Location, location, location
Jul 18th 2011, 5:46 pm
#1081
Finally Home!
Joined: Mar 2010
Location: Used to be New York, now North Yorkshire
Posts: 3,610
Re: Location, location, location
There are some houses in Cumbria that are restricted to local occupancy but they seem to be few and far between - fewer than I would have expected given the exorbitant pricing in that part of the country and the influx of second home owners.
Jul 22nd 2011, 7:37 pm
#1082
Finally Home!
Joined: Mar 2010
Location: Used to be New York, now North Yorkshire
Posts: 3,610
Re: Location, location, location
Interesting report that confirms what some of us were saying a while ago - in many cases, renting can be the smart financial option:
Full article here.
Using data from 1979 to 2009, the authors demonstrate that renting was the superior investment strategy for most of the past 30 years. Counterintuitive as the finding may be to some, it is actually quite logical. Unless someone possesses the cash necessary to buy a residence, he or she will be renting one way or another. The choice is between renting the property directly or instead renting the capital necessary to buy the property. The amount of capital to be rented is a function of house prices, while the bulk of a mortgage payment is interest, which is the rental payment on this capital. After 2 years, the typical 30-year amortizing mortgage balance has been reduced by less than 3%. This means that a household that took out a $300,000 mortgage with a 5% interest rate to buy a home has only reduced its mortgage balance by $8,600 after two years despite spending nearly $39,000 in total over this period.
Housing advocates may respond by pointing out that at least the $8,600 in this scenario went towards home equity rather than simply being squandered on rent. But, as demonstrated in the Real Estate Economics article, the principal component of each mortgage payment – i.e. the portion of the mortgage payment that goes towards reducing the principal mortgage balance instead of interest – is an added expense renters don’t have.
Housing advocates may respond by pointing out that at least the $8,600 in this scenario went towards home equity rather than simply being squandered on rent. But, as demonstrated in the Real Estate Economics article, the principal component of each mortgage payment – i.e. the portion of the mortgage payment that goes towards reducing the principal mortgage balance instead of interest – is an added expense renters don’t have.
Jul 26th 2011, 5:06 am
#1083
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: Now Devon
Posts: 951
Re: Location, location, location
This is reasonably priced for those who wish to live close to the Thames. 
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
Jul 26th 2011, 5:30 am
#1084
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2011
Location: Salt Spring Island, BC, Canada
Posts: 2,060
Re: Location, location, location
This is reasonably priced for those who wish to live close to the Thames.
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
Is it something that you are considering?
Jul 26th 2011, 5:37 am
#1085
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2008
Location: Perth
Posts: 6,775
Re: Location, location, location
This is reasonably priced for those who wish to live close to the Thames.
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
http://tinyurl.com/3apez7c
Interesting but bailed out early. Had more than enough of frozen pipes and blocked toilets.
Jul 26th 2011, 6:59 am
#1086
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: Now Devon
Posts: 951
Re: Location, location, location
Frozen pipes and blocked toilets isn't something I had thought about. I haven't seen a frozen pipe for half a century despite my water heater here being outside the back door. Hmm, is that what I must put up with in the winter if I buy a flat somewhere in the south of England?
Jul 26th 2011, 7:09 am
#1087
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2008
Location: Perth
Posts: 6,775
Re: Location, location, location
Not really, although I like the idea, it was
Frozen pipes and blocked toilets isn't something I had thought about. I haven't seen a frozen pipe for half a century despite my water heater here being outside the back door. Hmm, is that what I must put up with in the winter if I buy a flat somewhere in the south of England?
Frozen pipes and blocked toilets isn't something I had thought about. I haven't seen a frozen pipe for half a century despite my water heater here being outside the back door. Hmm, is that what I must put up with in the winter if I buy a flat somewhere in the south of England?
Never had that problem anywhere else while living in flats so I wouldn't be too concerned.
Have you decided in an area down in the south yet? I'm on the look as well but for the life of me cannot decide on a location.
Mostly lived in London and though liked visiting the countryside for a day or so always had slightly negative views on life in the sticks.
Jul 26th 2011, 10:23 am
#1088
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: Now Devon
Posts: 951
Re: Location, location, location
The winter of 78/79 was a pretty savage one being the worst for a number of decades from memory.
Never had that problem anywhere else while living in flats so I wouldn't be too concerned.
Have you decided in an area down in the south yet? I'm on the look as well but for the life of me cannot decide on a location.
Mostly lived in London and though liked visiting the countryside for a day or so always had slightly negative views on life in the sticks.
Never had that problem anywhere else while living in flats so I wouldn't be too concerned.
Have you decided in an area down in the south yet? I'm on the look as well but for the life of me cannot decide on a location.
Mostly lived in London and though liked visiting the countryside for a day or so always had slightly negative views on life in the sticks.
London would be my first choice, however I doubt if I could afford a decent flat in a nice area. It may well be a compromise, live somewhere in London which doesn't meet my expectations, or look further away, perhaps towards Eastbourne
Jul 28th 2011, 4:24 pm
#1089
Just Joined
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 22
Re: Location, location, location
Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but here are some latest figures and article (Guardian) on UK Property Market
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011...sayers-delight
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011...sayers-delight
Jul 28th 2011, 11:11 pm
#1090
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Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2011
Location: Salt Spring Island, BC, Canada
Posts: 2,060
Re: Location, location, location
Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but here are some latest figures and article (Guardian) on UK Property Market
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011...sayers-delight
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011...sayers-delight
Just as I had decided to think about renting instead of buying, rents are on the upsweep. I have been looking at rentals in areas of interest and find it quite disheartening. A lot of the more affordable places are downright depressing.
Am still considering buy to let and letting that subsidize my own rent while increasing equity.
Jul 29th 2011, 12:23 am
#1091
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Aug 2010
Location: US
Posts: 4,224
Re: Location, location, location
Yep. Right place. thanks for posting those.
Just as I had decided to think about renting instead of buying, rents are on the upsweep. I have been looking at rentals in areas of interest and find it quite disheartening. A lot of the more affordable places are downright depressing.
Am still considering buy to let and letting that subsidize my own rent while increasing equity.
Just as I had decided to think about renting instead of buying, rents are on the upsweep. I have been looking at rentals in areas of interest and find it quite disheartening. A lot of the more affordable places are downright depressing.
Am still considering buy to let and letting that subsidize my own rent while increasing equity.
Both have pluses and minuses don't you know.
Its jolly 'ot 'ere. The Brits can have all this sunshine and hot weather and you can't go outside. What kind of a life is that?
Cheers
Jul 29th 2011, 9:39 am
#1092
Just Joined
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 22
Re: Location, location, location
We finally decided to rent for the time being, but having searched over the past 6 weeks, our experience is (in Berks/Bucks/Oxon commutable to London) it is a Landlord's market. All the agents told us the demand for rental property outweighed supply and that it was unusual for this time of year. In the end we made a decision on a place as we were first to view and needed to say yes or no before the day was out, due to so many booked to view. The agents didn't need to follow up after viewings and we had to do our own searching for property, none had time or need to call us or be proactive about showing us places as they were all being snapped up within days of being marketed. This is just our experience, it may be different elsewhere.
Jul 29th 2011, 10:54 pm
#1093
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,198
Re: Location, location, location
We finally decided to rent for the time being, but having searched over the past 6 weeks, our experience is (in Berks/Bucks/Oxon commutable to London) it is a Landlord's market. All the agents told us the demand for rental property outweighed supply and that it was unusual for this time of year. In the end we made a decision on a place as we were first to view and needed to say yes or no before the day was out, due to so many booked to view. The agents didn't need to follow up after viewings and we had to do our own searching for property, none had time or need to call us or be proactive about showing us places as they were all being snapped up within days of being marketed. This is just our experience, it may be different elsewhere.
We are currently renting near Windsor and had this same type of experience 4 months ago as we were researching rental properties...viewing a property and having to give a decision that day as others were booked in to view.
When we decided to rent the place we are now living in, someone else had actually already said she wanted it. She was a single professional who wanted a 6-month lease; we were a professional couple who wanted a 12-month lease. It was almost a literal 'race' to the letting agent with our deposit, but in the end the landlord decided to rent to us.
Definitely a Landlord's market, as you say.
Jul 30th 2011, 12:59 am
#1094
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2011
Location: South Carolina USA
Posts: 15
Re: Location, location, location
We are currently renting near Windsor and had this same type of experience 4 months ago as we were researching rental properties...viewing a property and having to give a decision that day as others were booked in to view.
When we decided to rent the place we are now living in, someone else had actually already said she wanted it. She was a single professional who wanted a 6-month lease; we were a professional couple who wanted a 12-month lease. It was almost a literal 'race' to the letting agent with our deposit, but in the end the landlord decided to rent to us.
Definitely a Landlord's market, as you say.
When we decided to rent the place we are now living in, someone else had actually already said she wanted it. She was a single professional who wanted a 6-month lease; we were a professional couple who wanted a 12-month lease. It was almost a literal 'race' to the letting agent with our deposit, but in the end the landlord decided to rent to us.
Definitely a Landlord's market, as you say.
Jul 30th 2011, 3:51 pm
#1095
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2002
Location: Wales, UK
Posts: 1,216
Re: Location, location, location
We've been llloking at renting rather than owning for a couple of years now. We've made the decision to sell the house we currently have in SE Wales, invewst the capital and then rent when we move to SW England hopefully sometime in the next 12 to 18 months. We can afford more house for our money that way and our capital from the sale of our house here can work for us. We also plan to downsize from a 4 BR to a 2 BR or maybe a 3BR.
The investment of of the capital from the sale of our house could pretty much pay our rent in some of the nicer areas we want to live in. If for any reason we wanted to move, not having to sell a house makes it much easier to do so.
The investment of of the capital from the sale of our house could pretty much pay our rent in some of the nicer areas we want to live in. If for any reason we wanted to move, not having to sell a house makes it much easier to do so.