Buying a flat/house in Birmingham

SandyCrevice

JenniferZenn said:

Better- Search Criteria

1) House (than a flat)

2) Not Shared Ownership

3) Not LeaseHold

4) Areas to look - up & coming areas (doer upper)

Don't dismiss flats or leasehold. A good leasehold property could be a better investment than a poor freehold house. Judge each property on their merits.

RM_2013

Birmingham and Stoke are very different places.  Really depends what you are looking for.  I live approx 25 miles from Birmingham but worked in the city centre for many years so familiar with some of the areas. Suburbs with as Sutton Coldfield, Solihull etc are popular but very pricey. Depends how close you want to be to the city centre.  Edgbaston and Harborne are close to city centre but spme
very large impressive and expensive properties can be found there. Areas like Digbeth and the jewellery quarter have undergone a lot of regeneration and have lots of apartments etc - close to city centre and have a vibrant atmosphere - clubs, restaurants etc.

my husband was born in Birmingham and his family lived in Oldbury which has a mix of estates, older properties and areas which have been revamped - its close to the city centre and motorways.

my advice would be do some
rightmove searches to see what sort of properties you like and the prices.  Then get more information about different areas - ask colleagues and friends and maybe visit some of the areas 

good luck 

MFWannabe

You will most definitely be able to buy somewhere
If I were you I would: 
a) speak to a good mortgage broker to see how much you could borrow.
b) Decide what is important to you, is it to live near family? Outside space? City life or more rural? 

C) Look on Rightmove at properties in areas you like based on decisions made in point b 

_Sam_

MFWannabe said:

You will most definitely be able to buy somewhere
If I were you I would: 
a) speak to a good mortgage broker to see how much you could borrow.
b) Decide what is important to you, is it to live near family? Outside space? City life or more rural? 

C) Look on Rightmove at properties in areas you like based on decisions made in point b 

Seconded that, especially b) - it can be easy to overlook when focusing on how good the house/area is, rather than would it suit your lifestyle and preferences to live there.

For example I work near Birmingham but have never considered buying a house there. One of the things I enjoy most in life is going for long walks with my dog in places where you can easily get away from people and not be reminded of them. Another is gardening. I hardly ever find myself going to the city unless for work.

So we bought a house on the edge of Peak District with large garden in a rural village. It's 1 hour plus commute to work, yet beautiful countryside on the doorstep. To me it's worth it, other circumstances like working from home most of the week help too but if I had to go in everyday I would still not have bought a house in Birmingham, I'd have endeavoured to find another job.

Scotbot

I would choose either Stoke or Birmingham as you have friends or family new but not somewhere  in between where you don't know anyone. 

I don't know Stoke but I do know Erdington.  It is a mixed area the borders near Boldmere or Wylde Green are nice. Speak to a broker find out how much you can afford then have a look.

 Bear in mind flats are not likely to appreciate in price  in Sutton they dropped 4% over the last year. If you are only going to be there a couple of years I would consider holding off until you have saved enough for a terraced house

Doozergirl

elsien said:

@Doozergirl might have some ideas. 

The up and coming area in terms of capital appreciation is definitely Stirchley.  It's heaven for a foodie right, still visibly run down but definitely filling with young, cool buyers when you look at the people.  

I'm not sure what the flat market is like though, it's

mainly houses so might be out of budget, but if I were looking that is definitely where I'd search.   

JenniferZenn

_Sam_ said:

MFWannabe said:

You will most definitely be able to buy somewhere
If I were you I would: 
a) speak to a good mortgage broker to see how much you could borrow.
b) Decide what is important to you, is it to live near family? Outside space? City life or more rural? 

C) Look on Rightmove at properties in areas you like based on decisions made in point b 

Seconded that, especially b) - it can be easy to overlook when focusing on how good the house/area is, rather than would it suit your lifestyle and preferences to live there.

For example I work near Birmingham but have never considered buying a house there. One of the things I enjoy most in life is going for long walks with my dog in places where you can easily get away from people and not be reminded of them. Another is gardening. I hardly ever find myself going to the city unless for work.

So we bought a house on the edge of Peak District with large garden in a rural village. It's 1 hour plus commute to work, yet beautiful countryside on the doorstep. To me it's worth it, other circumstances like working from home most of the week help too but if I had to go in everyday I would still not have bought a house in Birmingham, I'd have endeavoured to find another job.

Thanks for your input , Sam. I understand what you mean there. This is the reason I am skeptical to buy it in Stoke even though I have found the houses are pretty cheap there and also read an article it in the top of the list of towns, first buyer sought out for. The only reason I moved there was for work and meet my colleagues even though I did had flexibilty to work from home before 2020. It is a nice place but my mind is just not agreeing to buy one there. 

JenniferZenn

Scotbot said:

I would choose either Stoke or Birmingham as you have friends or family new but not somewhere  in between where you don't know anyone. 

I don't know Stoke but I do know Erdington.  It is a mixed area the borders near Boldmere or Wylde Green are nice. Speak to a broker find out how much you can afford then have a look.

 Bear in mind flats are not likely to appreciate in price  in Sutton they dropped 4% over the last year. If you are only going to be there a couple of years I would consider holding off until you have saved enough for a terraced house

Yeah that's true. The areas that are infamous in Birmingham like Erdington / handsworth , in my research I did find some nicer places there too. Sutton coldfield is expensive and you right in telling to save up first

JenniferZenn

Doozergirl said:

elsien said:

@Doozergirl might have some ideas. 

The up and coming area in terms of capital appreciation is definitely Stirchley.  It's heaven for a foodie right, still visibly run down but definitely filling with young, cool buyers when you look at the people.  

I'm not sure what the flat market is like though, it's

mainly houses so might be out of budget, but if I were looking that is definitely where I'd search.   

Thanks for the input. sorry about me being novice but just to check, does the run down type of towns/cities safe to live alone ? 

Doozergirl

JenniferZenn said:

Doozergirl said:

elsien said:

@Doozergirl might have some ideas. 

The up and coming area in terms of capital appreciation is definitely Stirchley.  It's heaven for a foodie right, still visibly run down but definitely filling with young, cool buyers when you look at the people.  

I'm not sure what the flat market is like though, it's

mainly houses so might be out of budget, but if I were looking that is definitely where I'd search.   

Thanks for the input. sorry about me being novice but just to check, does the run down type of towns/cities safe to live alone ? 

I don't think Stirchley is rough; you'd be using Bournville station for a start as it's right there and are surrounded by nice areas like Selly Park, Kings Norton & Kings Heath. 

It's just that the High St really, really died there and a lot of the buildings on the Pershore Road haven't been renovated yet but it is in the process of happening and that's why it's a good place to buy in.

If you look at the people, there's a lot of young families with prams etc and quite a vibrant community social scene, as well as the fabulous independent restaurants that appear hidden in the day but appear at night.  We have friends around the corner.  

I'd much rather live in Stirchley than Erdington. 

My daughter went to school in Handsworth so I know there are some nicer areas when I was driving around to get her around Handsworth Wood etc but the state of the saddest parts of humanity are absolutely laid bare there for all to see.  Not a chance would I live around there.