how are these kind of prices still about? grrrr!

Pobby

I remember peaks and troughs in the housing market bit nothing like the past 10 years. Against such low wage inflation it beggers belief. There`s no doubt that the housing market has been ramped up by the media. " Creative " lending, very low interest rates, btl and so on have all contributed to higher prices.

For me, I don`t believe that any crash has been halted or indeed will we see prices rise over the next few years.

Frankly, I don`t think the government has much of a clue what to do. Expressly against Browns word, they have allowed the housing market to get out of control.

They have allowed people to get into fear some debt and we are now seeing the consequences of that.

b0rker

whathavewedone wrote: »

PS: In my experience men, rich or otherwise, do not find drunk and crying women very appealing. Nor do they like moaning women unless the moan is (a) legitimate (b) they can offer a solution to the problem and (c) you will accept said solution and then stop moaning. Men are simple creatures. They like sane, easygoing, reasonably content women. Carry on as you are and you will end up on your own with a load of cats. You have been warned!

LOL!!!

I think I will make a variant of the bold section part of my wedding vows.

Perfect. Thank you for that.

Mini_Bear

I wish these property programmes would get off the tv. i blame them (not entirely) for the property boom and subsequent bust. They rub the average persons nose in it "oooooooh look what this couple can afford".
I hate the fact that an average person can only afford a miniscule studio flat in the south-east for example. if people stopped their pre-occupation with property, let houses drop in value. ppl would have more ££ to spend on worthwhile things such as hobbies and sports, charities and would mayb have to work less hours. BLISS!!

b0rker

Mini_Bear wrote: »

I wish these property programmes would get off the tv. i blame them (not entirely) for the property boom and subsequent bust. They rub the average persons nose in it "oooooooh look what this couple can afford".
I hate the fact that an average person can only afford a miniscule studio flat in the south-east for example. if people stopped their pre-occupation with property, let houses drop in value. ppl would have more ££ to spend on worthwhile things such as hobbies and sports, charities and would mayb have to work less hours. BLISS!!

That's a bit rich coming from someone posting on a forum related to property prices...

The average man on the street who is not posting here and is pre-occupied with property is surely even less pre-occupied with it than you are Mini Bear?

We are British. We are generally all pre-occupied with property. We love to own our own homes. Which, along with the lack of supply, is exactly what will keep house prices high in this country.

Good old simple supply and demand.

baileysbattlebus

whathavewedone wrote: »

Well it depends where you live. There are areas in the south east such as Hastings where a couple earning 15k each could buy an average home quite easily.

There were grand Victorian houses going for less than 250k in summer 07. A friend of mine sold a 2 bed cottage in a smart part of Kent for 275k and bought a 5 bedroom one with a huge garden for under 250k the same year. Not everyone's cup of tea to live there but she and her family are happy. A lot happier than a family with 3 kids would have been in a 2 up to 2 down anyway.

Compromises compromises.

You are right - it very much depends on where you live and where you are prepared to live.

When I was young - people getting married tended to buy a flat or small terrace house - I'm in my 50's and originally from the north east.

This street is where my sister started her married life - in one of these. She doesn't live there now - (she lives in a posh part of Whitley Bay) but it was a start. I presume originally they were built for shipyard workers - they are not conversions - they have always been flats.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-13164876.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E1391&sortByPriceDescending=false&minBedrooms=2&displayPropertyType=flats&oldDisplayPropertyType=flats&pageNumber=9&backToListURL=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Ffind.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DREGION%255E1391%26sortByPriceDescending%3Dfalse%26minBedrooms%3D2%26displayPropertyType%3Dflats%26oldDisplayPropertyType%3Dflats%26index%3D80

They are large flats - comparatively speaking and affordable. Her daughter has just bought something similar, though a 2 bed. She is 28 and single and has an entry level job for the civil service - salary about £17k. She did have a deposit of about 15% and her legal fees.

Quite a few of my friends and work colleagues started off in those or if they had a bit more money one of these - again purpose built but newer and a bit more expensive and on a private estate.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-21030946.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E13948&sortByPriceDescending=false&minBedrooms=2&pageNumber=2&backToListURL=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Ffind.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DREGION%255E13948%26sortByPriceDescending%3Dfalse%26minBedrooms%3D2%26index%3D10



These are purpose built older flats not far from us.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-12737172.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E27364&sortByPriceDescending=false&minBedrooms=2&pageNumber=1&backToListURL=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Ffind.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DREGION%255E27364%26sortByPriceDescending%3Dfalse%26minBedrooms%3D2

So no way could my niece on her salary afford anything here - and her salary would be the same. But because of where she lives she had quite a bit of choice in her price range.

kennyboy66_2

Pobby wrote: »

I remember peaks and troughs in the housing market bit nothing like the past 10 years. Against such low wage inflation it beggers belief. There`s no doubt that the housing market has been ramped up by the media. " Creative " lending, very low interest rates, btl and so on have all contributed to higher prices.

For me, I don`t believe that any crash has been halted or indeed will we see prices rise over the next few years.

Frankly, I don`t think the government has much of a clue what to do. Expressly against Browns word, they have allowed the housing market to get out of control.

They have allowed people to get into fear some debt and we are now seeing the consequences of that.

I would be astonished if average prices were any higher in 2,3 or 5 years time than they are now. I'm sure we will get individual months when prices go up, but the overall trend will be stagnation with the risk of overall falls.
The Gov't / BoE would probably love to see no increases in prices over the next 10 years (or a slow deflation of the bubble) but its really beyond their control.
If we did see continual price rises, I'm afraid interest rates would have to go up, even though that is the last thing the economy needs at the moment.

I guess the thing for frustrated buyers to do is keep saving and hold their nerve.

gjchester

mitchaa wrote: »

Some people are just not meant to buy hence the reason for council and social homes.

People earning £15-20k shouldn't really expect to be able to buy anything resembling an average home imo.

I'd rather think they are unable to buy rather than meant to buy would be a better way of putting it.

As I've said in other threads I think the sell off of all council / social housing under the right to buy was a bad idea, not because of the selling to people, that's good. But the fact the money that was raised from the sales should have been ploughed back into housing, not put into general goverment / council spending pots and squandered, leaving us without enough social housing now.

ILW

I believe over 70% of homes are owner occupied. Does this not suggest that homes are more affordable than ever?

wolvoman

People are missing an important point on this thread - equity.

So many people have equity, or have parents with equity and this needs to be considered when looking at average affordability.

£150k for a 2-bed flat might sound expensive but several people I've met would have easily had half of that paid for in cash by their parents.

andykn

wolvoman wrote: »

People are missing an important point on this thread - equity.

So many people have equity, or have parents with equity and this needs to be considered when looking at average affordability.

£150k for a 2-bed flat might sound expensive but several people I've met would have easily had half of that paid for in cash by their parents.

"Average" equity is around 50% across the whole of the UK housing market.