tulipz

WOW! Where do you live?

" Property prices will go up !! Buy now! " " we closed our eyes and took the plunge - you too take it and buy" "wait, london market is on the edge. Buy a year later, you will save a fortune" "London market will crash, UK's situation is worse than that of Greece and Spain. Dont buy! Better still, immigrate to Canada! " "London is the financial capital of the world. Prices will hold - no matter what. Buy!" I am so fed up. My husband and I have been waiting to fulfil our dreams. We want to have a nice 3 bed house with a study room and a garden. we've been looking to buy in Bromley/Beckenham areas and our budget is £350-£400k. We have about 90k deposit. We are totally confused and are so stressed about making a decision -buy or not buy. We have ageing parents back home and we might have to think of moving back to our home country in the next 6-8 yrs. but we are fed up of renting really. We both work so hard and it is so frustrating to not have a nice home to enjoy. I am just venting. Feel free to share your thoughts. First home - London Zone 5-6. Buy or not ? NOW ?

Yes! News I've been waiting for! Keep falling!

NO! The area around letchworth drive looks pretty shady. There is a large block of flats in that area that looks very council-ish.... Look on the other side of westmoreland road. Very nice area.

I posted last yr about prices falling in this area. Since about 2 months, asking prices have gone up like mad. Properties tht were asking around 280k are now asking 320-330k. I don't understand wht changed about this countries financial situation in the last few months to ask for 15% increase??? Similar trend in Orpington and Chelsfield too. Wonder if we are getting close to the bubble burst.... Crazy increases in the last 2 months certainly looks very artificial to me...

Hey, good to hear from you. We are considering Shortlands and Pettswood as well. How is Bickley compared to these? All I know is, Bickley is further down homesdale road.. I hate that road up to Tesco...so didnt bother...

Hi All, As some of you already know, we 've been trying to buy a home. I've been extensively researching the web and scanning for properties in my area. I've been closely following properties within 1mile of bromley south station...what I just noticed is, in the last few days, a LOT of properties have gone from 'SOLD STC' to Available....also asking price for many came down by atleast 10k (for properties in the range 270k to 340k) .... It'll be interesting to watch what'll happen in near future! -Tulipz

Thanks for the inputs everyone. I have some more detail to this now. The entire property was not underpinned. They had some extension work done and this underpinning thing was due to a tree or something and it only effected the extended part. Not sure if that makes any difference...would most of you still stay away from this property?

Dear all, We saw this lovely property. Our offer is close to being accepted and the estate agent came up with this in the last minute. The house has been underpinned in 1980...would you buy an underpinned property? Re-salability is important to us since we plan to return to our home country sometime... are underpinned properties difficult to sell? please please please pour in your thoughts... -Tulipz

Stretch in the sense that we are having to pull out money from everywhere to get a deposit together. My husband is a perm employee. I am a contractor. We are basing this mortgage on his income alone. His take home is £3200 and mortgage will come up to £1400... we have no other committments. Its going to be a bit high for the first 2 years (term time) but by the end of it, I'll have substantial amount in my account to pay off a some of the principle (and hence reduce the interest rate) to bring monthly payments about £1100 levels... Does this sound reasonable to go ahead? We really liked the property... the best of what we've seen so far... Appreciate your honest thoughts on this --- I would think my husband and I are not able to decide with our brain alone since the heart has taken a liking for the property!

Hi All, We are planning to buy our first home soon. We found a good property - 4 bed semi in petts wood (London). May I please ask you to pour in your thoughts about the following ? 1. 4 bed (3 good size doubles and 1 small single) semi in Petts wood with a separate garage and a good size garden is up for £ 320k (asking price)...its maintained reasonably well...can move in straight away, might need to replace carpets in a few months time...its exactly 15 min walk to the station.. direct trains to central London (in 26 mins). We both work in London. Do you think this property is worth that money??? particularly in petts wood area?? 2. How is the property market in London and South east in general? We dont mind if the prices dont rise in the next 3-4 yrs but we are really scared of being in negative equity.... 3. What price can I put the offer on? Whats the max this is worth? We like this property, but its a big stretch on our pockets...we are pulling out even pennies from everywhere to gather enough for a deposit this sort of price tag demands. Is it really worth in the current climate? Awaiting your thoughts, Tulipz

Hi All, We are quite keen on buying our first home around the end of this year. We saw a home in Trinity Village Bromley (new development with about 500 homes being built) ...My husband and I really liked the location and the project. The price being quoted is £360k for a 3bed terraced house. We rent a 2bed terraced house in a better area (in bromley, but closer to the station and shopping mall) and prices are around 250k ( this is not a gated development though and is not new). Wondering if we can negotiate on the price. What premium do new properties command in general? Any relevant info, inputs, advice welcome. This is the project: http://www.wardhomes.co.uk/Find-A-Home/New-Developments/H5132-Trinity-Village/?mode=1

The property is close to bromley south station...near westmoreland road .. Also when is the best time to start making an offer? I just saw that there are 2 agents for this property. I am planning to rent it from 1st nov...is it too early to start negotiations now?

Hi all, I saw a property in bromley and we liked it. its up for 1100 pcm... 2bed attached house .... do u think its over priced? I saw that some apartments in prestigious developements nearby being offered for that price... findaproperty.com average 2bed house is 950 in bromley... This home is quite average but is clean. Where should I start negotiating from? what is the max I should pay for this property? Please help! Tulipz

Thank you all very much for the insights