'Property !!!!!! Experts: where are you?' blog discussion

astralbee

Of course, we'd all have liked a slice of the pie when everyone was talking about making money out of property. But I bet as many people lost as there were profiting from the huge rises in the past few years.

I know a couple that tried to make money by buying run-down houses, living in them while doing them up, then selling for profit. They worked all year only to make a measly £1000 from the sale.

Those of us that passively thought we might be sitting on a goldmine with the value of our own property rising may be initially disappointed by the crash... but if like us it was all speculative and you were not really serious about selling then you've lost nothing!

Dar

freeliving

setmefree2 wrote: »

Hi:hello:,

The house we bought had been in someone's family for a 100 years. Maybe it can be in our family for a 100 years and my family will always have a roof over their heads?

SMF2

the way we're going on this planet there won't be any resources left in 50 years and life will be real tough. Oil production has peaked, there's 90% less fish in the sea, England and America are going to war to fight for oil and resources...

All I'm saying is if we didn't have to pay interest on money we wouldn't have to increase the rape of the planet (production and profits) in order to pay fictitious money back to banks, who are ofc profit making organizations...

But u know total respect when u have repaid your mortgage,well done, u've beaten the system just don't remortgage to pay for your retirement home :P

tealady

I feel that most people buy and move from house to house to make money. What they cannot see is they have not "made" as much as they would like due to interest payments, alterations and repairs. If house prices drop, well thats market forces for you, at least if people are selling to buy another house then theoretically the house they are buying will have dropped in price as well.
House buying and selling to make a profit is a form of gambling IMO, I bought my house to have a roof over my head not to use it as a cash cow.

setmefree2

tealady wrote: »

I feel that most people buy and move from house to house to make money. What they cannot see is they have not "made" as much as they would like due to interest payments, alterations and repairs. If house prices drop, well thats market forces for you, at least if people are selling to buy another house then theoretically the house they are buying will have dropped in price as well.
House buying and selling to make a profit is a form of gambling IMO, I bought my house to have a roof over my head not to use it as a cash cow.

Hi:hello:

I bought my house as a home too. People seem over obsessive about house prices (market values) when as you say alot of the cost of a house is in the interest paid on a mortgage. I don't get much time to watch property !!!!!! but if I did I'd enjoy it whatever the market values of house where. I like nosing at peoples decor and interiors....;)

Regards

SMF2

majorzott

In the past a mortgage was maybe three or three and a half times saleries, thus effectively capping the amount a couple had to spend on their first house, and even then only 90% mortgages were available, (10% deposit needed). Of course to make money the more a bank lends the greater its proffit, so slowly the amounts available for lending have risen, 4x, 5x saleries, 90% to 100% and even 110% mortgages. So the more to spend doesn't cap prices were they were! Only flaw is the loans became more and more risky and then - crunch.
Also people have gotten used to the 'instant fix', they don't expect to have to save up a 10% deposit, so I recon this correction will last for as long as it takes people to save a reasonable deposit, (generally), and then the market will begin to pick up again.
Another point so what if your house has dropped 20%, if your staying put what's changed really ? If you want to move then the house you want to move to will also have dropped 20%, so you'll actually be better off, (if it's more expensive). Only loosers are people at the end of the chain, - sellers who want to cash in their assets - everyone else is a winner.
Regards

ManAtHome

majorzott wrote: »

Only loosers are people at the end of the chain, - sellers who want to cash in their assets - everyone else is a winner.

Unfortunately the 'losers' at the end of the chain tended to be your children or grand-children etc, so the only real 'winners' are at the gene pool terminus...

bobed

Martin

It seems to me that we are to encouraged get bargains for cheaper items like clothes, broadband, electronics etc.

When it comes to homes - the biggest, most expensive purchase of our lives - there is noone championing the idea of value for money. Have you ever considered being this champion?

Bob

tinecu

Martin,
Many pundits were warning of a house price crash some time ago but they seem to have been drowned out by a kind of get rich quick fever that had overtaken the country. Remember those painful dinner conversations about how much someone had made by the apparent rise in value of their house....arrggh! The fact that I don't have to suffer these awful gloating idiots any more is a silver lining in the current housing market cloud.

FWIW I know that Home.co.uk were predicting house price calamity since 2006.
See: http://www.home.co.uk/asking_price_index/
In particular the article on house prices 'surging towards a tipping point'

Oh the madness of crowds (and banks!).

1sue23

I am a little confused as to when homes that we need to live in and to bring our children up in became something to make money from .
My parents purchased a house in the 50s after first living with parents and then in rented and every penny was accounted for to buy this home ,but never in my entire life did they talk about its value ,it was extended in the late sixties and had a new kitchen fitted but paid for with savings they would not have even known its value because it was their home end of .
Watching property programs now it is all about value and what it is worth kitchens are ripped out, new designer bathrooms are fitted ,family size houses are extended all to increase the value but it seems no family ever live in these houses because they are then sold on just for the money .It just seems madness, falling house prices may redress this and people will see houses as homes again not a quick money making scheme .