We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.
This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Hello Forumites! In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place for our users, discussions around non-MoneySaving matters are not permitted per the Forum rules. While we understand that mentioning house prices may sometimes be relevant to a user's specific MoneySaving situation, we ask that you please avoid veering into broad, general debates about the market, the economy and politics, as these can unfortunately lead to abusive or hateful behaviour. Threads that are found to have derailed into wider discussions may be removed. Users who repeatedly disregard this may have their Forum account banned. Please also avoid posting personally identifiable information, including links to your own online property listing which may reveal your address. Thank you for your understanding.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Buying a flat in a tower block
ruelle
Posts: 165 Forumite
It's on the second floor but I've heard it's quite difficult to get a mortgage on tower blocks. Everything over the 5th floor is cash buyers only generally. Am I setting myself up for future difficulties by buying it? Or is second floor OK? Seems ridiculously cheap for the area.
0
Comments
-
If it's ridiculously cheap for the area then there will be a reason for it. Who is the freeholder? The council? Could be expensive. Is there a lift? Expensive to maintain and repair.0
-
I'd be wary. What're the neighbours like - all the way to the top, seeing as they'll all come through the same door. How much is the maintenance - imagine the cost of replacing the roof when it's so high? How do the common areas look currently - do people take care of them?0
-
Personally I'd say don't do it. If you ever want to move it'll be stupidly hard to sell. They don't tend to have sinking funds for repairs so if the building needs major work you could be hit with a big bill, and as you say they're mostly cash buyers only.
They're demolishing some not far from here because they're at the end of their lifespan and they need more spent on them than it would cost to demolish them and start again. Also they tend to be in poor areas and have high crime rates.0 -
The answer to these questions is generally: It depends.It's on the second floor but I've heard it's quite difficult to get a mortgage on tower blocks. Everything over the 5th floor is cash buyers only generally. Am I setting myself up for future difficulties by buying it? Or is second floor OK? Seems ridiculously cheap for the area.
It depends where the flat is - by me flats in tower blocks have no difficulty selling and you can get mortgages at least up to the 10th floor (tallest block nearby) Not all companies will grant one, but there is still healthy competition.
But the biggest thing to watch out for is whether any work will need doing in the near future. I've posted on this before here, but in summary, a 60's block near me needs maintenance work doing and is currently going through a long and painful process to get it done. There have been numerous estimates of the cost, and over several years the amount has been bumped up each time. The cost to each lessee is now estimated at approximately 40% of the current market value of the flats. It is in desperate need of the work and is not something that can be left indefinitely but yet again there are delays. You need to make sure that nothing like this is likely to be in the pipeline in the near future (preferably because it has just been done) otherwise you might be in for a big shock in a couple of years time.
SPCome on people, it's not difficult: lose means to be unable to find, loose means not being fixed in place. So if you have a hole in your pocket you might lose your loose change.0 -
Everything over the 5th floor is cash buyers only generally. Or is second floor OK?
You might have misunderstood - it's more like "any building with more than 5 floors", the location of the flat isn't relevant. Assuming the social landlord still has the majority of flats, you're at their mercy whenever they want to instruct an expensive refurbishment project. Or demolish the block.0 -
Yes, I was going to say ... It's the number of floors in the block. Being second floor of a tall block could still be a problem.0
-
You might have misunderstood - it's more like "any building with more than 5 floors", the location of the flat isn't relevant. Assuming the social landlord still has the majority of flats, you're at their mercy whenever they want to instruct an expensive refurbishment project. Or demolish the block.
oh, i didn't realise that. thanks for clearing it up. i was a but suspicious because it's a popular area in london yet it hasn't appreciated much from the last sale a few years ago. i guess this is why. such a shame but it sounds like it's best to steer clear.0 -
-
carefullycautious wrote: »
wow. think it's a definite no!0 -
sorry if this is a dumb question but how is this different from buying a leasehold flat and the freeholder doing major works?0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 352.8K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 454.7K Spending & Discounts
- 245.9K Work, Benefits & Business
- 602K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177.8K Life & Family
- 259.8K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.7K Read-Only Boards