too; happy days.
And happy days if DIY brings you out in hives, because it's all good to go here at this terrace in Treorchy, for sale for offers in the region of £135,000 with Darlows, call them on 01443 436445 to find out more.
Cardiff: £140,000
It's hard to find a house ready to move straight into within the capital city and virtually impossible in one of the most expensive areas, so most first-time buyers will be looking for a flat. But if you look hard enough within the northern suburb of Whitchurch, you will find a hidden gem.
Not only is this pretty, one bedroom detached bungalow just around the corner from the shops and restaurants of this thriving and popular area of Cardiff, it has its own cutest of wraparound, private courtyard gardens too.
The front door opens onto an open-plan lounge diner that flows past the shower room, the door to the double bedroom and into the kitchen at the rear and it all works together beautifully.
Just turn up with your suitcases and moving van, turn the key and get on with living, with a few paint colour changes and some new cushions the minimal amount of changes to suit your style.
The bungalow with no DIY to taunt you is on the market with a guide price of £140,000 with Mr Homes Sales and Lettings, Cardiff, call 029 2020 4555 to find out more.
Near Swansea: £150,000
The budget of maximum £150,000 can get you three bedrooms and zero renovation work in and around Swansea, if you hunt hard enough.
This fully renovated mid terrace, three bed in Gorseinon means no time spent grappling with DIY and more time either heading towards the beaches of nearby Gower peninsula to the south or popping into Swansea for a retail therapy or socialising session.
There's an open-plan lounge diner created by the removal of the dividing wall which backs onto a handy utility room. If you were tempted to do a bit of work to the house, then removing a section of the wall between the lounge and utility room could be considered.
Add French doors to the outside wall of the former utility room and you've got yourself a bonus garden room and a main reception zone that flows from front to back, with views of the garden, as well as light, shared throughout.
And the garden is a very good size with no opposite neighbours as houses, just some rugby posts, so it is worth considering ditching the utility room and making it flow from the lounge - you can always dry your socks on the garden washing line.
The newly fitted, modern kitchen and bathroom can be found at the rear, with the kitchen alongside the utility room, so there may be the option of extending the kitchen space into that area should a new owner want a larger kitchen or a kitchen diner that connects to the garden.
Yes, that utility room, handy though it is, is so ideally placed to connect to the garden some might feel it's a missed opportunity not to use it as a living space rather than a functioning laundry room.
Or, a new owner could, and should, be very happy to just move in and enjoy the light, bright and modern home that has already been created for them.
The three bed near beaches and a city is on the market for £150,000 with Purplebricks, call them on 0800 810 8008 to find out more. And to make sure you never miss the best dream homes in Wales, renovation stories and interiors, join the Amazing Welsh Homes newsletter, sent to your inbox twice a week.
