Owning your own home

The thing is, when the interest rates are 7%, rents will follow suit also. Landlords need to cover their mortgages...

Honestly mate, I'm just happy to know you guys recognise it. Many who contribute much more to the issue don't, and that's what I find more egregious. At the worst case you've got your Russian and Chinese investors buying up ghost penthouses as an investment, but we're all complicit.

You could even take my family - whom I love deeply - for an example. We're east London since 1776, old school London. My extended family all bought their council houses under Right To Buy in the 80s, and either stayed, or sold up at a handsome profit and fucked off to Kent / Essex. Now. I grew up here, all my pals are here. I've been renting here for 20 years. Finally got to put my name on a place in 2017 and my family were all absolutely apoplectic that I had to save for five years to get a 5% deposit for a literal bottom of the market place in Leyton. Apoplectic.

But they do not recognise - like literally not for a second - that they're part of the problem. (Just like I am!) It's very easy for born and bred Londoners like me to slag off the newbie, bank of mum and dad FTBers all we want. But the reality is you're not buying in a vacuum. You couldn't buy that property at an inflated price if people like my parents weren't selling them at an inflated price. We're all part of the same chain. If you want to put down roots here, and pay taxes here, and contribute to the city, even with help from mum and dad, then you deserve it man. London's for everyone, and we're all treading on someone's toes.

I’d vote for you.

Free penthouses for all under BleakRefs benevolent dictatorship!

I have an odd relationship with where I live (Brixton / Oval). Three of my grandparents were born within a mile of where I now live (in the 1930s) but left during / after the war.

If I were a total twat I might claim to be an OG local, but obviously the history of Brixton since Windrush is slightly more relevant.

I agree that rental yields will go up, but this will happen mostly because property values go down, not because rents will rise. I don’t see how there is any additional ability to pay when the average rent as a % of net income is trending towards or even above 50%

As I'm guilty of being a first time buyer that's just paid a ridiculous price for a Clapton flat, what were our options otherwise?

Should we have continued to rent our tiny flat for more money than i'll be paying as a mortgage? That's just putting even more cash into the pockets of people that bought 10 years ago, have moved out of the city but hung onto properties as they've been a surefire way to generate wealth. I just want a home to live in and as long as the house doesn't depreciate by ~£15k a year we're likely to be better off for it

Sorry to be pedantic, but it only matters if your house has lost £15k per year when you come to sell it.

We're in a similar boat although £20k per year depreciation until the day we sell is our break even point.

If you plan to live somewhere long-term, then it's not much of a worry.

Of course. I've also ignored the stamp duty in that calculation as i'm keeping things rose-tinted.

It's where we want to live and as we don't even have the keys yet, selling it looks to be a long way into the future.

It only matters if its lost £15k per year, relative to other similar properties (no?). Unless its a second home and you're looking to buy somewhere else to live, if its dropped in value, but so has everything else, then you haven't lost any real money

(I am poor and very much not-a-home-owner so apologies if this is totally wrong)

Depends if your mortgage is more than the value of the house at point of sale I imagine.

Did you pay in cash? What about the interest repayments? have you factored in the £10k of interest you pay the bank for the right to borrow all that money and thats with historically low rates.

Still cheaper than paying rent...

Unless you have to replace the roof

God this is a fun thread at times.

Got my first annual mortgage statement this week, shame I'll be living in a tent in 2 years time.

I like the way some random pops along every few years predicting the big crash then prices go up again.

We’ve paid ~70% cash, yes. I realise that’s fairly atypical for a first time buyer but I’ve been saving for a long time and unfortunately inherited recently. Our rate is therefore fixed for the next few years at a pretty good level and I could cover the mortgage at 10% interest if it came to it.

All costs, but rent in London is way out of whack compared to mortgages. I bought my place when I realised buying a two bed was cheaper than renting a one bed.

And they are always called something like “user5746674465)(()£(;3:”

I was convinced the market was overcooked about 2002 using the same arguments (apart from Brexit).

What I've seen since, including through the GFC, has convinced me the government will devalue the pound rather than let nominal property values fall too far.

I'm the same grandad grew up in walworth rd, lived on blackprince rd then left after ww2. and im well aware that I'm part of the problem of rising house prices putting local families in a hard position. esp as I'm now a landlord renting out as moved abroad for work. I hope this doesn't make me a total cunt. I mean I'm a cunt but not a total one.

I’m a cunt but for different reasons.

If the housing market has taught me anything, it's that we're all cunts.

Yes! And a garage with some Canada geese painted on the door.

I saw them first...

Thanks! Nowhere yet because we've had two offers (a fair bit below asking) rejected.

It's a bit further out but with more space.

It's a downgrade on location but a big upgrade on space and I think it would be worth it but I'm not completely convinced.

We went to look at another house in a nicer part of Forest Gate but it wasn't enough of a change from ours.

I think if this one doesn't go through we might reconsider moving.