new to buying from overseas

zx636

Hello Everyone,
Hope im not intruding as i live in Australia and wish to buy a investment property in th UK.(please note i never intend to live in this property and it would be completly for rental purpose. So please bare with me on my many stupid questions.

I was looking into buying in Ireland but i think that may be just a little messy to get involved into considering what is happening with their economy (correct me if iam wrong).

I have been trying to do quite a bit of research and slowly picking up on things. I have been looking to see try and figure out which areas are actually best to buy in-for things like employment, not heaps of places already for rent etc- please note that im not wishing to spend over 50000pounds. (i know this prob wont buy me much at all but i can afford this out right).

Can anyone guide me on the following-
1.any info on buying property in the UK eg books, websites
2.Best areas to buy into
3.Things to watch out for eg i have noticed its best to buy into chain free.
4.Does buying a flat also incur a yearly body corporate fee(i know some flats/units in Australia can be around 35000 a year just for body corporate fees on top on rates and other bills)
5.Anyone else bought realestate overseas?
6. Any helpful info at all would be great
Thank you so much for your time!! ::)

COLOURBOUNCE

For that money, I wouldn't look in UK at all. Checkout Florida, you can get a decent size house with good rental options and be close to Mickey Mouse if that turns you on. Also, you may be getting in at the bottom of the market, where as here, you may be buying at the top.

chris_m

zx636 wrote: »

please note that im not wishing to spend over 50000pounds. (i know this prob wont buy me much at all but i can afford this out right).

You're right, £50K (less legal fees, etc) won't buy you much at all except maybe a "doer-upper" - not very practical if you're 12000 miles away, TBH.

Can anyone guide me on the following-
4.Does buying a flat also incur a yearly body corporate fee(i know some flats/units in Australia can be around 35000 a year just for body corporate fees on top on rates and other bills)

Can't help on the rest but flats in the UK usually have a ground rent to be paid, which is set out in the lease and doesn't (usually) change.
On top of that there are service charges to cover the costs of maintenance for the whole block/complex as well as communal area cleaning/gardening/lighting/etc. These will vary according to how much the block/complex costs to maintain and will usually include management fees to pay the company/person who carries out the management on behalf of all the leaseholders and the freeholder.

What these charges add up to can vary enormously depending on the type/age of the property and who owns/manages the block/complex. I am fortunate in that the flat owners here are all members of the company that owns the freehold and structures and manages them and that the facilities are basic - but more than adequate. We, therefore, only charge the actual forecasted costs including the cost of our agent who does the actual management for us. Other places have to cover the costs of really fancy gardens, lifts, etc as well as being managed or, even, owned by companies who expect to make a decent profit. A friend lives in a flat where the freehold and management is one of the biggest estate owners/managers in the north-west of England and he has to pay around 2.5x what I pay for mine on the south coast.

googler

Why on earth would you want do this at long distance?

Surely there must be rental and other investment opps in Australia, which will be easier and cheaper to control than in the UK?

zx636

I already own a bit of property in Australia and wanted a bit more of a challenge for somthing different. Thats why im trying to find out info before i get into it. (i tend to get to Uk at least every two years)And Australia sure as hell aint cheap to buy in at the moment(depending where you live of course).

zx636

Sorry forgot to add to previous post, a few friends that own flat/units in Aus have just had there body corporate yearly rate from $3000 up to $15000. Thats why im curious how it works in UK,

bouicca21

Why don't you feed your budget into a site like rightmove to see what you can get for £50,000? That might convince you that you are on a hiding to nothing. If you want to make an investment - so need an area with good transport connections and employment opportunities - £50K will buy you a static caravan, a garage or a a couple of large dog kennels.

zx636

Im not sure what areas such as for example Glasgow are with employment, transport etc for everyday people that live there but i have come across many flats for around 23000-50000 that seem pretty ok, im not looking at central London or Edinburgh City for example.

cattie

The only areas that would have properties in that price range will be in disavantaged areas that have high unemployment and perhaps other social type problems. Nowhere near a decent city with good prospects I'm afraid.

£50k won't buy you a thing in London, or any other city, other than perhaps a garage. In many cases £50k would be the deposit you would need to put down on a property. It would be pretty silly to think of buying in an area you know nothing about, just because the property is dirt cheap. These properties are cheap for a very good reason.

Hillbilly1

zx636 wrote: »

Im not sure what areas such as for example Glasgow are with employment, transport etc for everyday people that live there but i have come across many flats for around 23000-50000 that seem pretty ok, im not looking at central London or Edinburgh City for example.

I have just done a rightmove search for properties under £50k....
I know Glasgow and the Scottish buying system
1) o/o about £30k is waht you would need to search for as o/o £50k will go for about £60k.
2) the areas that these properties are in are not nice and will probably at best attract you tenants on benefits.

I personally think your idea bonkers, there is a reason that the lowest search on RM is £50k.

G_M

Either you are bonkers, or this is a spam post.

On the generous assumption it is the former:

* the kind of property you'll get for that money will not be rentable
* the purchase costs plus 'do-up' costs plus initial agency costs will reduce your capital fast
* running costs at long distance, plus tax, make the idea, as I said, bonkers.