Where to start?

pinkshoes

JimBlizz wrote: »

I appreciate the point you are making, and it isn't lost on me.

My problem is that I can't afford to rent an equivalent size flat in this area. I want this to be a home and as such I would like to be able to take more than a sleeping bag and a pillow.

You haven't told us how much it would cost to rent the same 1 bed flat, nor how much a 2 bed would cost. So...?

2 beds are a much better idea, as you have a spare room for guests, or an office, or a flatmate, or a kid! I know you're single now, but at least you would have a room to grow into...

JimBlizz

In this area, if I want a 1bed with off-road parking (important to me) and enough space i'm looking at around £450/mo at the bottom end of the market.

Most of the rental properties i've seen for under this price have been rather run down and small.

I have very good credit, if I were to pay the asking price on the flat in question (and no I wouldn't actually pay the asking price) after maintenance i'm looking at around £50 to £75 /mo *less* for a superior property, better energy efficiency and perfectly located for me (close to work and the motorway).

If I can get a lower price, then it becomes even more attractive to me.

JimBlizz

A two bed flat would be about £20k extra (list), and a bit further away from where I'd like to be (although the distance isn't really a deal breaker).

LittleMissAspie

Whether 80k is reasonable for a 1-bed flat depends on where in the country you are. Buying being cheaper than renting the same place is a good sign.

BUT

You've obviously saved hard for your deposit so you don't want to buy something that could go down in price afterwards. Have you been tracking prices, are sellers dropping their prices? Are places selling or sticking? Could that 2-bed end up 20k cheaper if you wait a while? I thought new builds tended to be more expensive than equivalent older properties too.

Property Bee will tell you what the houses and flats for sale now are doing, and houseprices.co.uk will tell you actual sold prices.

I know a shared house isn't ideal but it could be a means to an end.

poppysarah

If 80k for a 1 bedder seems like a bargain then you've been suckered into thinking the insane house prices are ok. They're not. And the longer they go on and the more of OUR money the government pumps into banks to prevent them falling as they need to, the worse it'll be for all of us.

LittleMissAspie

poppysarah wrote: »

If 80k for a 1 bedder seems like a bargain then you've been suckered into thinking the insane house prices are ok.

Nationally it's not a bargain but in my immediate area (central Cambridge) 80k would be perfectly reasonable. Currently they start at 100k... only 20%+ to go then...