Buying a house in Liverpool or nearby?

nicki_2

I am well aware that we are unable to afford much of a mortgage ATM and with debt repayments taking over £200 a month of our income its going to be a while until we can afford a decent deposit. That said, however, my partners grandad has offered to give us our £3,000 inheritance as a deposit, which would cover the majority of the fees and leave us with some deposit. However I would like peoples opinion on my view point which is this:

Liverpool is capital of culture for 2008 and since this was announced houseprices have risen greatly. The number of apartments being built/renovated has increased dramatically and us poor first-time-buyers have basically been outpriced except near Anfield or Goodison. An great example is that the house we used to live in was originally sold to our old landlady for £28,500 (closing date was 3rd October 2000) and she sold it on 20th August 2004 for £76,000 (£47,500 profit minus expenses) and a similar property nearby is now priced at £81,000!

Since my partner has a job in Wigan (40 minutes commute each way 5 days a week) we were considering moving to Wigan or at least nearer there as soon as possible but I have been thinking. By my calculations we should be out of debt (excluding his £4000 student loan, which is BTW the lowest APR on any of our loans) following the payment rates stated by the loan companies/bank by August 2008 at which point we would have a considerable amount of "disposable" income which could be used to put towards a deposit and fees. (I'm hoping to spead up these repayments but thats a different thread for a different board)

To me it makes sense that house prices will continue to rise in Liverpool due to all the investment being made in the capital of culture venture. Surely after all the hype and 2008 houseprices should slowly start to fall (if only slightly) due to people moving out of the area after being surplus to requirement post all the "celebrations". Therefore making it easier for first-time-buyers to get onto the property ladder. Am I right in my thinking or should we just try to pay off all our debt as soon as possible and move to Wigan as soon as we can afford it?

gallygirl

I've been following prices nationwide for some time now. Bad news I'm afraid - even if there is surplus housing after 2008 prices won't fall by anything of any significance. A lot of the speculators will be buying to let, probably with a fairly long term plan. If they want to sell but feel prices have come off the boil they will probably continue to let - ultimately more properties to let may lower rents short term, but as they are not selling there will be less houses on the market, so demand will outstrip supply which will push prices up - this will counterbalance any short term fall in prices. If you see what I mean.....

I'd suggest you get on the ladder as soon as possible.

Just a thought - are Bellway building any new homes near you? They do a 75% ownership scheme - you give them 25% of the sale price when you sell but don't accrue any additional debt while you live there, and no rent is charged on the 25% (unlike some schemes I've seen). Downside is you lose 25% of your profit - but hey, 75% of something is better than 100% of nothing.....

dibbs26

I'd go for it....................capital of culture and all the biz that goes along with it will have only a positive affect on the house prices. My advice is to get on the ladder asap. coming from Liverpool I know what you mean re anfield and goodison areas.
good luck