Mid-twenties, how much should I have saved?

liverpoolcarl

I am 28 with 33k in the bank for a house deposit and I worry all the time that I am not on the property market. A lot of people say to me I am in a great position but buying a house seems like such a gamble now and where I live I don't see prices going down and reasonable 10% to 15% less that asking price offers I have made always get turned down...

epsilondraconis

If you want to feel better about your circumstances, you could do worse than read some of the posts on the DFW board, IVA board or bankruptcy board.

I guess that makes you appreciate more about what you have got, than what you haven't. More so than comparing with friends / peers, especially those that have a career within investment banking.

Maisie11

Do you live with your parents?

housesitter

To those not yet on the ladder but with substantial deposits in their late 20's, I'm in the same boat.

I've been putting my toe in the water and have decided thus far that the is an utter lack of reality on the part of vendors at present so am keeping dry and adding to my deposit fund for at least the next 6 months (strangely my rental term).

However, that's me. But I'd suggest you look at the market, use the like of propertybee and houseprices.co.uk and then make up your own mind.


I too am worried about missing the boat, but from my conversations with EA's I understand that I'm in the right position and there attempts to con me in to any sense of missing the boat are laughable at present.
IMHO having investigated, it's utterly the wrong time to buy. May that come back to haunt me.

greenface

Is it really that much of a wrong time to buy at the moment. Prices are a lot less than last year but are still going down (agreed) but that can put solid buyers with a decent deposit in a very good position. People selling are worried how much further and often really NEED to sell. You can ask cheeky prices and that could be the only offer the've had for months and may have to take it seriously.. Interest rates for savers are sh*t but borrowers (if you can get it) are good.
Once the world says the drop /crash has leveled they would be less likely to accept cheeky bids because there will be more buyers trying to get in on the ladder thus hey-ho pushing them prices back up again.
Thats my opinion but how much do i know

housesitter

My experiences have been with people who NEED (eg: made redundant after shipping fmaily to Australia) to sell is that they are still unrealistic.

Possibly due to having bought at the wrong time. They are trying to avoid negative equity but are shooting themselves in the foot as it's only getting greater. A couple of months of further drops should bring them back to reality which is why I feel the need to hold off.

I am seeing asking prices at 2006 levels currently, but realism would suggest they should be closer to 2004 levels.
That's been the sticking point for me thus far.

My cheeky offers in line with that have taken me no where.

With that in mind, I can only see that it has further to go unless buyers get worried and start acting irrationally.