How do you cope when you can't move?

shouldiauctionit

Sure.

So I've just bought what is a lovely house, but the area is meh (neighbours are quite nice though), and next to a road which can get far far too noisy sometimes which is terrible for somebody with aspergers.

I'm on really really good money and I've worked out I can afford to sell at a huge loss right now (like 15k less than I bought for) and just start saving from scratch.

I'm just very depressed and feel trapped. I'm going to save pennies, get housemates, and work on the house to make it look nicer and just try to sell ASAP.

The house itself is just so nice, but it's just not right for me, and certainly not right now.

My plan is literally to get out of here, total financial suicide, and then just move into a bedsit and recover my mental state and finances slowly. Eventually moving back to my homeland in the countryside

going_nowhere_fast

I'm sorry you're unhappy in your house, on the plus side you have the finances to escape and that it such a big thing.



Soundproofing my house wouldn't help for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason being the sound is from all four sides of the house. I'm trying really hard to clear my debt so I can start saving.

Everyone I know has made money on their houses, I don't know anyone in real life who have (or will be) selling at a loss like I will have to do. It would be helpful to know other people in the same boat. Its very disheartening when other people have made thousands in equity and you're just losing.

lessonlearned

Not everyone sells houses at a profit.;)

A friend of mine lost around 200,000 euros. I only broke even because I managed to sell when currency exchange rates were in my favour.

I know several people who were forced to sell UK properties at a loss in the 90s.

I know people who have been declared bankrupt, lost everything including the roof over their heads and who have knuckled down and worked their way back.

A few years ago I was staring bankruptcy in the face but, just in time, I saw Martin Lewis on the television, bought his books and found this website.

The rest is history.....with what ive learned I clawed my way back and am now solvent. I'm not rich but I'm ok.

It can be done.

You have options.

Bide your time, , carry on clearing debts and then sell up and buy again.

Or

Cut your losses, sell now for what you can get and take it from there, maybe renting for a while.

You need to think it through and make your decision based on the answers to the following questions.

Would you have enough equity to clear your debts or are you so heavily endebted that the equity is just a drop in the ocean.

Is the area likely to get worse, will your property increase in value whilst you wait or will it's value decrease.

How old is your child, what are the schools like. Are you happy for your child to live in the area whilst you ride it out, will your child's educational chances be compromised, will your child be bullied At school because he/she is "different". Will your child get in with a rough crowd, will your child be at risk of drug taking etc.

Is the area really as bad as you think it is, or is it just your immediate neighbours who are wearing you down.

If you are worried about the adverse effects on your child then perhaps it would be worth just getting out now and renting in a better area with good schools and better facilities.

It might be better to forego home ownership for a while and ensure that your child is brought up a safe and secure environment, in an area that has better prospects for his/her future.

The more you write about your circumstances the more You make your neighbourhood sound like a crime infested ghetto overrun by drug dealers. Is this the case or are you so depressed that this is just your perception.

If it really is as bad as you fear then perhaps it really is time to get out and move to somewhere decent, if not for your sake, then for your child.

I seem to recall 6 years was your anticipated timescale.. 6 years is a huge chunk of a child's life. And it's a long time for you to be so miserable.

Home ownership is a great goal but sometimes it can be one that is better postponed until you can afford something in a more family friendly area.

[Deleted User]

Please consider buying headphones. I use closed ear ones and I can't hear a thing from outside, even the neighbours dogs that seem to bark practically all day. Of course, you do have to play something you want to listen to but I find even when they are not playing anything, outside sound is considerably blocked out.

Without these headphones I'd have gone dotty a long time ago lol.

TBagpuss

going_nowhere_fast wrote: »

I'm sorry you're unhappy in your house, on the plus side you have the finances to escape and that it such a big thing.



Soundproofing my house wouldn't help for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason being the sound is from all four sides of the house. I'm trying really hard to clear my debt so I can start saving.

Everyone I know has made money on their houses, I don't know anyone in real life who have (or will be) selling at a loss like I will have to do. It would be helpful to know other people in the same boat. Its very disheartening when other people have made thousands in equity and you're just losing.

Bear in mind that people are much less likely to talk about it if they sold at a loss.

When someone sells and makes a profit they may be happy to talk about it because of one or more of:
- they think the increase was a result of their good judgment, not good luck, and want to boast
- they feel others will think they are being extravagent with their next house, and want to make clear that they were lucky with the way the market went and are not overstreching themselves
- they feel pressure from eveyone else talking about how much their houses have gone up, and feel they have to join in
- they can't quite believe it and need to say to out loud
- they've been through periods of negative equity or falling prices and feel relieved / thankful that their property value eventually increased so that they made a profit.

Whereas the prevailing view of property as investment rather than simply as a home can lead to people who sell at a loss feeling that they have somehow failed, or are to blame, and so they are much less likely to talk about it.

also, a lot of people are not very good at maths. I know quite a few people who are conveinced that they made a profit when they sold their house when actually they didn't, they had simply repaid part of the mortgage so the net equity was bigger than the original deposit!

TBeckett100

i wouldnt complaint formally about the neighbours. When you sell you have to declare neighbour gripes and if someone see that the neighbours are a problem, you won't sell.

going_nowhere_fast

Lesson learned - thank you for your comments.

In answer to your question my area is not a horrendous ghetto but because I moved from a decent area to here I really see the areas problems and I am not hopeful the area will improve. There is a lot of terraced housing which are slowly but surely being bought by landlords. On my street I am one of five houses that are owned, the other 12 are rented. The streets around me are the same. All the rental properties house stereotypes, young unemployed single mothers, living in their PJs, generally inconsiderate with noise. The area does have a problem with drugs - most areas do now but because its a small densely populated area I have seen drug dealing and I don't like that at all.

The local council pretend to be 'regenerating' the area but keep adding more and more homes in the area for alcoholics, drug addicts and people leaving prison. Putting so many of those type of occupants/homes so close together does not encourage home buyers, it just adds to the decline of the area.

The school my child attends is a good one so there are no problems there. There are some lovely people who live in the area and they have no plans to leave but they are in the nicer streets and maybe more importantly they have always lived here so I think they are used to the area's problems whereas I am not.

I have looked into all options and I believe I am doing the right thing plan wise but it takes time. I do have to work at keeping motivated and am guilty of having the odd cry when I see how other people are OK and I am watching the pennies.

When I bought this house I looked at the area day and night, knocked on neighbours and spoke to them, looked into crime, and it is great for amenities (we still have local swimming pool, library, butchers, etc). I knew it wasn't a rich area but had no idea of the areas problems, there was no indication when I was buying. It was much later on when I found out a house had been fire bombed, or i found out about the house that used to used to be used as a brothel by the tennant, or the drug addicts that were being put up in a house close by!

All working class areas have their problems but because I live in the pocket close to the problems I think it has really really affected how I feel. Its hard to forget the problems when you have seen them first hand.

I have also been made aware that the council have plans for the area, it is going to be used as a dumping ground for all the 'problem people' and 'problem families' for the surounding areas over the next few years.

going_nowhere_fast

TBagpuss wrote: »

Whereas the prevailing view of property as investment rather than simply as a home can lead to people who sell at a loss feeling that they have somehow failed, or are to blame, and so they are much less likely to talk about it.

I have never understood people viewing their house (which they live in) as an investment, its your home! But saying that I do feel like I failed because I picked a lemon. House is nice, area is hmmmm

going_nowhere_fast

Lesson learned, I forgot to say I'm glad things worked well for you.

going_nowhere_fast

TBeckett100 wrote: »

i wouldnt complaint formally about the neighbours. When you sell you have to declare neighbour gripes and if someone see that the neighbours are a problem, you won't sell.

Legally, you should disclose any potential problems so for example if next door's dog barks all day and night, even if it doesn't bother you and you've never complained, you are obliged to inform your buyer because it is reasonable to expect it would be a problem and cause a nuisance.