Your Town?

biting_the_bullet

Just thought it would be interesting to see how others locations are performing. Try to get an idea of the housing market across the nation. I'll start for startings sake. Obviously you'll need a little insight into how the loacl market is performing, be it through own dealings/friends/relatives etc.

Personally i've been looking to buy for about a year and half, made 3 offers in that time and for reasons such as being out bid, a last minute pull out on a 160K semi when i found out next door an upstairs flat was going to be let through to an offer being reduced on a dodgy survey that was not accepted, i've viewed perhaps 30 properties in that time. Plus a sister who is selling now and lots of local estate agency contact.

Grimsby/Cleethorpes.

Prices either down(generally) or at best even to mid/late 2005 prices. Houses for sale for a long time slowly being reduced as they go. Examples of 30K off detached 2005 prices over a year and a half and still unsold. Viewings on properties below 170K, otherwise its paint watching time. Examples of a house being sound in constructure/design/location, being on the market for upto nearly two years, slowly reducing to being the cheapest detached on the street and still un sold.

Rental market is flooded with homes advertised for rent, all fixed to 2005 rent costs jockeying for position trying to pull the next dream tenant in.

More than a dozen advertisments in a small area, for companies who thrive on people who bought pre boom and have withrawn equity to such a level that now they have to face up, or folk bought with the aid of a huuuuuuge mortgage and are now feeling the weight of being slowly pulled under.


So come on, how is your area doing. Be great to see some REAL reports in your neck of the woods. Please realise this is the normal house buying open season. the run into Christmas.

Sarahpuggy

Hello,

Im originally from Grimsby! Near Waltham All my family still there like. Just thought id say that lol.

Im living in London now, so to me the prices are completely crazy! We are still going to buy something though, even though i feel bonkers at times lol.

Sarah x

Doozergirl

I own in an area of South London in which prices have risen 20% over one year according to the LR and still rising.

Bromsgrove, where I live, prices have been pretty much stagnant for the last 2-3 years, partly to do with the huge amount of new build I think, but a definate slow down to almost stagnant after the 2004 IR rise. 2006 has seen property turning over much faster and I can see a little bit of a rise in prices from year start but only 2-3%.

lynzpower

Im selling my SO ( about to put on market any day now- she says!) to rent. IM in E3.

From what I can tell, from speaking to local estate agents and how quickly SOLD boards are coming around, upmystreet type research resale property seems to be shifting fairly quickly.

Lots of new build round here, and prices do seem to have been cut back a bit, some you can now get a one bed for 280k with balcony, which seem to be same if not slightly lower than this time last year.

I wouldnt say prices are rising at all though ( in resale property) , I think they are about the same as they were about 6 months ago.

Rental prices round here seem to have gone up massively. There were a lot of voids about 6 months ago, but seemingly not so much now.

Id say currently round here in E3, bouyant. Altohugh it may be different when we come to sell!

Mrs_Optimist

I am in Devon, in an up and coming (apparantly!) town called Exeter where houses are being built everywhere, the town centre is being totally rebuilt and in fact it has lost its natural charm and now resembles a clone town. However prices have absolutely rocketed - thank god we bought when we did 10 years ago. We are now moving out of the town and will commute 20 minutes each way per day (Kids will still go to same school and I still work in the town) and will get a 4 bed detached with conservatory, garage, loads of land for around £250k. We currently live in a 3 bed mid terrace, no conservatory, or garage (although we have off road parking) and expect to sell for around the £170-£180k mark). MAD. here are plenty of houses on the amrket but some are way overpriced and therefore it is a buyers market. But the EA we have spoken to recently have told us that interest in buying has declined since the last interest rate rise. Hence why we are selling now, rather than waiting. Will needs your guys expert advice about some issues/queries I have so will post a new thread so as to not hijack this one.

indiegirl_2

Milton Keynes - masses and masses of new builds here, and a very buoyant Shared Ownership market as well. Shared Ownership is selling within a day or two, and prices are good (I'm about to sell my S/O here, and have made £10k in a year on my share alone).

Flats are the thing in MK at the moment - houses aren't selling so well. That said, properties in the 160k-180k bracket are going very quickly (I'm looking to buy in this bracket and have missed out on a few already). Some sellers, as a result of this, are getting greedy and upping their sales price despite the house not being worth it...

In the higher brackets, there is a massive glut of houses in the £230k-£300k bracket, which don't seem to be selling so easily and stay on the market for weeks and sometimes months.

Rental prices have risen in the last year by approximately 10-15%, but there is a vast amount of properties available to let at the moment.

Flats are currently selling so well their value is higher than houses - my flat, for example, is valued in its entireity at £180k, but my sister's double-fronted 2 bed house with cloakroom and large living space is only work £160-165k (we are in the same area of MK).

I expect the market to stagnate somewhat over the winter months, but to pick up again in February (when I plan to put my flat on the market )... well, I can but hope!

pawpurrs

How strange Indiegirl, why would someone prefer a flat (no offence)

indiegirl_2

pawpurrs wrote:

How strange Indiegirl, why would someone prefer a flat (no offence)

No offence taken, I can't understand it either: I'm moving to get away from mine! I'm desperate for a house, but when I was offered on the S/O scheme it was a flat or nothing, so I accepted. (now I'm lucky and can afford outright, so a house it is for me!)

I live very close to the M1, so I can only assume that my area is good for commuters. That said, chatting to an Estate Agent the other week, he said that flats were selling v well across MK and houses were sluggish. Clearly I'm not seeing something that others are....!!

Horasio

Mrs_Optimist wrote:

I am in Devon, in an up and coming (apparantly!) town called Exeter where houses are being built everywhere, the town centre is being totally rebuilt and in fact it has lost its natural charm and now resembles a clone town. However prices have absolutely rocketed - thank god we bought when we did 10 years ago. We are now moving out of the town and will commute 20 minutes each way per day (Kids will still go to same school and I still work in the town) and will get a 4 bed detached with conservatory, garage, loads of land for around £250k. We currently live in a 3 bed mid terrace, no conservatory, or garage (although we have off road parking) and expect to sell for around the £170-£180k mark). MAD. here are plenty of houses on the amrket but some are way overpriced and therefore it is a buyers market. But the EA we have spoken to recently have told us that interest in buying has declined since the last interest rate rise. Hence why we are selling now, rather than waiting. Will needs your guys expert advice about some issues/queries I have so will post a new thread so as to not hijack this one.

I am thinking of buying a house in that area or an area that is good value down south. Would you recommend it? I am looking for a small detached place. You seem to get more for your money than in the south east.

linlin_3

Seems to be a buyers market on the Isle of Wight with loads of property for sale and none selling very fast (in line with the laidback life style). Prices are probably around 30K less than mainland UK but very few job opportunities.

leftieM

Northern Ireland had a crazy summer. House prices here were traditionally cheap - we bought a 4 bed ex-council house at 80k almost 5 years ago. We've just sold it for 179k. The 11-plus is being scrapped soon with no mention of what is to replace it so there are a number of people trying to get near the good schools in case it goes the way England did (ie catchment area-based selection). The house we bought went 40k over the asking price, presumably because of its proximity to a good school (that's why we paid that much anyway!)