FTB - Should we wait?

katehesk

Are house prices going to continue to fall do you think or will they level off and maybe start rising again over the next year or so?

People keep saying (by 'people' I mean uncle/cousin/gran/colleague i.e. the average lay person) that house prices are levelling off now and that now would be a good time to buy. But, my gut instinct is that they will continue to fall, and my mum insists that this economic downturn thingymebob will continue for some time to come yet.

So that begs the question, should me and my partner wait for house prices to fall some more, or should we strike now and potentially risk negative equity should prices continue to fall, or will they rise like people are saying, thus buying now would be a good time to do so. I really am just interested in people's thoughts.

new_home_owner_3

i dont think house prices have been falling, reports are they have been slowly increasing since february, i think they wont shoot up, but i cant see them falling much more.

Id seriously think about buying now and i can only see large falls in house prices, if interest rates go up and theyre isnt much sign of that happening in the near future.

opinions4u

katehesk wrote: »

Are house prices going to continue to fall do you think or will they level off and maybe start rising again over the next year or so?

I think you'll see small falls over the winter months, followed by small rises over the spring, followed by little ups and downs through the remainder of next year.

Here's a link to historical house prices. It took nearly a decade for them to recover during the last negative equity situation and I see nothing in financial system that is going to drive them up in the foreseeable future.

People keep saying (by 'people' I mean uncle/cousin/gran/colleague i.e. the average lay person) that house prices are levelling off now and that now would be a good time to buy.

I think they're levelling off. I also think they will stay level for some time, so I don't think there's a rush.

But, my gut instinct is that they will continue to fall, and my mum insists that this economic downturn thingymebob will continue for some time to come yet.

There will be economists with the same view as you and Mum. There will be economists who think the opposite. Personally I see no likelihood of an increase in available mortgage funds to drive prices up, I see nothing else stimulating demand, so that won't drive prices up. The only thing behind the recent very small rises in price has been shortage of supply of houses on the market.

So that begs the question, should me and my partner wait for house prices to fall some more, or should we strike now and potentially risk negative equity should prices continue to fall, or will they rise like people are saying, thus buying now would be a good time to do so. I really am just interested in people's thoughts.

Only you can make the decision.

If you are in a position where you can significantly increase your deposit in a 6 month period, and you know that this would give you access to cheaper mortgage deals, then I'd do that.

But if you're intending to buy a house and live in it for a fair few years, I wouldn't put my life on hold too long waiting for the property market to do something that it may not deliver on.

Hopefully that was helpful.

katehesk

Very helpful, thank you!

dgl1001

If i were you, i would be purchasing asap. Credit is already starting to free up, which is only going to send prices upwards. There are gooing to be FTB'ers out there who have been saving for years and who aren't going to wait - good luck

CloudCuckooLand

Depends on where you are thinking of buying.

Outside London and the South East has not has the same positive upturn, or for as long, as the averages might indicate.

And, 'North and West of the M25' has been getting harder hit in the recession, which won't help prices rise either.

Go over the Welsh border, they dropped 2% last month...

Agree with the winter downturn comments. No rush before fresh turnover of properties in Feb/Mar.

Muhasib

dgl1001 wrote: »

If i were you, i would be purchasing asap. Credit is already starting to free up, which is only going to send prices upwards. There are gooing to be FTB'ers out there who have been saving for years and who aren't going to wait - good luck

are you an estate agent or mortgage broker?

new_home_owner_3

muhasib wrote: »

are you an estate agent or mortgage broker?

I take it your a first time buyer??