We'll never be able to buy a house!

Orion_3

Removing stamp duty for under £250K would be a start. I'm not saying there ARE any easy answers to the problem. But before you seemed to be denying there WAS actually a problem. Or at least not one that couldn't be solved by 'determination'.

Estate Agents see to get away with murder by the way. Presumably their incomes have rocketed as they net a percentage of the house price. Their jobs haven't got any harder or more skilled, yet the amount they make on each sale has increased. And yet all the E.A.'s I speak to are hopeless! The floor plans they displays on propertyfinder etc are often far too small to read, they'll spell addresses wrong, miss digits off the room sizes. And several times this week I've turned up for a viewing and been met by nobody because the Agent forgot to tell me the viewing had been cancelled! How do they stay in work?

cupid_s

Orion wrote: »

For most people it doesn't matter how much they save as house prices are rising too fast to catch up with. What's the point in me saving 10K over a year if house prices rise 50K over the same period?

So how does anyone ever buy a house you ask? Well some people already own one and just need to sell it. Others are lucky enough to have parents who can help out. But there are plenty of professionals who can't join the ladder no matter how 'determined' they are. They've simply been priced out.

I don't think there's many houses that have risen 50k in a year to be fair.

At the moment houses are really not rising much in value in most areas. Some are actually seeing small drops in prices so you'd be able to save significantly more than the house value is increasing by.

And whilst some people bought a house before the ridiculous price hikes, and others are lucky enough to get help from parents, there are still many first time buyers who are not in either of those situations who are still managing to get on the property ladder.

I just think if we can manage to buy a house, then a lot of people who think they can't afford to really could if they tried.

irnbru_2

oasisfeverish wrote: »

although this mornings [strike]news report[/strike]

press release

oasisfeverish wrote: »

predicts that average home will cost £300k in five years time

oasisfeverish wrote: »

For those of you FTBs that are struggling to purchase a home, I would be genuinely interested to hear how we could correct the present increase on prices and combat the affordable housing situation?

And not the answer build more homes, as the ones that appear to being built are going on flood plains, which in the long run and climate change is as useful as a chocolate teapot. More like remove stamp duty fees for any property under £250k, not a massive difference admittedly, but a start.

If a FTB can afford a £250K home: then there doesn't seem to be much of an affordability issue.

Removing stamp duty (for properties under 250K) would add more fuel to HPI.

The housing market is cyclical: ask the people in Nottingham, Manchester and Leeds.

Orion_3

cupid_s wrote: »

I don't think there's many houses that have risen 50k in a year to be fair.

Perhaps 50K is an exaggeration in many places, but not much of one in London. I've been saving the past year and been rewarded only by seeing house prices increasing in value a few grand every month, far more than I earn let alone can save.

Well done if you managed to get on the property ladder. Are you in London?

If house prices are stagnating, then doesn't that make it even more of a risk to buy get onto the ladder right now?

dmg24

The housing market is cyclical: ask the people in Nottingham, Manchester and Leeds.

Can someone qualify this statement with regards to Nottingham please? I keep hearing it, but no one seems able to back it up!

before_hollywood

kingkano wrote: »

I dont mean to be rude, but does your respectable job only pay around £10k? (the fixed rate plus is usually a bit more than 5x I think).

£15k actually

nicola1982_2

dmg24 wrote: »

Can someone qualify this statement with regards to Nottingham please? I keep hearing it, but no one seems able to back it up!

Nottingham - 2004 a flat in my building went for £106k. 2007 3 flats up at £99k none sold yet and some have been up for 6 months+

Friends of mine trying to sell flats have had absolutely no joy whatsoever. Can't speak for houses but flats are definitely struggling.

movilogo

flats are definitely struggling

Because many vendors are asking price for flats which are greater than or equal to those of terraced house. So, why people will buy them?

obsessed_saver

Solution is simple:
1) Stamp duty on people buying to let or buying a second (or more) property - 50% extra on top regardless what the price of the property

2) Tax on selling property that is not main residence - 50%


Given 1 year notice on 2). This will cause price to immediately come down to sensible levels as FTB's that can afford it will keep the market afloat, and there won't be more investors/buy-to-let to artificially put up the price.

nicola1982_2

movilogo wrote: »

Because many vendors are asking price for flats which are greater than or equal to those of terraced house. So, why people will buy them?

In my impression in Nottingham it seems a lifestyle thing. We seem to have a lot of 'new yuppies' here - all about image and the 2 bed 'apartment' (AKA flat) suits that image - it got a bit extreme circa 2003, but seems to have died down again (maybe they're all in debt now!). I rent the flat I'm in (until the 18th - yay) and I just could not imagine buying one. But then again I couldn't imagine the yuppy couple upstairs living in the 2 bed semi we are moving too!

I can't speak for other areas though - but in Notts 'luxury and executive apartments' seem to be everywhere.