Janelle

Thanks for your help - will look into it. Can I add to the imae of Harrogate, over 60's, 35 year old joggers and a lot of "ladies who lunch"!

We're looking to rent in the Harrogate area and have been amazed by the high prices for rental properties in the area. I was wondering if anyone else had any advice or experience of this area? Having viewed a few properties, it appears that many landlords have paid off their mortgage and are simply in no great hurry to rent the property, preferring to sit back and wait for someone desperate enough to pay over the odds for somewhere to live. Negotiating a reasonable discount has been virtually impossilble. One response we got was "well we had a higher offer than yours for a 2 year let and we turned it down" !!

Check their data protection policy. You are entitled to ensure your data is protected.

I totally agree and sympathise with everyone trapped in the "can't buy, can hardly afford to rent" loop. My husband and I are currently looking to rent in Cambridgeshire, and the rents are in my opinion astronomical. Greedy landlords trying to cover all their expenses, means you can't afford to save for a deposit to buy a house, and so the endless cycle continues, creating an underclass of middle aged life-renters. How depressing. Unless you go for a rabbit hutch without a garage, then you're looking at at least £900 PCM before you find anything with any space. We're getting older and have more "stuff" to put in a house, in preparation for the heady days when we may eventually own our own home, so renting a 1 bedroomed hut is less desirable, plus you can't have friends over to stay. Anywhere close to amenities is pricier still, so you are forced to live in "the sticks" and commute long distances by car, for which you are then taxed to the hilt by Brown's hit-men. I totally agree that renters should always put in an offer and not simply accept the asking price. Also watch out for any properties that are clearly only in the rental market while the landlord is trying to sell. Do you really want your life disrupted for the next 6 months by prospective viewers trailing around and invading your privacy. Not me! I would stay well away from this type of rental. Although with the property market the way it is in the UK, the chances are you could put up with much longer than 6 months of viewing. In exchange I would negotiate a much lower rent due to the potantial invasion of privacy and calls from whining estate agents...

Great idea to have a Cambridge thread. I doubt any of the bourgeois home owners or local council in Cambridge are worried in the slightest about a potential dwindling of the young local population in the city however. Cambridge have a fresh influx of students every year, many with wealthy parents ready to invest in the property market, grabbing the type of property normally attractive to first time buyers, so there's probably less chance of a market crash here in my view. I'm originally from Durham, which follows a similar, if slightly less fierce model to Cambridge, a relatively small city centre with a high proportion of students. The locals found themselves pushed out to the fringes of the city, just like Cambridge, however Durham does not suffer from the 'South Cambridgeshire' effect where city types transform into country lovers and push up house prices further, so even moving to the fringes of town is problematic down here. That's unless you want to risk life and limb commuting on the A14 every day during peak rush hour or worse still, live in Hertfordshire (Royston for example!). My husband works on the Science Park near Milton and as we'll be parents this year, had contemplated moving closer to his work to reduce the commute, but even rental prices are extortionate if you want anything other than a 1 bed flat...

That's interesting DrGUID. I guess as you're living at that address your credit rating may be at risk if you're not careful?

I'm renting at pressent as I can't afford to buy. Is anyone in a similar position worried about the risk that if the bubble starts to burst, some landlords, especially those who've taken out buy to let mortgages, will have to sell up and that means if you're renting a property you may become homeless? I'd be interested if anyone has noticed editorial on this issue. Not all renters woud consider buying the property they are renting, I for one would never consider buying the complete slum we're living in (landlord is so mean he hasn't replaced carpets for 11 years and the area isn't ideal) as often renters are forced into the only property they can afford, and are living in cramped conditions. If you want to start a family there isn't the space. Lets hope that if there is a price crash, that rents also fall so people who may need to rent for longer while they search for a home, can afford a decent place that isn't overpriced by greedly landlords, and that there won't be too much displacement when things go belly-up, as finding another place, even if it is to rent is as many of you can appreciate, a pain in the neck...

Much as I'm reluctant to encourage the use of estate agents to source a property, I have found the following site useful for searching for individual estate agents by region and town. One of the problems with nationwide property search sites is they cannot list everything and I have a hunch the best deals are to be had by contacting agents directly as some of the property listed directly on their own sites is up there earlier that sites such as rightmove. Well that's my theory anyway. Here's the link... http://www.ukpropertyshop.co.uk

Yippee! I've had the same experience and I have to say for what it's worth I'm taking some sadistic pleasure in the turnaround in sudden attention from estate agents who eighteen months ago couldn't care less that I was a house hunter - join the queue. The only problem is they're chasing us, but still asking exorbitant prices for their tiny two up two down hovels. Time to start putting in offers at least 20% below the asking price I think. Why should my hard earned deposit be wiped out in a crash, when most vendors are dealing in virtual cash and haven't earned it. -J-

I'm new to this forum but here's my 'two-penneth' rant. I may or may not feel better after it! Like most politicians who are greedy, self interested and hypocritical, the recent budget statement should come as no surprise. Nothing to help the beleaguered first-time buyers. There is a lost generation of first time buyers caused by over-inflated house prices and the rampant greed on those interest in feathering their own nests to the detriment of those who can't afford to make the quantum leap required to join the privileged minority of landed gentry in this country. But why should we be surprised? Look at the NHS, they're leaving patients to wallow in their own excrement. Things could always be worse. Many refer to houses as a long term investment, as if this reprieves them of any blame when making the investments, but recent years have demonstrated the short term attitudes that have prevailed when it comes to dealing with the very real problems of housing availability and the younger generation. No wonder many young people are becoming disillusioned and are leaving the country in their droves, if the statistics can be believed. The result of this, amongst other things, is the government says it needs to encourage immigration to help our economy to thrive. Well, D'OH, how about making Britain a more desirable and affordable place to live first, then your young people may just be encouraged to stay and actually afford to buy a house and have a family. And where do those 'invited' to Britain to replace those of us who are apparently too lazy to work, actually live? That's right, in rented accommodation feathering the nests of those who claim to be doing the country some sort of social service, and so the cycle of social upheaval is fed. I dont' believe this is a strategy that has been thought through, it simply stems from greed. The government doesn't give a damn. However, the banks care about how much interest they can squeeze out of people to increase their profit levels, so it will be interesting to see how issues of house prices and the current mortgage credit squeeze impacts on the current markets. But really, to know the outcome we only have to remember one thing, money and profit are everything. In a so called civilized society, having a roof over your head should not be made into an issue of making a fast buck. However, when people are saddled with large debt, they are in a way subdued and controlled, and there's nothing a government likes better than a subdued population, living in fear of losing their home and livelihood - so I wouldn't expect a house price crash without a fight from the powers that be. Well that's my say. -J-