@contradevian Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 No chance of this happening in the UK! http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2012/03/florida-14-year-old-buys-distressed-home/ With her saved money, she didn’t want to buy or barter for another longboard skate board or Xbox. Instead she set her sights on a three-bedroom short sale of $12,000 that was worth about $100,000 at the peak of the housing market, as reported by NPR’s Planet Money. Probably a ramping article for Florida distressed sales, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Eagle Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) No chance of this happening in the UK! http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2012/03/florida-14-year-old-buys-distressed-home/ Probably a ramping article for Florida distressed sales, I bet the IRS will be onto her for the $6000 profits she made on craigslist presumably without paying taxes on them... Also I wonder how much the annual tax on that house is? One day, Willow's mom, Shannon, saw a two-bedroom, concrete-block home on auction for $12,000 — down from $100,000 at the peak of the bubble. Shannon was telling her husband about the house, when Willow piped up."I was like, 'What if I bought a house? That would be crazy,' " Willow says. Willow wound up splitting the house with her mom. Willow plans to buy her mom out in the next few years, and put her name on the title when she turns 18. The place was a mess when they bought it — "like there was a riot or something," Willow says. They cleaned it up and rented it out to a young couple for $700 a month. http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/03/09/148218539/this-14-year-old-girl-just-bought-a-house-in-florida?sc=fb&cc=fpThis doesn't make sense to me, why would a couple rent a house for $700 a month if the house is only worth $12000? Surely the rent should be no more than 200-300$ a month at most? Edited March 12, 2012 by awake_eagle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) Florida: Under £30k. UK: £865,000 http://www.rightmove...y-26369594.html Mmmmm....... Edited March 12, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libspero Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Florida: Under £30k. UK: £865,000 http://www.rightmove...y-26369594.html Mmmmm....... Yeah, but be fair.. those bay windows add at least £835k.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) Everything Red or Pink on this chart is in Foreclosure in 2008.... Apparently its got a lot worse since then........Mind boggling..... Coming soon to a UK street near you............Amazing we havent seen a revolution over there..............F@ckin Bankers. Edited March 12, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wurzel Of Highbridge Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Ireland €99,000 (A few hundred miles away) http://www.daft.ie/searchsale.daft?id=579292 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) Yeah, but be fair.. those bay windows add at least £835k.. Either that or life in the UK is just 30x better than in Sunny Florida......Errrr............. March 2012: Vancouver Shack vs Irish Luxury Hotel. Vancouver [still in Bubble] Listing Price: $899,500 Description: "This 1 [?] story home has been extensively renovated over the last few years. The spacious kitchen has birch cabinets and Soapstone counters and opens to a 20x12' deck. Has a Kids Sandbox Ireland: $860k [Bubble Popping] 55 bedroom luxury hotel overlooking the Donegal coastline Edited March 12, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy_renting Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Everything Red or Pink on this chart is in Foreclosure in 2008.... Apparently its got a lot worse since then........Mind boggling..... Coming soon to a UK street near you............Amazing we havent seen a revolution over there..............F@ckin Bankers. I'd be interested to see a more recent version of that map. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spp Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Coming soon to a UK street near you........ No chance!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkman Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 "like there was a riot or something," Having researched Florida property a fair bit, I'd say that home is not in a safe area. That doesn't mean you get robbed, it means you get killed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccaneer Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 This thread highlights the folly of making direct comparisons between different markets without considering what makes them different. In the Florida / UK example there is a different - political system - banking system - population density - property rights system In addition there may be different - local employment opportunities - local income distribution to name but a few. As another poster has identified the US property may not be in a safe area whereas the UK property may be in a highly desirable area. There is no chance that the price of basic homes in half decent locations in the UK will fall to the levels implied even if the government stops supporting the market. Unfortunately just because you want something to happen it doesn't mean that it will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Bowman Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 This thread highlights the folly of making direct comparisons between different markets without considering what makes them different. In the Florida / UK example there is a different - political system - banking system - population density - property rights system In addition there may be different - local employment opportunities - local income distribution to name but a few. As another poster has identified the US property may not be in a safe area whereas the UK property may be in a highly desirable area. There is no chance that the price of basic homes in half decent locations in the UK will fall to the levels implied even if the government stops supporting the market. Unfortunately just because you want something to happen it doesn't mean that it will. FFS get with program. Quality of life is only possible if A. Your house price is the result of a market collapsing 50% but life I.e your job goes on as normal B. Unlimited sun because you have earnt enough not to work and rely on currency differences to fund yor life It has worked out so well following this program for all those ex pats in Spain.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Hovis Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Also I wonder how much the annual tax on that house is? Plus maintenance. My dad always said when I was younger that buying a car is the easiest thing in the world, it's the costs of running it that are the hard bit. I have always thought similar applies to a house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Eagle Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Having researched Florida property a fair bit, I'd say that home is not in a safe area. That doesn't mean you get robbed, it means you get killed. Where does it say in the article where the house is located? It only says "Port Charlotte, Fla.", are you saying that all of Port Charlotte is dangerous? Also why would anyone rent it for 700$/month if it was such an unsafe area? --- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 (edited) I could post MANY examples like the one I posted above for under $30k In every county in Florida Some of them are in very nice areas/communities. There is nothing wrong with these houses. Interiors will be finished to a higher spec than in the UK. The national Average wage between the USA and UK is roughly the same. Property Taxes vary widely from state to state. A million dollar home in a desirable neighborhood might pay $20,000 or more in taxes, or a $500k home, may pay $10,000 in taxes, whilst a modest home in a rougher area might only pay a fraction of that amount, all depends on the valuation of the property. So not very different from UK Council Tax Bands. The Average American spends under $3000 PA on healthcare. And there are normally hundreds of schools to choose from. http://www.greatschools.org/florida/ The HUGE YAWNING difference between house prices in the UK, and the USA is shocking. Edited March 13, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
200p Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Whoopee do. A 12 year old boy starts off property empire with £100, and becomes a property millionaire in 6 months. If a 12 year old can do it, SO CAN YOU! IT IS EASY PEASEY LEMON SQUEEZY! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 (edited) Whoopee do. I know that people who try and buy USA properties and rent them from the UK, often will quit, as it is too difficult unless you are actually located in the USA. for the last few years lenders in the USA are struggling to balance between keeping foreclosed properties off the market, to keep prices as high as possible, whilst at the same time drip feeding repo's through. But the amount of Repo's is accelerating, whilst the buyers are not. Edited March 13, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milton Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 (edited) This is an interesting video: http://www.cbsnews.c...ated;photovideo At 3:29 in it shows a chart showing billions of dollars of Subprime Mortgages. It then shows the ALT-A and option Arm resets which are coming, in the Billions of dollars, which has not 'hit yet' It is beginning to hit now, and will continue over the next few years, as the artificialy low interest rates on mortgage deals run out, and are reset at higher interest rates: 'North of 50% of these are expected to fail" And the debt for Alt -A and Option Arm is bigger than SubPrime... So the mortgage crisis in the USA is just beginning...... Edited March 13, 2012 by Milton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkman Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Where does it say in the article where the house is located? It only says "Port Charlotte, Fla.", are you saying that all of Port Charlotte is dangerous? Also why would anyone rent it for 700$/month if it was such an unsafe area? --- I made an educated guess about the area judging by the price. Others may disagree. 700$ p/m isn't that high. Actually it's quite low. And being low again indicates the area is questionable. One of the biggest surprises about American property is a house can look outstanding & cheap, but still be located in a ghetto. Even the very poor there often have nice houses. But if you show your white mug in the 'hood you're in for some trouble. As posted somewhere above, you can't really compare UK to US very accurately. Obviously they have cheaper property. But the real cheap stuff can be dangerous to your health. I'm not saying there aren't exceptions..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkageahead2 Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 As posted somewhere above, you can't really compare UK to US very accurately. Obviously they have cheaper property. But the real cheap stuff can be dangerous to your health. I'm not saying there aren't exceptions..... I looked in to buying an apartment in the US, a couple of years ago. I went to the only part of the US I know, the area around emory university, Atlanta, because I have connections there. This is a nice area, good economic basis - as well as the university there is a strong commercial and manufacturing base. On paper, the yields are good as well- $600 per month rental on a small $40,000 foreclosed condo. In other words, its like an 18% yield , on a nice property, in a nice block. I did my research and the homeowners association is active - which is clearly a good thing and the whole complex was fully occupied and there was only one apartment for sale. My overall reasoning was that if you can find a safe place to live like that it is a good bet - because lots of streets in Atlanta, are just no-go areas - of course you can buy a house there for $7000 dollars or whatever, but why would you bother? what would be the point of buying a house in an area you don't know and it can just be firebombed or burgled or vandalised at random? Because that's the reality over in the US, A lot of streets are just totally worthless and too dangerous to inhabit. Of course there is no end to human folly and stupidity so some people will go over to the US thinking they have hit the jackpot and will be able to rent those houses out for $500 a month, but in the vast, vast majority of cases, that just turns out to be an expensive delusion, an idiots money pit. My calculation was that the trend over time will be that people will want to move out of the big detatched houses in dodgy parts of the town, which cost a fortune in energy bills, to condo's in safe areas, near to amenities and public transport. Once people are able to get mortgages again, the demand, and the value of those type of properties will rise to something more relative to income levels, so if the average income level is 30,000 dollars, a fair value will be something like 3.5 times income level - 105,000 dollars, and I would expect my 40k apartment to rise to that level over the next few years. So, its an 18% yield and a very good prospect of a significant capital gain. It all looked very, very good. In the end, I didn't go through with it. I had a lot of knowledge and information, but I wasn't totally sure about this particular complex. I just don't know if it will succeed and continue to be as successful as it is now, or whether it would falter. I knew a lot but I didn't know enough about the area to make that kind of long term calculation. Fact I am not living there means that any problems will be hugely expensive to resolve. I think that you could do really well in the US if you were running around 20 properties in a similar location, and was running it on a scale... but to just do it as a one off would be more of a time consuming hobby rather than a serious investment. So yep, there are opportunities if you have the knowledge and ability to manage the project over time, and if you have local knowledge. but if you are just an internet armchair speculator, the odds are against you, in my opinion at least. As for the girl, I think thats great. If you read Buffets biography, he owned a farm when he was 14, and had a tenant farmer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richc Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Having researched Florida property a fair bit, I'd say that home is not in a safe area. That doesn't mean you get robbed, it means you get killed. Oh big deal. Buy a handgun, you're fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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