Smeagold wants some advice/opinion/input

smeagold

michaels wrote: »

I was working at CW which is a pig of a commute from here so lived in the DW's (at that time DG's) house in New Cross in the week and spent weekends at mine about 1 hour drive away from Fri night to Sun night. I found it exhausting and didn't really feel 'at home' at either place. Yes New Cross is not that pleasant but you are talkign of looking for fairly cheap rent in Bridgwater so presumably are not looking to be in the best neighbourhood?

Are you sure your DW would really like the lifestyle - you are putting yourself somewhere very remote if you end up on your own, if you ar e remote enough even the hoped for 'local' job may and up a long and gruelling commute away. Similarly your kid - even with home schooling you need to get involved in a lot of activities with other children to satisfy the local authority requirements.

Re the trading 'profits' - are you beating the market indices given the level of gearing and risk you are running. The Wilsons 'made' a fortune by gearing themselves up on a rising market but doesn't mean they were actually making a real profit...

I'm very cautious on the trading and only use a smallish amount of risk capital. The money I make on a weekly basis is pulled from the account and used/saved.

Both me and the missus are from farming backgrounds and would much rather be in the country. The arrangement wouldn't be permanent(hopefully) as the missus is looking for a job in devon.
And even if she didn't I have plans for a business in a year or 2(agricultural) and I also spent many years as a farmer, a builder and a butcher, trades that are useful in the country.(my mothers parents we're farmers I lived and worked on the farm for 10 years) With a paid for house overheads would be low. we don't want to be too remote no. but we arn't in a rush we can stay here for another few years if we want and just wait for the right place to come up. Its just an option we are considering.

SilverStandard

smeagold wrote: »

Seeing as this is housing related I thought I'd ask the wise heads on this forum(of which there are many) for a bit of input/ opinion on a recently hatched plan.

I sold in 2008 and made a nice profit which I put into metals(hence the signature) as of now I could sell maybe 75% of that investment and together with other savings could raise over £200k.

The original plan was to wait until houses fall in value and metals to increase, which has happened, and then perhaps buy some land or maybe, in a few years, buy a large house with a few acres.

The missus is restless tho and wants to buy soon but I don't want to buy a house for say £350k and be saddled with a mortgage when IRs are about to rise and prices fall.

The essential problem is proximity. proximity to Mrs Smeas work. Bridgewater. Shes a consultant clinical psychologist, top pay. 3 days a week, but we don't want to buy in that area. prices are too high and we want to live in cornwall/devon where prices are much lower and discounts are getting better and better.

So the(new) plan is, sometime this year(once metals rise more and houses fall more) to find a place in cornwall/devon for maybe £200-250k, that gets you alot, 2 or 3 acres and 3/4 beds and buy it virtually outright while at the same time renting a place in Bridgewater, living there 3 days a week and then 4 days in the owned house in cornwall/devon until such time as mrs Smea gets a job in the area(doesn't matter if it takes 5 years)

Under these circumstances we don't need to worry about IRs rising(no mortgage) and it doesn't matter if it 'drops in price' as it will be a family home and 3 days in a town and 4 days rural seems fine to me

I'm a home based trader making between £1-2K a month on avg, so can work from anywhere, (its tax free tho not through the books) the only question is, is...

am I missing anything do you think? does this seem like a good plan or a daft plan? Mrs Smea seems, intially, quite positive. Any advice/ opinion would be welcomed.

My opinion Smea is to wait. Houses still going down and metals still going up. Be patient.

smeagold

SilverStandard wrote: »

My opinion Smea is to wait. Houses still going down and metals still going up. Be patient.

I am but the missus less so. Pretty sure I can stretch it out till later in the year tho. just depends if she spots a house she likes and says 'we could buy that' I really want to buy land, alot of it and wasn't really that bothered about buying a house at all. just see what happens, suppose.

Graham_Devon

smeagold wrote: »

So the(new) plan is, sometime this year(once metals rise more and houses fall more) to find a place in cornwall/devon for maybe £200-250k, that gets you alot, 2 or 3 acres and 3/4 beds

Eh?

Dunno where you have been looking. 3/4 beds depending on area, yes. But 3-4 acres with it? Must be thin on the ground, if at all possible.

Can't speak for cornwall though, there are some dives which you may get that sort of house for the price !

smeagold

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Eh?

Dunno where you have been looking. 3/4 beds depending on area, yes. But 3-4 acres with it? Must be thin on the ground, if at all possible.

Can't speak for cornwall though, there are some dives which you may get that sort of house for the price !

The mrs spotted one 2 days ago 4 acres for under 250k but needed renovation, but thats no prob

RenovationMan

smeagold wrote: »

The mrs spotted one 2 days ago 4 acres for under 250k but needed renovation, but thats no prob

As well as not underestimating the time and expense of growing your own food, you really really dont want to underestimate the time and expense of renovating a place.

I'm already £20k down on our place and counting, and it wasnt a renovation project as such, it just needed updating.

If you really want to go down this path and dont want a mortgage, then you need to really do your sums right. You will have added expenses from having two homes, that will include gas and electricity - unless your happy for the house to burgled because all the lights are off all the time (I suggest having a lamp and a radio on a timer switch) and happy for your pipes to burst during a plunge in temperature. You will also find that you need to be on site most of the time if you are having work done (or at least available at the end of the day to look at progress that day.

With a house to renovate, a vegetable patch to mantain, travel to and from a remote job for your OH and you having to be online a lot to play the markets, I just dont see how you will find the time to do all this.

darkpool

why not use the full 200k capital and use it trading? if you can make 10% a week/ month (as claimed elsewhere) within a year you could buy a whole estate mortgage free?

bendix

darkpool wrote: »

why not use the full 200k capital and use it trading? if you can make 10% a week/ month (as claimed elsewhere) within a year you could buy a whole estate mortgage free?

Stop asking difficult questions, darkpool.

smeagold

darkpool wrote: »

why not use the full 200k capital and use it trading? if you can make 10% a week/ month (as claimed elsewhere) within a year you could buy a whole estate mortgage free?

too risky putting that amount of money into company I know nothing about plus I'd have to sell bullion and I'm not doing that

smeagold

RenovationMan wrote: »

As well as not underestimating the time and expense of growing your own food, you really really dont want to underestimate the time and expense of renovating a place.

I'm already £20k down on our place and counting, and it wasnt a renovation project as such, it just needed updating.

If you really want to go down this path and dont want a mortgage, then you need to really do your sums right. You will have added expenses from having two homes, that will include gas and electricity - unless your happy for the house to burgled because all the lights are off all the time (I suggest having a lamp and a radio on a timer switch) and happy for your pipes to burst during a plunge in temperature. You will also find that you need to be on site most of the time if you are having work done (or at least available at the end of the day to look at progress that day.

With a house to renovate, a vegetable patch to mantain, travel to and from a remote job for your OH and you having to be online a lot to play the markets, I just dont see how you will find the time to do all this.

Thats ok I built an extension on the previous house on my own. bricklaying, windows, doors, roof, plastering, wiring, flooring the lot. I know how much work it is. Not looking for anything thats a nightmare just slightely run down will do fine and I can buy an alarm. Don't have to do everything at once. just prioritise