It's STILL tough and not getting better - so how are we coping?

Gigervamp

My friends have lived in 3 rented houses in less than 3 years. They had to leave both of the previous properties when the landlords decided to put the houses on the market. They had only 2 months notice at their last place and it's now back on the rental market.

That's the problem with renting. Unless you're with the council or HA, there's no security in renting. I saw the stress my friends were under when trying to find a new place (especially as they have 2 cats and a lot of rentals won't allow pets).
Also, there are an awful lot of landlords out there who don't do repairs etc on the properties as they should.

ceridwen

365days wrote: »

I agree here too.
My parents were the first generation to 'own' property in the family. My mum now does own her house-no mortgage. I suppose it's weighing up how close you are to the line with a mortgage. if it is less than rent for a comparable property it is the way forward. if it's crippling you and renting is cheaper then renting is the way to go.

..and maybe thats part of the reason for my strong beliefs about home-owning....as my family have owned their own homes for a lot longer than that.

Having said that - those who intend to buy obviously do have to bear in mind that current interest rates are as low as they can - and there IS only one way they could go in the future (ie up). Back when I bought my place - I stretched and stretched and s..t..r...e...t..c..h..e..d again to get the dearest place I could possibly manage with the wind in a good direction - and it worked for me. My advice on buying a place these days would be the reverse - ie get the cheapest place you possibly get - because at least you've got SOMEWHERE. If things improve for you in the future to the extent that you can EASILY "trade up" then do so - but at least you've got a roof over your head thats your own to start with.

Charis has certainly made a good point - in that the State (IF it helps!) with rent when one gets older is certainly going to expect that people live in the smallest place they possibly could (ie a one bedroom flat in a not very good area). They certainly would expect me, for instance, to live in a smaller place and worse area than I actually have now....:eek::(:(. As it is - I can sit back and "Blow the State - THIS is what I have for a home". The thought of having to live a teeny flat in the worst area in my locality - :eek::eek: - I would not be sleeping soundly in my bed at night and I'd be feeling very isolated.

Everyone has to weigh up their own circumstances - and I always think its wise to take the long view and think: "If I stay on my present course of action - what will my old age be like?" versus "If I do such and such instead - what will my old age be like?".

All our circumstances differ - and we have to weigh up what our circumstances are and its also very important to weigh up what type of person we are/what things are most important to us personally.

There are a lot of different factors to weigh up to decide whats best for you personally. We also all need to have an accurate estimate of what WE personally are capable of achieving - not either an over-estimate of our own abilities on the one hand or "downgrading" any abilities we have on the other hand. We need to accurately assess our own plus points and minus points as a person - to properly assess what we are going to be able to manage to do personally with the "cards we have been dealt by Life" (some other people would be able to do better than we have in the circumstances that we have - others would do a sight worse in the circumstances that we have...)
(It took some "getting my head round" to realise that I'm simply not hardworking enough and I'm too non-conformist to ever earn good money on the one hand - BUT I have a better sense of "which way the wind is blowing" than most people on the other hand. That's my "minus" point and "plus" point respectively.)

northwest1965

littleowl wrote: »

OK - does it really matter that you might be off the property ladder? Think about it - you said your friends and family are warning you that this would be a bad thing. Why would it be? That is what I meant about the British being brainwashed into believing ownership is all. After all - having a mortgage is renting from the bank or building society - you won't own the property for many years and when you do you will have to pay for upkeep which is never cheap - and for what? To leave to your descendants.
I think it is very hard for British people to get their heads around the idea that owning bricks and mortar is not necessarily the best thing one could do. It is far better to live within one's means, to be without debt and feel happier with no financial burden weighing you down every day.
Oh I know I will never convince everyone - or even anyone - but believe me, from experience I know which I prefer.

I totally agree about having a mortgage within your means, so many people upgraded just to keep up with the Jones'. My only question about renting is 'what do you do when you retire?' How can you afford to pay a rent?
With so many people living longer the state will not be able to pay everyones rent when your income stops. I say if you are on the property ladder and can manage even if its tight, try to stay on it.

Gigervamp

My mum's a pensioner and gets housing benefit, but it doesn't pay all of the rent.

kidcat

Gigervamp wrote: »

My friends have lived in 3 rented houses in less than 3 years. They had to leave both of the previous properties when the landlords decided to put the houses on the market. They had only 2 months notice at their last place and it's now back on the rental market.

That's the problem with renting. Unless you're with the council or HA, there's no security in renting. I saw the stress my friends were under when trying to find a new place (especially as they have 2 cats and a lot of rentals won't allow pets).
Also, there are an awful lot of landlords out there who don't do repairs etc on the properties as they should.

Just wanted to say that if renting from a council or housing association is an option then yes renting can be great but private renting is a nightmare. We lived in a rented property for ten years and very few repairs were ever done, then last summer out of the blue we were given two months notice, as the house was being brought back into service as living accommodation with a post that had been created. It was awful no prior warning that it was even being considered and we were out. We are now by necessity living in another property from same Landlord in a neighboring town, simply because there was nothing else available in our town that was affordable/accepted kids/accepted pets/was right size. No council or HA houses available and not allowed to join the list until we were actually homeless. Buying our own home is something I am desperate to do, just so that we have the choices and can live without the permanent fear that we will be out with no notice.

littleowl

kidcat wrote: »

Just wanted to say that if renting from a council or housing association is an option then yes renting can be great but private renting is a nightmare. We lived in a rented property for ten years and very few repairs were ever done, then last summer out of the blue we were given two months notice, as the house was being brought back into service as living accommodation with a post that had been created. It was awful no prior warning that it was even being considered and we were out. We are now by necessity living in another property from same Landlord in a neighboring town, simply because there was nothing else available in our town that was affordable/accepted kids/accepted pets/was right size. No council or HA houses available and not allowed to join the list until we were actually homeless. Buying our own home is something I am desperate to do, just so that we have the choices and can live without the permanent fear that we will be out with no notice.

In the Uk tenants' rights have been eroded over the last ten years or so and I think this is an area which should be re-examined. In France tenants have a much greater security if tenure.

kezlou

Primrose thanks for posting the recipe really appreciate it

My rents quite cheap for where i am, but i'm in a good area at the mo. Would love to own my home in the countryside, but its not going to happen. Mortgages are too expensive and its only going to get worse. So for me financially its better to stay where we are. I'm in the private renting sector so at any point my landlady can say clear off, now the council or HA have only offered us bombshells in bad areas. So i'm staying where i am for now.

Had a very unMSE night with OH as i made a silly mistake times but we really enjoyed ourselves. We had a very relaxing romantic meal *aww soppy, gag gag gag*. But back to old style for the next two nights as were eating indoors and friends coming over tomorrow for dinner and booze.

Going to have another cuppa and sort some stuff out x

kidcat

littleowl wrote: »

In the Uk tenants' rights have been eroded over the last ten years or so and I think this is an area which should be re-examined. In France tenants have a much greater security if tenure.

If renting is going to become more stable then yes tenants rights need to change. We took our last place after being told it was a long term deal, a home for life we were told, retired property, wont be in service again, so we settled down, didnt think of buying spent time stripping floors etc. To be thrown out with such short notice (two months is not enough to be able to buy a property even if you have the money for a deposit) was a shock.

Maybe a change should be that you are entitled to an extra months notice for every year you spend in a property. That would have really helped us.

crickett1234

Can I just say, thank you to everyone who contributes to this thread? There are such fab recipes and interesting conversations going on and I am learning so much. Through my life I have lived through 2 re-possessions when mortgages went wrong, so I was sooo nervous when DH and I bought this little house. Thankfully prudence is our middle name, and we didn't over extend ourselves. We need to move house now though because this place is just too tiny. 3 cats and 2 adults who are self-confessed packrats equals we need more space. Just getting this place ready for sale and then we sit and wait. I hate that part of the moving process.

I have also lived in lots of rented houses over the years, and they have always been fine. Some worse that others of course, but my parents now live in a Housing Association flat down in Wiltshire, and it is lovely. They are well looked after, and frankly... it takes so many worries away from me.

I need to get ready for Mum coming to visit this weekend. She is coming up to attend DH's 40th Birthday party (barn dance... all organised but it is costing quite a lot of ££££ - but he's worth it... and at least this present won't add to the clutter in the house!!) but I need to "de-fur" the spare bedroom which is where the pusskittens spend most of their time. The carpet used to be cream, but now looks...ummm...tabby coloured!! This could take a while!! And after the spare room is done and ready to receive guests, I then need to clean the rest of the house and threaten DH with 15 different sorts of death if he messes ANY of it up! LOL. Mum is a bit of a stickler about cleanliness, and she has been known to do the "white glove test" when she arrives. Yikes!! :eek:

maryb

Yes it's a lovely feeling knowing you have paid of the mortgage and can finally feel safe.
But then I remember the terror at times when I thought we would go under if we lost our jobs. Highs and lows.

We were lucky and we are now enjoying the rewards of being able to hang on through the tough years. With the benefit of hindsight I wish we had gone for a smaller place and discovered overpaying years earlier. We would have saved ourselves some of that terror. When I remortgaged to a flexible mortgage it wasn't the best headline rate around but I was astonished at how quickly the balance came down. Compound interest is one of the most powerful financial tools around and it's fantatsic when it's working in your favour