Sell the house and Rent

organic_wanabe

I am 59 and my husband is 64 (nearly) and we have been retired for a number of years. Our house, worth around £500k, is mortgage free and we have around the same amount in savings/investments. We both have fairly decent final salary pensions. We love our house and the secluded south facing back garden. Our son lives in London. He had planned to return to Edinburgh at some future date. However, that is unlikely to happen if the Scottish tax rates vary from those in the UK.

If he decides to remain down south permanently then I think we would rent out our house and probably rent somewhere in Cambridgeshire or thereabouts. I don't think we would sell in case we regretted it.

We have neighbours who have rented out their house for the last 5 years or so without any difficulty. For around six months of the year they tour Europe in their motor home and then rent (or house-sit) during the Winter months.

kidmugsy

Awfully pricey, the Cambridge area.

Unlike your neighbours, my instinct would be to stay in Britain in the warmer months, and flee to the sun in winter. It takes all sorts.

Pincher

Crystallising the capital gains is not a bad idea.


Another issue is the inheritance angle. If the house is worth £200k, no problem. If the house is already worth more than £1million, I would worry.


A sweet deal is for the heir to get a Buy-To-Let mortgage,
and then the parent(s) pass down the sale proceeds through paying market rate rent. Sadly, the lenders are not happy about tenants that cannot be thrown out because they are close relatives of the owner.

IronWolf

I think a decision like this should be done entirely based on lifestyle decisions and have nothing to do with whether its a good 'investment' or if house prices 'will crash'.

I think its a good idea if someone wants the freedom to move around easily, or if they want to give their kids some cash or even blow some of their cash on holidays and enjoying the end of their life. At the end of the day if you die with or without a house its irrelevant, you cant take anything with you.

ChopperST

Imagine you have a stroke tomorrow and need to modify your house to your needs - much easier to do that in your own home than one you rent.

The security of owning a property is essential in later life IMHO.

alanq

Pincher wrote: »

Crystallising the capital gains is not a bad idea.

What CGT? If it is the main residence then no CGT applies.

somethingcorporate

alanq wrote: »

What CGT? If it is the main residence then no CGT applies.

Where does it say anything about capital gains tax?

It's simply refers to realising the capital gain they would have (probably) enjoyed on their house.