Best Time To Buy Property For Years...

[doh]

He really doesn't give up. Some clues to the contents of the up and coming location3 with his mate allslops in the story as well. Sounds like it's going to be ramping as usual. p.s. those twins look like something out of the omen .

http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life...icle5155123.ece

Downturns and times of difficulty always bring opportunities - even if only a few people manage to find them, and nerves of steel are required to take them up. One person’s credit crunch, after all, is another’s big break.

Twins Bryony and Kathryn Frost, 24, must be among the few people in Britain who thought it a good idea to set up a property company amid all this doom and gloom. Energetic, immaculately groomed and identical, the pair had been training as middle-distance runners, with hopes of places in the British team for the Beijing and London Olympics, when they were diagnosed with low bone density and advised by their doctors not to continue.

“We decided to put all the passion and energy we had for sport into investing in property,” Bryony says, sitting in the flat in Covent Garden that she and her sister use as an office. “We set up a company in difficult times and we are capitalising on them when everyone else is struggling.”

Bryony and her big sister – Kathyrn is 15 minutes older – made their first foray into the market in 2006 while studying human biology at Lough-borough University. Using sponsorship money from Adidas, they paid £100,000 for a four-bedroom house. After spending £8,000-£9,000 on renovating it and creating a fifth bedroom, they let it out for £1,450 a month to five students – an impressive 16% annual return on their initial investment.

Further purchases followed: last year, they bought a two-bedroom house on the Isle of Wight, where they were born, which cost them £82,000 and is let out to holidaymakers in the summer and another family for the rest of the year, just about covering their borrowing costs. Then came a five-bedroom house near the University of Sal-ford, just outside Manchester, valued at £150,000, which they bought for £110,000. It is rented out, again to students, for £1,475 a month.

Buoyed by the success of their purchases, the twins have decided to make a business of it. Their company, Elysium Skies, which started trading in January, matches people who need to sell property quickly with investors who have ready cash. The twins earn commission from the investors and take a slice of the rent if the properties are let out.

In return for a fast, certain transaction, the seller must accept a discounted price. While Kathryn and Bryony are understandably unwilling to be labelled “vultures”, they and their investor clients are undoubtedly capitalising on the misfortunes of others.

“We’re entirely open and transparent,” Kathryn insists. “We make it clear that we probably won’t give them the best price, but that we can guarantee to sell their property within a short time frame.”

Business is brisk for companies such as Elysium Skies. As unemployment and the number of repossessions rise, expect to see an increase in the number of such “vulture funds”. The twins are looking forward to becoming even busier next year.

This is, after all, the cheapest time to buy property for years – and it could prove one of the best. If you have the cash to get into the market today and are able to drive down the price further, you’re set to become even wealthier in the future.

If you think I’m being overoptimistic, just look at those who bought during the dark days of the early 1990s – and what happened to the value of their homes in the decade that followed. This time around, as then, confidence will eventually return – it’s all just a question of time.

The Frosts feature in a Credit Crunch Special edition of Location, Location, Location, in which my television co-host, Kirstie Allsopp, and I look at the property troubles of three sets of people, who represent three different groups affected by the current market.

Jo and Lee Cranmer, both in their early thirties, bought their family home in Swindon 2½ years ago and spent £15,000 doing it up. Then, in October last year, Lee got a new job as a senior traffic technician in Exeter – just as prices were beginning to topple. The couple, who have two children, wanted to move, but couldn’t sell their house for the price they wanted, so they let it out and rented in their new city.

Last month, they finally managed to sell in Swindon for £170,000 – £5,000 less than they had paid – but, despite their bad experience, they still want to buy a family home.

We advised them to choose somewhere to which they could add value, somewhere large enough for them to stay in for a long time and sufficiently flexible to be adapted as the needs of their family evolve. So, on the basis of their £170,000 budget and appetite for renovation work, we found a great place on the coast in Teign-mouth, Devon.

Negotiations are continuing. I’m determined that the price should include a “comfort cushion”, but the vendor has yet to agree. The market is continuing to move in the Cranmers’ favour, however, so I have advised them to sit tight.

Claudia Reyes, 30, a graphic designer, is a first-time buyer based in London, and one of thousands who applied for help via the government’s Homebuy initiative. She secured an Own-home loan of £89,000 to top up her deposit – so she should be able to obtain a mortgage, even with credit so tight.

A year ago, even a one-bedroom flat was out of her league, but a combination of the slump and the government scheme meant we could help her hunt for a two-bedroom flat in Zone 2 (the area immediately around central London). Reyes, who has moved back in with her mother while saving for a deposit, is delighted the market has fallen and is relishing the opportunities it presents. She initially wanted to live north of the river, but found her money went further south, so is buying a flat in need of work in Stockwell for about £220,000.

Finally, Debbie and Darren Ward, who are both in their mid-thirties, own two two-bedroom houses a few doors away from each other on the same street in Lincoln, one of which they let out.

With their second child now one – and still sleeping in their bedroom – the couple are desperate for more space. As this is not a good time to sell, they intend to let out the second house as well, and have asked us to help them find a decent family home for a maximum of £180,000.

With three mortgages to pay, they would be exposed if either of the tenants defaulted on the rent – so it is quite a gamble, and Debbie has had to get a part-time job to fund their living costs. As a long-term punt on the market, however, it’s a tough but workable solution to their problem.

The market never ceases or dies completely, even during a recession, when few of us feel like moving house for aspira-tional reasons. Which leaves the transactions caused by people getting married and divorced, and having children and dying. People also move jobs, schools and countries.

Understandably, at the moment many are sitting on their hands for as long as they can hold out. Transaction levels stood at 746,000 at the end of September – 54% down on a year earlier. As anyone who has tried sitting on their hands for a long time will know, however, it becomes extremely uncomfortable in the end. Regardless of any financial risks, the desire to move will eventually become irresistible.

Considering that the total number of transactions has halved in the past two years, it is not unreasonable to conclude that there are already upwards of 1m people living in homes that, in an ideal world, they would long since have moved out of. Which makes it reasonable to assume that, once the fall in interest rates has worked its way through the system, mortgages have become more available again and confidence has been restored, such homeowners will be keen to get moving.

[Tokyo_Expat]

You fvcking Brits and your proberdee obsession make me sick. :angry:

[Scunnered]

Using sponsorship money from Adidas, they paid £100,000 for a four-bedroom house.

So now property ramping is an Olympic event? They must have introduced it specially for the London Olympics.

[red]

He's unbearable:

Jo and Lee Cranmer, both in their early thirties, bought their family home in Swindon 2½ years ago and spent £15,000 doing it up. Then, in October last year, Lee got a new job as a senior traffic technician in Exeter – just as prices were beginning to topple. The couple, who have two children, wanted to move, but couldn’t sell their house for the price they wanted, so they let it out and rented in their new city.

Last month, they finally managed to sell in Swindon for £170,000 – £5,000 less than they had paid – but, despite their bad experience, they still want to buy a family home.

We advised them to choose somewhere to which they could add value, somewhere large enough for them to stay in for a long time and sufficiently flexible to be adapted as the needs of their family evolve. So, on the basis of their £170,000 budget and appetite for renovation work, we found a great place on the coast in Teign-mouth, Devon.

It's all about 'value', isn't it, Phil? Clearly, the best thing would have been for them to sell up, rent and buy back when affordable, but no - Phil's determined to make them lose yet more money in a vain attempt to keep his own pathetic career going as well as that of his porcine co-host...

[Bloo Loo]

He's unbearable:

It's all about 'value', isn't it, Phil? Clearly, the best thing would have been for them to sell up, rent and buy back when affordable, but no - Phil's determined to make them lose yet more money in a vain attempt to keep his own pathetic career going as well as that of his porcine co-host...

Hmm , their budget is what they sold their old home for....one assumes they dont need a mortgage.

[deflation]

"With three mortgages to pay, they would be exposed if either of the tenants defaulted on the rent – so it is quite a gamble, and Debbie has had to get a part-time job to fund their living costs."

They mention risk in the last example but not in the others, specifically those twins. Students always pay up on time and never trash a place do they?!

Edited: They used £100k Adidas sponsorship money to speculate in property. That sounds like fraud to me, surely it was for 'training expenses?'

Edited November 16, 2008 by Stourbridge Baggie

[tiggerthetiger]

They used sponsorship money to buy a house !! UH!

[Sinking Feeling]

What's his obsession with hyphenating place names- Lough-borough and Sal-ford?

[dances with sheeple]

He`s just another twonk who doesn`t have the ear of the masses anymore. Like a fly drowning in soup he will flap about about a bit then disappear. Joe public is now braced for unemployment, they don`t feel so secure as they did last summer, and they probably wont be as susceptable to this morons brand of B.S either. Does anyone know the viewing figures for property porn as compared to last year?

[6538]

p.s. those twins look like something out of the omen .

You still would though.

[time 2 raise interest rates]

Same old, same old trollop as in January, February this year when the stock market started to wobble, all the so called experts were saying when

they realised the banks could no longer borrow what they never had and lend it out to people that could never repay it, don't panic into selling your

stocks, it's a blip and the stock market would soon recover. Seeing as the FTSE was around 6,000ish and at one stage fell to around 3,600 listening

to so called experts can seriously damage your wealth.

A while back there were links on this website to the crash of the '90s whereas all the way through it there were constant VIs saying now is a good

time to buy a house as the worst is over but year after year, house prices continued to crash. No different this time, all these people will keep

spouting the same old, now's a good time to buy as house prices continue to crash back to around 3 and a half times the average wage as the banks

can no longer parcel up their mortgages to sell on.

Does anyone know where I can find a link to all the newspaper articles in the early '90s urging people to buy as the worst was over?

Just remember it's different this time as the banks now have to hold all their mortgages on their books.

[THE BALD MAN]

"With three mortgages to pay, they would be exposed if either of the tenants defaulted on the rent – so it is quite a gamble, and Debbie has had to get a part-time job to fund their living costs."

They mention risk in the last example but not in the others, specifically those twins. Students always pay up on time and never trash a place do they?!

Edited: They used £100k Adidas sponsorship money to speculate in property. That sounds like fraud to me, surely it was for 'training expenses?'

Might be worth giving Adidas a call to ask whether thye will sponser me into but y to let?

[@contradevian]

So now property ramping is an Olympic event? They must have introduced it specially for the London Olympics.

Britain would win that!

[Leonard Hatred]

In a league table of destroyed reputations, Phil Spencer would come somewhere between Gerald Ratner and Shannon Matthews' mum.

[Little Professor]

A while back there were links on this website to the crash of the '90s whereas all the way through it there were constant VIs saying now is a good

time to buy a house as the worst is over but year after year, house prices continued to crash

Does anyone know where I can find a link to all the newspaper articles in the early '90s urging people to buy as the worst was over?

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/wiki/Read...ast_time_around

[Y-QUERK]

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/wiki/Read...ast_time_around

Superb info.

[Home_To_Roost]

The usual VI nonsense. Oh look what I've found:

Location, Location TV star Phil Spencer's property firm hit by credit crunch

It seems not even TV property gurus are immune from the credit crunch as Phil Spencer, star of Channel 4's Location, Location, Location, has been forced to scale down his business empire because of the housing slump.

Less than 12 months after its glitzy launch, the founder of property search company Garrington has had to close his office in Knutsford, Cheshire.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10...dit-crunch.html

Yes, dear .... property is a good investment ..... if your idea of an investment is losing £100 to £150 per week .

Edited November 16, 2008 by Home_To_Roost

[woof]

Britain would win that!

UK team disqualified after positive random fraud tests.

[cockrobin]

Six months ago I could not see any evidence of property price falls in estate agent windows, but now its really beginning to show. Properties are popping up everywhere that, a few months ago, were not in my price range. Even though some are now in my price range I am going to give it another 6 months and hopefully another few percentage points will have been knocked off.

No matter what the incompetent berks at Westminster do there is no stopping the property cycle. Why the Government cannot grasp this I do not understand.

[Shrink Proof]

"Best Time To Buy Property For Years"

Yep, and my barber always reckons that I really need a haircut right now.

[time 2 raise interest rates]

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/wiki/Read...ast_time_around

Thank you, as you can see as bullsh*t goes it's the same this time as last, but it's different this time as the banks are broke.

[BXLONDONMAN]

Thank you, as you can see as bullsh*t goes it's the same this time as last, but it's different this time as the banks are broke.

yes the bull sh*t never changes the markets go up then down,,,some downs last longer i think this time property will stay down much longer...

[Leonard Hatred]

http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/wiki/Read...ast_time_around

Astonishing parallels!

Friday 04 FEB 1994 - The Times - Virtual reality in house prices

Efforts to talk up the housing market with buoyant end-year forecasts have already hit inconvenient reality. The Halifax Building Society's reputable index records that prices have fallen by about 1 per cent in the past two months. And this allows ...

[Johnny Cash]

http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life...icle5155123.ece

After viewing the photo of this ghastly pair, I console myself with the fact that I am far too good looking ever to make any money out of property in the UK.

Remember Vanessa and Nick?

Edited November 16, 2008 by Johnny Cash

[Pindar]

Kirsty and Phil have a VI in propping up the market for long enough to sell their portfolios before the market really tanks. They'll be laughed at or worse, lynched in a couple of years' time.