Are family homes an anachronism?

zagubov

We're in a large house by London standards (ie four bedrooms but one is tiny). DD has moved out but may move back.

We'l never own anything bigger if we stay in London but for reasons some regulars on these threads now we're unlikely to leave.

London really needs a massive number of small apartments/maisonettes/flats. Not many people come to London to raise a large family. Gardens here are usually underwhelming, and many parts of the UK have bigger window-boxes. Parking space is an issue.

We should stop pretending that houses are more suitable than flats. If that means scrapping leasehold tenure, well, you all know and are bored by my opinion on that by now.

economic

westernpromise wrote: »

Large houses certainly do get filled with junk. We are in the process of clearing out my mother in law's 5-bedroom which she bought for £6,000 in 1961. The whole thing is filled to the rafters with garbage that should have been thrown away decades ago. There are the typed up minutes of the residents' association meeting of 1992. There are thank you letters from 1987. There is an artist's easel she giftwrapped as a present then changed her mind and kept still wrapped, over 20 years ago. Because the space cost her flumpence (I paid 6 times more stamp duty when I last bought a smaller house than she paid for the whole actual house), she saw no cost in wasting all that space. So she stored rubbish for decades.

I'm not in that happy position but if you take the view that family capital is to be preserved, that it's on me to provide a home, and that one should think on multi-generational timescales, then sitting in one large house that's under-used for decades seems silly. Much more rational is to have several of different sizes. Maybe we need a new paradigm of ownership where it's about being a homesowner rather than a homeowner. The penalties for selling up and buying are now so crippling that fragmenting your property wealth seems sensible. You give away what you don't need and minimise the tax grab on what's left.

me and my family are in a similar position. my parents both early 60s have a 4/5 bed house worth 700k. to downsize seems pointless given all the costs etc. maybe they could downsize to a 500k property. but it doesnt release a huge amount and they have more then enough for retirement (specially when you take into account state pensions they will get).

now they have more then 2m when you consider my parents will sooner or later receive inheritance themselves. most of it is all tied in properties worth 6-700k each. they will probably keep the properties and let out to fund their retirement.

it seems like such a waste to live in a 700k 5 bed house when its just the two of them. but they will probably stay put for a while given the pointlessness of downsizing. meanwhile large inheritance taxes are at the back of all our minds.

economic

meanwhile i prefer to live more modestly in my modest 2 bed flat in highgate. i most likely will be here for life.

GreatApe

economic wrote: »

me and my family are in a similar position. my parents both early 60s have a 4/5 bed house worth 700k. to downsize seems pointless given all the costs etc. maybe they could downsize to a 500k property. but it doesnt release a huge amount and they have more then enough for retirement (specially when you take into account state pensions they will get).

now they have more then 2m when you consider my parents will sooner or later receive inheritance themselves. most of it is all tied in properties worth 6-700k each. they will probably keep the properties and let out to fund their retirement.

it seems like such a waste to live in a 700k 5 bed house when its just the two of them. but they will probably stay put for a while given the pointlessness of downsizing. meanwhile large inheritance taxes are at the back of all our minds.

If they have £2m and are due inheritances themselves they can pass on any inheritances they receive to whoever they like without it touching their estates. That might be a better idea than trying to gift it at some later point and hoping they survive 7+ years so it isn't in their estates.

qwert_yuiop

Clifford_Pope wrote: »

What do you mean "So I have ... )

You seem to be saying that there has been a long story leading up to this point in your narrative, at which, to cut a long story short, you wind up with your conclusion, "So, .....)

Do we need to know the story do far?

Haven't you noticed? The hip new way to start a sentence is with the word "so". Now that's been pointed out, you'll realise you're hearing it all the time.

qwert_yuiop

economic wrote: »

large inheritance taxes are at the back of all our minds.

These are rich people's problems. Relax.

kabayiri

It seems almost the opposite here.

There was this small-ish block of land next to the school in the village, with a bunch of flats needing renovation.

The developer demolishes it all and builds 4 so-called executive semi-detached. 6 bedrooms each, and that little shared courtyard area at the front which looks the part.

I've met the occupants of 2 of the homes...couples who haven't any children yet! One of them mentioned selling up in the SE to pay for this place.

I don't really understand it. This is lower occupancy not higher.

economic

GreatApe wrote: »

If they have £2m and are due inheritances themselves they can pass on any inheritances they receive to whoever they like without it touching their estates. That might be a better idea than trying to gift it at some later point and hoping they survive 7+ years so it isn't in their estates.

thanks i didnt know that. if that were the case and the property is passed onto me, would i have to pay the 3% additional stamp seeing as i own a property already?

westernpromise

There is no SDLT upon inheriting because there hasn't been a transaction.

economic

westernpromise wrote: »

There is no SDLT upon inheriting because there hasn't been a transaction.

thanks

incredible to think i was nearly financially independent on my own, however with potential inheritances on the way i am clearly over that line now.