Saturday, Jan 09, 2010
Going European?
Guardian: Home buying has peaked. Is it time for a rental renaissance?
Could happen I suppose.
Posted by letthemfall @ 05:14 PM (1545 views) Add Comment
9 Comments
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1. cynicalsoothsayer said...
"I probably bought for between 30% and 40% below its top-of-the-market valuation."
I still say there's a 30% or so drop coming.
2. tenyearstogetmymoneyback said...
I've read loads of stuff about the rental market in Germany but who actually owns the properties there ?
(i.e. Individuals, organisations or companies) I would be very interested to hear.
3. braindeed said...
My memory from Germany of the early 80's was that it was rare for what we call 'portfolios' to exist - most landlords had one or two and tended to be pensioners.
There was (and still is, as I understand it) much stronger tenant protection, and mortgages were granted only with huge deposits.
So landlords were risking their own cash - as against here, where 'yeilds' are general considered to be what the poor b'stards pay over and above the their landlords mortgage,
The now abolished rent acts were a product of the peoples abhorrence towards exploiting the poor - but there's now way back down that road.......the whole ponzi scheme that passes for our property'market' would collapse.
How did this great people come to buy into exploiting our poorest - Lady T was precient.....there is, indeed, now no such thing as society.
4. inbreda said...
tenant protection. This is what we need.
5. braindeed said...
That is in the past, a different world.
6. fallingbuzzard said...
Home selling has troughed!
7. Theboss said...
im pretty sure its very different in europe. I hate it when people say 'why dont you carry on renting. like they do in europe' very easy comment for a home owner to make!
I spent sometime in Italy, and as I remember people rented because it was cheaper, and the reason it was cheap was that rents were capped by the government. even my girlfriend at the time in milan 2 years ago managed to buy a two flat (not too bad much more substantial than the crap you get here) for 3 times her wage with a 20% deposit and she wasnt in any high flying job and heres me in london earning 40k and still cant a decent home! ive stuck it out this long i aint parting with my cash yet (especially as we all know here the economy is in frozen animation till the election) I still cant figure how they are going to make the cuts! but they have to come. i imagine ill be taxed more to keep lazy workshy white trash in fags booze and pampers!
8. a saver said...
We need more affordable rentals -and I don't mean sink estates for problem families.
The are where my family is -St Andrews in Fife-is a nightmare for renters, especially if you come back while the Open golf is on and can't even get two consecutive nights in a B & B. The uni has expanded out of all proportion to the town and everything gets snapped up immediately. Don't think I've ever seen more than 3 houses available for rent the whole time I've been here (2 years) so I am stuck in an ex-council house in a small village with no shops ond poor transport links-I've been marooned in the house the last week as I got fed up driving on slippery untreated roads. I'm on a short term agreed tenancy with a choice of a 6- or 1-year lease and every time I renew they put the rent up, so that is very inflexible-I'd have to find another house at just the right time. My savings income used to cover the rent but not any more thanks to our govt. I get horrendous power bills as there's no double glazing or cavity wall insulation and the loft insulation is inadequate.
In Switzerland many of the apartment blocks are owned by banks such as Credit Suisse or by property companies. They are really efficiently managed and maintained, but you are expected to hand them back in perfect condition, without a single mark. It costs about £1000 to get a company to clean your apartment and the landlord will check that there is not a single mark anywhere, even in the storage cellar, laundry and balcony. You can't even leave undissolved washing powder in the dispenser in the washing machine. I also had to pay over £100 for an electrical inspection and for someone to remove my light fittings.
9. powerofnow said...
We need to value the rights people who rent at least as much as we value the rights of property owners; we should look to a system of taxation which rewards long term tenure and penalises short term (speculative) property ownership. People (tenants) should feel comfortable about long term renting just as property owners should feel comfortable with long term ownership and value long term tenants too.