What Quarter of a Million gets you in London

Generali

Right out in the 'burbs too:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/propertypicturegalleries/10925298/London-homes-for-sale-for-under-250000.html?frame=2954071

The median household income in London is £39,000 and the BoE has recently said that the very riskiest mortgages should be 4.5x household income.

If you have £50,000 saved up, more than 3 years net income, and you take out the very riskiest mortgage on offer you still can't afford a tiny flat in a council block in Greenwich:eek:. Even someone on £60k, the median income for the top 10% will be pushed to buy in a year if prices continue to rise at the present rate.

Something's gotta give. There'll be a revolution at this rate.

mayonnaise

Generali wrote: »

The median household income in London is £39,000

You sure about that?

Out,_Vile_Jelly

My purchasing figures weren't dissimilar to those you use as an example; I bought a 2 bed house with garden in a scruffy bit of zone 4. Would have been a lot easier as part of a couple.

An awful lot of people in London earn a lot less than people think.

michaels

Hmm, looking at median in ones of all.rather than house buyers again.

Surely what matters is whether net incomes after other li ing costsike food, council tax and commuting in London can service the amount of property debt outstanding? I suspect on this metric property debt still has a way to go; economics 101 demand for 'housing services' is pretty inelastic.

onlyroz

I sold a 2-bed flat in SW15 for £202k in 2007. I don't think that the values in the block have increased since then going by more recent sales.

[Deleted User]

I remember struggling to find anything at the £200k mark back in 2006, and we ended up moving out to zone 6. I'm sure it would sell at £250k which is a bit insane really.

To get a 'nice' house is just crazy to think about.

Generali

mayonnaise wrote: »

You sure about that?

I was. I'm not so certain now. What do you think it is?

Graham_Devon

mayonnaise wrote: »

You sure about that?

When you consider just how many bar workers, shop workers, and all service workers there are in London, it would surely be about right.

There are some very well paid people in London.

However, I doubt there are many checkout operators on anything excessive, and there will be a hell of a lot of checkout operators, hairdressers, bar staff etc.

I really have no idea how these people live in London to be honest.

I like the fact that one of the highlights for one of the homes shown in the article above is that is has central heating..... 250k and the big plus point is central heating!

ruggedtoast

Generali wrote: »

Right out in the 'burbs too:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/propertypicturegalleries/10925298/London-homes-for-sale-for-under-250000.html?frame=2954071

The median household income in London is £39,000 and the BoE has recently said that the very riskiest mortgages should be 4.5x household income.

If you have £50,000 saved up, more than 3 years net income, and you take out the very riskiest mortgage on offer you still can't afford a tiny flat in a council block in Greenwich:eek:. Even someone on £60k, the median income for the top 10% will be pushed to buy in a year if prices continue to rise at the present rate.

Something's gotta give. There'll be a revolution at this rate.

One of my friends is using help to buy with his girlfriend to max out some mega loan on a 2 bed in Walthamstow. A place people would have avoided going through a few years ago.

Quite aside from all the shortcomings of the tiny flat they are buying for near to £400,000 (offered asking price as soon as they saw it) It's interesting listening to all the justifications people use to try and convince themselves they actually want to live in these places.

• It's got a great community!
• It's really multicultural!
• It's getting better!
• There are some trendy cafes and bars there now!

Whereas in reality it's a crime ridden dump with schools you wouldn't send your kid to if someone paid you.

I suspect eventually young people will just lose interest in going to London. It pulls young people from two directions, higher salaries and better jobs, and the lure of the not inconsiderable culture that London offers.

However a lot of the makers of youth culture can no longer get near London (try renting an artists studio in Hoxton now unless you have Tracy Emin's budget), and the cost of living is now so high there that the marginal increase in salary doesn't help much.

I guess the museums are still free.

onlyroz

To call it Putney is a bit of a stretch, but this one's just round the corner from where I used to live:

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-44461147.html

Bit basic, but there's this one:

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-42614605.html?premiumA=true

And if you're after a 3-bed:

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-45110068.html

mayonnaise

Generali wrote: »

I was. I'm not so certain now. What do you think it is?

Seems a bit low to me.
This report mentions 900 p/w.
http://data.london.gov.uk/documents/fol10-income-report.html
(but it's 2010 data)