How do any single buyers manage to afford houses when only able to borrow 4x income??

davomcdave

chucknorris wrote: »

I've often wondered if there could be a new type of entry level purchase for places like London, something like an en-suite room, possibly with a very small kitchenette, but also access to a shared larger kitchen and dinning facilities, in a block of about 3 to 5 units? But I don't suppose it is that different to a studio flat.

Possibly mortgage problems buying a place that has no kitchen...?

Maybe the solution is to build more houses and improve public transport access to London.

chucknorris

davomcdave wrote: »

Possibly mortgage problems buying a place that has no kitchen...?

Maybe the solution is to build more houses and improve public transport access to London.

It is never going to happen though, I mean building enough houses/flats to make a meaningful change.

I work in London (live in Surrey) but only part time, and only very rarely do I have to commute during rush hour. I would hate to work full time and commute at peak times, in fact, I just wouldn't do it.

bellaboo86

I bought a house just after starting my career as a teacher on approx 22k. I lived with my parents to save (I did pay them rent) and a small inheritance meant I had enough for a 5% deposit, solicitor fees and 2k to decorate/ furnish the house. Whilst living at home, I tired to limit spending and bought household items like plates etc to go in my bottom drawer to ensure I wasn't starting with nothing.
I would not have been able to do this If I lived down South.

Doshwaster

davomcdave wrote: »

Possibly mortgage problems buying a place that has no kitchen...?

Maybe the solution is to build more houses and improve public transport access to London.

That would require a total overhaul of the planning process as it just takes too long to get approval for new housing to be built and look look at how slow we are at improving infrastructure. The Thameslink project has been going for 20 years and I wouldn't bet on living to see Crossrail 2, HS2 or an extra runway at Heathrow.

Near me there has been a proposed housing development which has been through planning, appeals, redesign, protests and the courts for over 10 years without a single brick being laid. It started off as 1200 houses but has been gradually reduced over the years and the developer is currently trying to get 400 approved as a "phase 1".

Most people will agree that more housing is needed but many don't want them built anywhere near where they live.

ukcarper

chucknorris wrote: »

It is never going to happen though, I mean building enough houses/flats to make a meaningful change.

I work in London (live in Surrey) but only part time, and only very rarely do I have to commute during rush hour. I would hate to work full time and commute at peak times, in fact, I just wouldn't do it.

I did it for many years and a very large number of people still do. With me it was a necessity as I couldn't afford to buy in London but now I couldn't live in London. I mainly commuted by car but did use the train at times and in my opinion you might as well commute from further out as the main problems are closer to London. When I travelled by train I always got a seat where as people joining the train closer to London didn't. The transport system does need improving if more people are to be encouraged but it would be a very costly and disruptive.

ukcarper

Doshwaster wrote: »

That would require a total overhaul of the planning process as it just takes too long to get approval for new housing to be built and look look at how slow we are at improving infrastructure. The Thameslink project has been going for 20 years and I wouldn't bet on living to see Crossrail 2, HS2 or an extra runway at Heathrow.

Near me there has been a proposed housing development which has been through planning, appeals, redesign, protests and the courts for over 10 years without a single brick being laid. It started off as 1200 houses but has been gradually reduced over the years and the developer is currently trying to get 400 approved as a "phase 1".

Most people will agree that more housing is needed but many don't want them built anywhere near where they live.

There is a lot of new building near me they have just started a new project of 3500 houses a few miles away the number of properties within 10 miles of me have increased considerably over the 10 years but there has been hardly any improvement to the infrastructure.

chucknorris

ukcarper wrote: »

I did it for many years and a very large number of people still do. With me it was a necessity as I couldn't afford to buy in London but now I couldn't live in London. I mainly commuted by car but did use the train at times and in my opinion you might as well commute from further out as the main problems are closer to London. When I travelled by train I always got a seat where as people joining the train closer to London didn't. The transport system does need improving if more people are to be encouraged but it would be a very costly and disruptive.

I know, but I wouldn't be prepared to do it, if I was working full time, I would move back into one of my London properties. It was a marginal decision to withdraw my notice (of retirement) and continue to work as it was. I always get a seat going in, but coming home can be bad, it depends if I get to the station more than 5 mins before the train leaves at Victoria.

Conrad

I am involved in the finance industry and previously operated my own regulated brokerage. Many, many single mortgage applicants exaggerate their incomes with assistance from their boss.


All very naughty of course, but when needs must. More than 99% of mortgages annually do not end up in repossession, in other words people are pretty capable on the whole.


I personally know of 1 person that got caught out doing this - he was in receipt of tax credits which gave away the fact his income could not be at the level he'd entered into his application - he did this all direct with a lender. He ended up with a black mark on his credit file as a result.

Doshwaster

chucknorris wrote: »

I know, but I wouldn't be prepared to do it, if I was working full time, I would move back into one of my London properties.

It must be nice having a choice of London properties to move in to!

While I recognise London has public transport problems the smaller cities also need the help. Try commuting into the centres of Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol or any other number of successful employment areas. I'm close to Cambridge but only have one train an hour. Miss it and you are going to be very late for work.

Make it easier to commute into other towns and cities and it would take some of the strain of London as more people would feel able to work elsewhere. Key to this is improving cross-country road and rail links as well as the radial ones in and out of London.

chucknorris

Doshwaster wrote: »

It must be nice having a choice of London properties to move in to!

While I recognise London has public transport problems the smaller cities also need the help. Try commuting into the centres of Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol or any other number of successful employment areas. I'm close to Cambridge but only have one train an hour. Miss it and you are going to be very late for work.

Make it easier to commute into other towns and cities and it would take some of the strain of London as more people would feel able to work elsewhere. Key to this is improving cross-country road and rail links as well as the radial ones in and out of London.

I really wouldn't want to move back to London, I would miss getting out into the countryside with my dog. I liked living in London when I was younger, but nowadays I much prefer living in more rural areas.