How has this house gone up so much?

MeteredOut

Mark_Glasses said:

What's the solution though? 

Stop trying to get random folk on the internet to tell you how to live you life. Take ownership of your own destiny.

(I'm again giving the OP the benefit of the doubt that he isn't just a (now) tiresome troll and really is looking for guidance)

[Deleted User]

Four months since starting the thread and nothing has changed, OP is choosing inertia over action. 
That's their prerogative, plenty of people do the same.
I can't see it improving their situation though...

RHemmings

Mark_Glasses said:

What's the solution though? 

@RHemmings whatever I've seen of Birmingham I don't like. A friend of mine lived there for a bit and I remember going to Broad St and Digbeth and thought they were horrible. He did too and moved back to Leeds.?

Aha, but surely that means that you can move to Leeds where houses are more affordable and you won't be alone because your friend is there. 

More seriously though, Birmingham is a big place with many different areas that vary a lot. I think that you are perpetuating your 'problem' by refusing to see any possible solutions and only seeing the problems. E.g. focussing in on the bad bits of Birmingham and not having a look around for the nice bits. 

This thread reminds me of the 'game' formalised by Eric Berne (who wrote the book 'Games People Play') called 'Why don't you? ... Yes but.'  https://sheffieldcentralcounselling.co.uk/blog/why-don-t-you-yes-but

And, I think that quite possibly @Mark_Glasses doesn't want to find a solution,  but as described in the link just wants to have a moan about how terrible things are despite massive privilege. 

Mark_Glasses

@PartyOfFive don't read it then

@hazyjo I'm aware that people live there. I didn't go down too many residential streets but then that's not what you do when you visit somewhere.

What I mean is that living somewhere isn't as good as going on holiday there. That's why moving to Spain for example only really works for retired people. Working age people move to Spain because they're fed up of getting up and going to work in the UK. Then they move to Spain to find they have to get up and go to work in Spain too. I've worked for international companies before so have learned first hand that they still do the same boring jobs I do in other countries.

@RelievedSheff OK your situation is the complete opposite of mine

@herzlos I'm talking about her parents not mine. I doubt my father made even half that. This is also something that's bothering her rather than me. 

I know people older than me who bought properties when they were younger without making a big wage who say they'd never be able to buy their properties under the same circumstances today. Yes it bothers me that it's become more difficult for people my age but I can't magically make myself 10 years older and turn back the clock. However there is someone my age with the same opportunity as me who's put himself in a far stronger position. There is something I can do about that, it's a question of what.

My wife doesn't know how much this property sold for but if she did I'm sure it would bother her too. She hates the way his wife seems to look down on her.

@MeteredOut I am looking for guidance, but if not the internet then where? I know some people have said the doctor but if work knew I was going to the doctor for that sort of thing they'd find a way to get rid of me.

@[Deleted User] is it really 4 months? someone said 3 months recently. I've been trying to make good things happen all my life but it never works.

@RHemmings I don't want to move back to Leeds, I vowed to never return when I moved out. 

A number of people would never live in London because it's too busy, too crowded and too unfriendly. That's exactly what I like about London. I would only move out of London if there was no alternative. 

Elliott.T123

Mark_Glasses said:

 However there is someone my age with the same opportunity as me who's put himself in a far stronger position. There is something I can do about that, it's a question of what.

My wife doesn't know how much this property sold for but if she did I'm sure it would bother her too. She hates the way his wife seems to look down on her.

Starting with the second sentence first.... why are you friends with people who look down on you?
Stop seeing them.... problem solved

First sentence.... Yes there is something you can do, take that £100k you have in the bank, you to a mortgage broker see how much you can borrow. Sell your flat. Use the money to buy something bigger and ticking more boxes.

Stop saving £1.5k (or however much it is, I've lost track) a month, save £500 and spend the rest enjoying your life.

Problem solved.

If being a paper millionaire is the only thing that you are focusing on in life then I have a wake up for you.... IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. Accept that and move on with your life, find another way to be happy

MeteredOut

.... be happy

If there's one thing to learn from this thread, it's that this is not going to happen.

Herzlos

Mark_Glasses said:

Yes it bothers me that it's become more difficult for people my age but I can't magically make myself 10 years older and turn back the clock. However there is someone my age with the same opportunity as me who's put himself in a far stronger position. There is something I can do about that, it's a question of what.

I'm going to be blunt here. He's presumably been more financially astute than you were, and he's been actively trying to improve his lot rather than just putting money into a savings account and wishing he was a millionaire. It sounds like you've done nothing to improve your position except moan about it and resent people.

Or he got lucky. You said he already had another property when he bought this one, so he either inherited one or managed to get one earlier, and he either suspected that the town he bought in would be incredibly popular or he got incredibly lucky.

If it's luck, there's nothing you can do to emulate it. If it's financial acumen you're 23 years too late to catch up.

There's no magic trick, no-one knows which bubbles will occur until they burst. Your best step forward at this stage is to give up on the delusion of being a paper millionaire, figure out what you actually want out of life and make the most of it.

You can easily afford a house nicer than most of us, albeit maybe not as nice as your in-laws. You can already afford a Posche and to go skiing in the Alps. Just stop being so stingy and get on with it.

(I'm a long way behind a lot of my peers, but I chose to take certain paths that led that way, and I'm perfectly content about it. Would I like to have more money? Absolutely. Will I bemoan it or regret it on my death bed? Nope).

Mark_Glasses said:
My wife doesn't know how much this property sold for but if she did I'm sure it would bother her too. She hates the way his wife seems to look down on her.

Get better friends. That'll never improve.

Emily_Joy

I am not really certain what your problem is. If you want to buy a house, then there are generally two approaches (1) look for repossessed properties. (2) Make really low-ball offers on many properties. You might win the lottery one day. A colleague recently bought a flat in London. It was marketed at 900K, he got it for 530K. Nothing is/was wrong with the flat, the owner just wanted to get rid of it ASAP due to divorce. Things like that happen all the time. If, however, your only problem is jealousy, then there is no simple solution. You really need to see a doctor and figure out how to get over it.

Mark_Glasses

@Elliott.T123 I wouldn't say we're close friends, I've just known him since we were kids and normally see him with a wider group of people and have met him for a drink on the odd occasion. My wife thinks he's alright but doesn't like his wife. My monthly savings target is £2k every month regardless of whether I exceeded it in previous months. 

If you don't think I'm going to be a paper millionaire how far do you think I can get? How much would I need in the bank to become a paper millionaire? We have more than £100k but it is less than £200k.

@MeteredOut I'm trying to make it happen

@herzlos yes he clearly has been more financially astute than me which in itself seems wrong. I know he had debts when he was at university because he said he did. I on the other hand graduated with a positive bank balance.

Prior to moving to the little town he was living in a flat in London like we are now. At the time he stated his ambition to move to a house and was trying to save as much money as possible. He didn't have a car at the time but he went on lots of holidays.

Where did you get 23 years from? 

Putting being a millionaire to one side, what I want out of life is to have enough money to never work again. At the very least I want a job that I can at least have a slight interest in and that involves travelling. When I was younger I used to see the businessmen in suits on planes and trains and thought that's what I want to be when I'm older. Not only does my job not involve travelling, even wearing a suit is frowned upon and I have to go to work in jeans and a t-shirt.

Like I said he's not what I'd call a close friend. We have some friends who are currently on holiday in France and we were invited but declined due to the cost.

@Emily_Joy you've hit the nail on the head there. Where are the best places to look for repossessed properties? Paying £530k for a property worth £900k would be ideal.

When I was at university I watched the TV show A Place In The Sun. I had hopes that I would be in that world one day. In a way it seems like that's the world he's in, when I watched the video for selling his property it could just as easily have been Amanda Lamb presenting it.

MeteredOut

Mark_Glasses said:

@Elliott.T123 I wouldn't say we're close friends, I've just known him since we were kids and normally see him with a wider group of people and have met him for a drink on the odd occasion. My wife thinks he's alright but doesn't like his wife. My monthly savings target is £2k every month regardless of whether I exceeded it in previous months. 

If you don't think I'm going to be a paper millionaire how far do you think I can get? How much would I need in the bank to become a paper millionaire? We have more than £100k but it is less than £200k.

@MeteredOut I'm trying to make it happen

@herzlos yes he clearly has been more financially astute than me which in itself seems wrong. I know he had debts when he was at university because he said he did. I on the other hand graduated with a positive bank balance.

Prior to moving to the little town he was living in a flat in London like we are now. At the time he stated his ambition to move to a house and was trying to save as much money as possible. He didn't have a car at the time but he went on lots of holidays.

Where did you get 23 years from? 

Putting being a millionaire to one side, what I want out of life is to have enough money to never work again. At the very least I want a job that I can at least have a slight interest in and that involves travelling. When I was younger I used to see the businessmen in suits on planes and trains and thought that's what I want to be when I'm older. Not only does my job not involve travelling, even wearing a suit is frowned upon and I have to go to work in jeans and a t-shirt.

Like I said he's not what I'd call a close friend. We have some friends who are currently on holiday in France and we were invited but declined due to the cost.

@Emily_Joy you've hit the nail on the head there. Where are the best places to look for repossessed properties? Paying £530k for a property worth £900k would be ideal.

When I was at university I watched the TV show A Place In The Sun. I had hopes that I would be in that world one day. In a way it seems like that's the world he's in, when I watched the video for selling his property it could just as easily have been Amanda Lamb presenting it.

Come on, please stop now - you've had your fun.

Or to others, please stop now - he's had his fun.