vallumlj

Me and the girlfriend are looking at buying our first home together and have recently seen some good offers.

Today we saw one for £235k it was a brand new 4 bedroom 3 bathrooms 3 floors semi detached house in maidstone in kent. It was up for 250-270k

I personally dont think that is a bad price but i keep on reading and hearing on tv that its a bad time to buy.

What are your views.

Thanks

Ved

Prices will continue to drop this year mate as is the stock market too so if you can, do what I'm doing any wait this year out and do it next year. However if you have the money now and it's a good deal you may as well do it as nobody can every 100% what's going to happen.

Jamescsti

I think if it is affordable to you, and you are happy with the price you should buy it.
There's always going to be people who will argue both ways where house prices are concerned, I think if you are looking to live in it long term, then i wouldn't worry too much about the short term fluctuations in the housing market, long term they always go up in price, obviously if you are looking at it purely as an investment, or making a quick profit then you would have to think differently.

john banks

Could you keep the house if one of you loses a job or the interest rate doubles, and would you avoid negative equity if prices drop by >30%?

House price futures are suggesting a bottom in 2011 with drops of about 30% IIRC. You should probably assume the same.

Chris L

Factor in at least a 1% rise in interest rates over the next year (possibly more if you are pessimistic). There are some very good deals around for new builds from desparate housebuilders. If you can afford it (with a likely increase in rates), can get a good deal and you are not intending moving for the next 4 -5 years, then you should consider it.

My personal circumstances will suit me to sit tight until next year - I will be buying then (but not a new build).

Chris

al4x1

I'd not buy a new build now, there are too many about and too many developers in trouble so they will be off loading really cheap if it carries on too long. You also won't be able to sell for love nor money for your purchase price if they start selling others off at cost which they may need to to stop going bust.
However had I not got the project house that I have, I'd be jumping on some of the renovations that are cropping up at the moment, the sort of ones that never used to reach the open market seem to be being advertised.

gazza-uk

Once the price bottoms out (nobody knows what level), there will be a mad rush to buy properties, and the cycle of high/low price will start again...

Dracoro

Offer £180k.

gazza-uk

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I work for a housing company and If your going to buy a new house that has dropped from £270k down to £235k I would say they still have more room to drop it The new house builders are desperate to sell the houses so go in and barter them down a little now and put say your £300 deposit to secure the house. Then go back 3 weeks later and say you can only get a mortgage for say £10-15k less than what you originally offered. Considering you would be a definate sale I very mujch doubt they would refuse it

thesyn

In general terms always buy against the market. Main criteria for you should be can you afford it and still be comfortable against the unforseen.
As above noone can accurrately call the bottom of the market. Comment about a cheeky offer wasn't stupid IMO, they can only tell you to f**k off.

MikeCardiff

iTrader: (2)

No harm in putting in a silly offer and haggling hard - new build companies have had it good for the past few years and made massive profits ( even though house prices have shot up, the cost of building the house hasnt gone up by nearly as much ).

New build companies are the ones who are going to be hit hardest as they have the most money tied up, and are trying to sell 50 or 100 houses at a go ( as opposed to an individual seller who is just trying to sell one house ). Add to this a lot of new builds are typically aimed at first time buyers, and you are likely to see a lot of empty houses and flats on these new estates for a long time.

Assuming this house is on an estate, build cost of roughly £100K or less, land cost of £50K ( remembering the builders get the land a lot cheaper when they are buying a big parcel and dividing it up into tiny lots to fit loads of houses on there - if you've seen these 3 storey town houses they put up, and look at the size of the plot, its tiny for most of them ) then they can come down a lot more than £235K and still make a profit.

Prices will continue to drop, but mortgages willl go up, cancelling out any massive savings, so if you like the house and can afford it then I would go for it.

The thing to remember with property is long term it will always go up - if you are hoping to make money in 3 or 5 years, then you may find it much harder, or just about break even so when looking at houses consider if you would be happy to stay there for 10 years or more.

We bought 18 months ago, prices were in theory at there peak, but the house we chose is one we will happily stay in for a long time, and it needed quite a lot of modernising so we got it around £20K less than others nearby.

Saying that, a few have come up in the nearby streets that are basically the same, only modernised or with a conservatory added, and they are selling for £50K more than we paid ( the area is one where houses always sell fairly quickly as its quite desirable, and a lot of older people who are downsizing from huge houses buy here, so they can afford to pay the price ).

nixxon

House prices are one variable to consider- IMHO they have a long way to fall yet.
If both you and the missus have guaranteed jobs for life (local government, Utilities companies, etc) then go for it, but expect it's paper value to be less than you paid for 3 years at least. If you aren't so certain about your job prospects, then wait until things start to pick up. Buy when prices have troughed, and are on the way up again, not when they're still falling. If youmlose your job as a house owner you will be royally shafted. If you're renting, we will pay your rent!
There's no hurry!

SunnySideUp

As said above, and it wasn't a mad statement - offer £180k and walk away leaving your number.

They can only say no and may just say yes!

It's my opinion that in 12 months they WILL be saying yes to £180k anyway!! And they know that!

Or just sit it out and watch carefully, willing and able to move quickly when you notice houses getting sold and prices firming up.

SlimJ_2005

Sit and wait saving your money for the next 3 years if you can, then when things start picking up go and buy with potentially a very small mortgage.

Thats my plan about now, saving money over the next few years... unfortunately, the desire to buy a new car is getting in the way of saving slightly... *****!!

CooperS

If you can afford the payments, then why not buy? if it's right for you it's right.

Paul3446

Don't touch it with a barge pole! They cannot shift this type of house at the moment, where I live a builder has just announced they are not going ahead with a planned new estate.

£235k might seem a bargain, but only because you have become accustomed to ludicrous house prices. It's still almost a quarter of a million pounds! Depending what sort of deposit you have, you will almost immediately find yourself in negative equity.

dunx

iTrader: (3)

Of fifteen similar on the development I'm on, only two have been sold this year...

As SteveBT says.. chisel, and THEN come back saying your lender is £20K below the asking price !

LOL

DunxC