Should We Sell?

[cypher007]

3 bed semi paid for, valued at £110k, + £45k savings getting bugger all interest. need more space. estate is nice, but has £17pcm maintenance, which could go up in the future, putting off buyers.

would like 4 bed detached, but dont want to get a big mortgage to cover the difference, as most are £180k+.

my area detached +1.6%

semi-detached -6.0%

so im hoping for a HPC to close the gap, but i cant see this happening anytime soon, as we have a large eastern european popluation employed in the food industry, so there jobs are secure, buying and renting pratically anything good.

[lets get it right]

It's 'their jobs' not 'there jobs'.

I know I'll get called a ****, but surely someone has to try and stop the rot.

Why is it so tricky for people to learn the difference?

[Hip to be bear]

You definitely need a more original thread title, even if yours is more gramatically correct than the other one, due to your cunning use of the question mark!

[cypher007]

has anyone got a comment to make regarding our situation?

[Charlie Don't Surf]

we have a large eastern european popluation employed in the food industry, so there jobs are secure, buying and renting pratically anything good.

Maybe such a career change would allow you to also buy a 'good' property.

4 bed detached, but dont want to get a big mortgage to cover the difference, as most are £180k+

That seems pretty cheap to me. Where is it Toxteth?

[cypher007]

Maybe such a career change would allow you to also buy a 'good' property.

That seems pretty cheap to me. Where is it Toxteth?

Boston Lincs.

[cypher007]

anyone?

Edited June 15, 2010 by cypher007

[cypher007]

gross income £16k p.a

[Bloo Loo]

whats the question?

[mikthe20]

Doesn't look like you'll need a big mortgage if you use some of your savings? £180k-£30K of your savings-£110k=£40k= 1 or 2 x earnings? If prices go down 20% then £144k-£30k-88k=£26k. For the sake of £14k I'd say go for it, but it depends on your earnings and job security in terms of using your savings. Can you not just hold on for a year?

Where I live going from 3 bed semi to 4 bed detached =£200k+, so we're extending instead. I don't trust the government enough to STR.

Edit: Just seen your income. Wait a year IMO, and perhaps work on getting income up in the meantime?

Edited June 15, 2010 by mikthe20

[cypher007]

Doesn't look like you'll need a big mortgage if you use some of your savings? £180k-£30K of your savings-£110k=£40k= 1 or 2 x earnings? If prices go down 20% then £144k-£30k-88k=£26k. For the sake of £14k I'd say go for it, but it depends on your earnings and job security in terms of using your savings. Can you not just hold on for a year?

Where I live going from 3 bed semi to 4 bed detached =£200k+, so we're extending instead. I don't trust the government enough to STR.

Edit: Just seen your income. Wait a year IMO, and perhaps work on getting income up in the meantime?

thank you for the first sensible reply. why wait a year? also the income side wont improve by much, maybe +2% if were lucky.

[Bloo Loo]

thank you for the first sensible reply. why wait a year? also the income side wont improve by much, maybe +2% if were lucky.

Thank you. Id say....grow a pair and make a decision.

[goldbug9999]

thank you for the first sensible reply. why wait a year? also the income side wont improve by much, maybe +2% if were lucky.

I would buy the bigger house, making sure you use all your savings, then arrange to get made redundant and live off benefits. Absolutely no point in working for a paltry 16k - FGS I pay more than that in tax.

[mikthe20]

thank you for the first sensible reply. why wait a year? also the income side wont improve by much, maybe +2% if were lucky.

No problem. Well, my point is wait a year to see what the market looks like and if prices have gone down or are going down at that time you might prefer to buy then. I obviously don't know your circumstances, but assuming you are healthy and can cope with any dependents you have then there's a lot you can do to get your earnings up more than the 2% it appears you expect from your current job. Overtime, additional part time job, additional training/education to get promoted or change jobs, start a spare time business? I presume you have sprogs as you need a bigger house so tax credits must be pretty high on your income no?

[plummet expert]

thank you for the first sensible reply. why wait a year? also the income side wont improve by much, maybe +2% if were lucky.

You are in the market. The difference to you may be small by waiting. If you can get enough for yours and not pay too much for another. Just do it. It's firstly a home and not an investment. Get a long term fixed mortgage as I am sure rates will rise quite substantially within 2 years.

If you were not already in the market, I would say, do not buy because the chances of a good fall are at their highest for many years. If you are out of the southeast or southwest, it will also be safer...because they higher they rise, the more they fall.

Edited June 15, 2010 by plummet expert

[Berk-hater]

Tell me, if your income is £16k pa gross, which is probably about average in Boston, would you be able to afford to buy a £110k house if you were a FTB now? I only ask because I think this is the end of the market which is the most stagnant at the moment in your area and I'm curious to know who you think will be buying your current house?

In answer to your original question: All the 4 bed detached houses (new build estate types) on the market now for circa £180k will be down to £150k by Xmas 2011 (That's less than a 20% drop). My advice would be to get some chump to buy your 3 bed semi for £110k now, put the money in the bank, rent for 18 months and then buy your 4 bed detached for cash.

[cypher007]

Tell me, if your income is £16k pa gross, which is probably about average in Boston, would you be able to afford to buy a £110k house if you were a FTB now? I only ask because I think this is the end of the market which is the most stagnant at the moment in your area and I'm curious to know who you think will be buying your current house?

In answer to your original question: All the 4 bed detached houses (new build estate types) on the market now for circa £180k will be down to £150k by Xmas 2011 (That's less than a 20% drop). My advice would be to get some chump to buy your 3 bed semi for £110k now, put the money in the bank, rent for 18 months and then buy your 4 bed detached for cash.

hmm. would like to see those sort of figures. trouble is there not building many 4 beds here, and the ones that are about are being closely guarded by boomers who paid about £5k 40 years ago.

the market here is very stagnent, only btl and eastern europeans are buying anything at the bottom of the market, and even some of those are choosing to buy 3-4 bed detached places instead. my guess is thats why the price of semi's have dropped by -6.0% over the last year, compared to 1.6% rise for detached.

Edited June 16, 2010 by cypher007

[cypher007]

No problem. Well, my point is wait a year to see what the market looks like and if prices have gone down or are going down at that time you might prefer to buy then. I obviously don't know your circumstances, but assuming you are healthy and can cope with any dependents you have then there's a lot you can do to get your earnings up more than the 2% it appears you expect from your current job. Overtime, additional part time job, additional training/education to get promoted or change jobs, start a spare time business? I presume you have sprogs as you need a bigger house so tax credits must be pretty high on your income no?

i just dont want us to sink all our savings into a house plus a mortgage, which will probably cost £1k to setup. when i bought my house it was £35k in 1999, for say £75k you could by a 4 bed detached, so £40k difference. now im expected to find probably £60-70k, its not gonna fly. i think we will have to wait until our house is maybe worth £50k and the 4 bed is £90-100K.

Edited June 16, 2010 by cypher007

[cypher007]

i just dont want us to sink all our savings into a house plus a mortgage, which will probably cost £1k to setup. when i bought my house it was £35k in 1999, for say £75k you could by a 4 bed detached, so £40k difference. now im expected to find probably £60-70k, its not gonna fly. i think we will have to wait until our house is maybe worth £50k and the 4 bed is £90-100K.

maybe if we could avoid paying stamp duty or if they increased the threshold to £160k then we might be more tempted.

[cypher007]

maybe if we could avoid paying stamp duty or if they increased the threshold to £160k then we might be more tempted.

anyone?

[cypher007]

bump.

[Bruce Banner]

bump.

Why?

[winkie]

Why?

Bump

[swissy_fit]

Why?

Yes why keep bumping this?

You've already had some sensible advice. Let me summarise :

1. If you really think prices are going to drop to 50k for your house and 80k for the one you want, sell now for 100-110k and rent. You will then have the house you want, paid for, in about 2-3 years if it works out.

2. If you think prices will remain stable, sell and get a mortgage for 40k to buy the house you want, that won't kill you financially, you can always rent it out to East Europeans in an emergency (let's say you had to move elsewhere to get a job)

3. If you think prices will rise, see 2.

4. If you can't make a decision, stay where you are, a low-paid job and a paid-for house is probably the safest combination possible, though maybe not that enjoyable. Doesn't make sense though - if your job is secure then if prices drop, you'll think you should have sold, if prices remain stable, you're stuck in the smaller house for no reason, if prices rise, you're even further from your objective. It only makes sense if you're able to save quite a bit at present, that doesn't seem likely.

Bumping the thread won't make someone miraculously come up with a solution, it's one of these 4 possibilities, or find a way of earning more.

[cypher007]

weve decided to take the house off the market.