Anyone had any experiences with this? It was looking really promising and then I've read some absolutely horror stories!!!
Most new builds are a total rip off to begin with, they are built to such shoddy standards now by cheap, rushed labourers and totally overpriced. I've got no experience of the scheme but personally if I was in the market for a house I'd be looking for something older but bigger, well built and maybe needing some interior work so its good value to begin but gives you plenty of room to improve it and add further value. Egg's doing it, matt5cott has done it, Nimrod I think has done it and I know knighty would do it if he was getting his own place. Seems like the no brainer to me over a new build that you'll spend the lifetime of the guarantee trying to get snags fixed from, even the obvious ones like cracks appearing from the house settling/drying out.
Quote from: Clock'd 0Ne on February 04, 2013, 17:49:32 PMI know knighty would do it if he was getting his own place.
I've been looking for a year and can't find anything decent :-(
Its probably a good thing if you can find the right house.
Not buying through the scheme just to get on the housing ladder, as you may have problems selling - especially if its a large development estate & the builders are already struggling to sell.
Quote from: Clock'd 0Ne on February 04, 2013, 17:49:32 PM
Most new builds are a total rip off to begin with, they are built to such shoddy standards now by cheap, rushed labourers and totally overpriced. I've got no experience of the scheme but personally if I was in the market for a house I'd be looking for something older but bigger, well built and maybe needing some interior work so its good value to begin but gives you plenty of room to improve it and add further value. Egg's doing it, matt5cott has done it, Nimrod I think has done it and I know knighty would do it if he was getting his own place. Seems like the no brainer to me over a new build that you'll spend the lifetime of the guarantee trying to get snags fixed from, even the obvious ones like cracks appearing from the house settling/drying out.
Yep, this.
I got a detached 1950s house, for a ton less cash than a new build semi!
Needed a 'bit' of work mind :lol:
I bought a house that was built during WWII by Italian PoW. Luckily the bloke who left had done quite a bit of work to it anyhow but it could still do with modernising in places.
Metal door frames :/
Being an electrician I'm quite handy and happy to do any DIY. About to embark on the project of removing the chimney breast from the house, top to bottom.
I bought a 19th century stone cottage :D
Quote from: Adrock on February 05, 2013, 21:36:45 PMAbout to embark on the project of removing the chimney breast from the house, top to bottom.
do it the other way, bottom first and it'll get done much quicker ;)
Quote from: Adrock on February 05, 2013, 21:36:45 PM
About to embark on the project of removing the chimney breast from the house, top to bottom.
Good luck - its something I done with my house - more hassle than its worth (this house was gutted throughout), I should have just built a stud wall all the way across & lose 8" of living space. If its an outside wall, dont forget that you will (should) then build a wall up internally for structure support, as well as to keep the elements out.
Quote from: Eggtastico on February 06, 2013, 09:36:48 AM
Quote from: Adrock on February 05, 2013, 21:36:45 PM
About to embark on the project of removing the chimney breast from the house, top to bottom.
Good luck - its something I done with my house - more hassle than its worth (this house was gutted throughout), I should have just built a stud wall all the way across & lose 8" of living space.
I did this, rather than 'lose' 8 inches we chucked insulation either side of the chimney as we have a single skinned wall.
________ __________
| insul |___| insul |
| |
| |
| |
| |
(http://farm1.staticflickr.com/146/380702494_a290725b16_z.jpg)
Mess I made - only good that came out of it, was for wiring.
once I finished
(http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5177/5532323456_f73ee11a85.jpg)
& today it looks different again!
1 1/2 meters across by half a meter deep is the downstairs chimney. Then it runs through the middle of the house so my bedroom has a big space take up by it too. After removing it I may still put a small stud partition up, just the metal work in thickness so that I can easily rewire it and mount the TV to it.
Quote from: Adrock on February 06, 2013, 13:28:12 PM
1 1/2 meters across by half a meter deep is the downstairs chimney. Then it runs through the middle of the house so my bedroom has a big space take up by it too. After removing it I may still put a small stud partition up, just the metal work in thickness so that I can easily rewire it and mount the TV to it.
good luck! Luckily I had somewhere to put the bricks (as you can see top pic ;o))
If you got nowhere for them to go, its going to cost you for a skip, etc. - then you gotta deal with the dust :D
Yup, dust is horrendous. My dad did his when I was younger and I helped out.
Luckily he works for a skip hire company so I'm hoping he gets them free, if not at a very reduced rate. Sorry for derailing this thread btw.
Can you use the bricks for something like landscaping? Stack em in a sloped pile in a corner of the garden, and then cover it in soil = rockery?
Or make a small pond and use the bricks to edge them?
We've been in need of bricks at uni for some projects, I imagine if you put an ad up people would take them for free :D
A bit more information for you on the new Help to Buy scheme, which looks like it might be worthwhile if you're struggling to put together a decent sized deposit as they will be opening it up next year so it's not just for new builds:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/mortgages/2013/03/budget-2013-new-buy-mortgages (http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/mortgages/2013/03/budget-2013-new-buy-mortgages)
QuoteQ&A: Guarantees for small deposit mortgages (any property type)
What is this scheme? The Government will give a guarantee to lenders to provide mortgages where the loan to value ratio is high (ie, where there is a small deposit). The result is that if a borrower has their home repossessed, the Government will cover some of the losses. The plan is to support £130 billion of high loan to value mortgages via £12 billion of guarantees. The insurance is for the lender, so it does not mean borrowers' payments will be guaranteed.
What does it mean in practice? Those with small deposits often cannot get a home loan. So if it works, there will be more mortgages available to that group.
When does it start? January 2014.
Who will be eligible? Anyone with a deposit of less than 20%, on any type of home. Of course, you still need to meet lenders' criteria to get a mortgage, which is largely around your income and credit history.
Why would this scheme help lenders offer these mortgages? Lenders are reluctant to offer high loan to value mortgage because of the risk they will not recover money if the borrower misses payments, subsequently has their home repossessed, which is then sold for less than the amount the lender is owed from the mortgage. But if the Government can guarantee some of those losses, it is hoped it will facilitate more lending to this group.
How do I get one of these mortgages? Full information will be published later this year.
The beginning of another house price bubble and unrealistic lending? I think that government policy could be one of the most dangerous for the housing market. The stricter lending rules, which are making it difficult to lend, would be relaxed and house prices would begin to increase again, thats a worrying prospect.
On a personal note though I'm stuck on a SVR which is a killer, hopefully the new policy would have a knock on effect for me too. Would be nice to cut my interest payments down to something more manageable.
Actually whether the rules will be relaxed is up for debate, they may not loosen up who they lend to, but it may present more people with the possibility of getting on the ladder without a huge deposit saved - they'll still need to prove they have the ability to pay back the mortgage though - plus there is still only a finite amount of money available in the mortgage pot to go around. We will see how it affects the markets soon enough I guess.
Yeah I agree with that sentiment, but if the banks know for a fact there is a massive guarantor for a portion of the mortgage the lending rules will be relaxed because even if they do fail they'll still get most of their money back after repossessing the house.
I, for one, dont understand the preoccupation in this country with wanting to own your own house. In and around London its cheaper to pay a mortgage than rent in the majority of cases, so that would make sense. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, is that the case too? If it isn't there really is no need for people to own their homes.
Its a shame that the real problem is a lack of housing and there still aren't enough policies by any party to seriously combat that. I reckon stuff like HS2 could be cancelled and a nice chunk of that money ploughed into housing, tons of housing. Post WW2 style council house building, that'd fix a lot of the problems people are facing.
Spiralling house prices and greedy BTL schemers have pushed rental prices up too, it would be far cheaper for me in mortgage payments than for the same house than what I'm currently paying in rent. Plus you have something to show at the end of it instead of funding someone else's repayments.
Quote from: Clock'd 0Ne on March 24, 2013, 13:58:30 PM
Spiralling house prices and greedy BTL schemers have pushed rental prices up too, it would be far cheaper for me in mortgage payments than for the same house than what I'm currently paying in rent. Plus you have something to show at the end of it instead of funding someone else's repayments.
Rental prices are affected by housing shortages. Thats the bottom line, the BTL and spiralling house prices are all a symptom of a lack of housing. Landlords are profiting massively because of the housing benefit, which is being paid to private landlords because of a lack of social housing.
Social housing was not renewed or built when the councils sold off all of their houses in the 80's. So then the provision of social housing falls to housing associations when in reality the amount of houses required means we need central action from the very councils that sold off their housing stock many years ago.
The way to fix all of the problems would be, as I said earlier, to build massive amounts of housing.
The scheme announced by the government in isolation is in danger of creating a price bubble but coupled with an unprecedented building program it could solve a lot of problems. House owners like me might well suffer due to falling prices but in the long run that HAS to be the solution for the country as a whole.
I agree totally, but the side issue here is that they need to open up more green belt land as viable for development too. I don't know how they stop the home builders cutting corners and pricing the new build homes way over the odds though, they are so overpriced its leaving families in negative equity a year after getting the keys to the front door and its simply not on.
Quote from: Adrock on March 24, 2013, 10:52:20 AM
I, for one, dont understand the preoccupation in this country with wanting to own your own house. In and around London its cheaper to pay a mortgage than rent in the majority of cases, so that would make sense. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, is that the case too? If it isn't there really is no need for people to own their homes.
Might be the other way around. I pay 1850 rent a month on a flat worth 500k. A mortgage on that would be about 2.2k a month if I put down 20%.
Quote from: Sam on March 24, 2013, 18:26:15 PM
Quote from: Adrock on March 24, 2013, 10:52:20 AM
I, for one, dont understand the preoccupation in this country with wanting to own your own house. In and around London its cheaper to pay a mortgage than rent in the majority of cases, so that would make sense. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, is that the case too? If it isn't there really is no need for people to own their homes.
Might be the other way around. I pay 1850 rent a month on a flat worth 500k. A mortgage on that would be about 2.2k a month if I put down 20%.
nah - 1732 with 20% deposit - and you could get it down to £1,600 with a 30% deposit....(HSBC lifetime tracker) also consider that part of that is being spent on capital repayment - tis probably more reasonable to compare the rent with just the interest portion of the mortgage in terms of the actual 'cost' to you in the long term. Buying would be a preferable option if you're planning on staying somewhere for a decent length of time... (obv you've got stamp duty etc.. and legal fees too presenting extra up front costs)
Quote from: Dave on March 24, 2013, 22:38:42 PM
Quote from: Sam on March 24, 2013, 18:26:15 PM
Quote from: Adrock on March 24, 2013, 10:52:20 AM
I, for one, dont understand the preoccupation in this country with wanting to own your own house. In and around London its cheaper to pay a mortgage than rent in the majority of cases, so that would make sense. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, is that the case too? If it isn't there really is no need for people to own their homes.
Might be the other way around. I pay 1850 rent a month on a flat worth 500k. A mortgage on that would be about 2.2k a month if I put down 20%.
nah - 1732 with 20% deposit - and you could get it down to £1,600 with a 30% deposit....(HSBC lifetime tracker) also consider that part of that is being spent on capital repayment - tis probably more reasonable to compare the rent with just the interest portion of the mortgage in terms of the actual 'cost' to you in the long term. Buying would be a preferable option if you're planning on staying somewhere for a decent length of time... (obv you've got stamp duty etc.. and legal fees too presenting extra up front costs)
20% is 100k down and 30% is 150k. That's a big chunk of change for anyone so obviously it's easy to say, yeah put down 20% or 30% but its far easier said than done.
That said, this bbc tracker at 5% shows repayments at 2300 a month on 20%
http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/property/mortgagecalculator.shtml
And once interest rates start to increase in the next few years, could be an expensive hobby buying a house !
That would be my biggest fear too, but my rent could easily be pushed up every year as well. Okay I can move out easier and get somewhere cheaper, but moving isn't cheap and who wants to be moving house every year to keep ahead of rent payments? I'm fortunate that I literally could work anywhere and move somewhere where its cheapest because all my work is on the web, but for most its not as easy I think.
Yeah the interest rate rise is something we're having to factor in heavily - I'm basing all my calculations on a rate of 8/9% so we're quids in whilst its lower and can afford it when it goes up. Only way to be sure... :)
Quote from: Rivkid on March 25, 2013, 08:53:03 AM
Only way to be sure... :)
Well that, or you could nuke it from orbit but that'll likely cost more :)
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
I wonder if household insurance policies cover a nuking from orbit :lol:
The best thing about this stalling economy is the low interest rates for home owners, well thats if you can get a good deal. I reckon a large rate increase could wipe out a massive chunk of home owners and would surely have a negative impact on house prices.
Quote from: M3ta7h3ad on March 25, 2013, 09:15:20 AM
Quote from: Rivkid on March 25, 2013, 08:53:03 AM
Only way to be sure... :)
Well that, or you could nuke it from orbit but that'll likely cost more :)
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
Quote from: Clock'd 0Ne on March 25, 2013, 12:04:01 PM
I wonder if household insurance policies cover a nuking from orbit :lol:
Love this forum - I knew you guys would pick that up! :cheers:
Just noticed Barclays are doing a 95% LTV mortgage if a family member agrees to put 10% of the house value into a Barclay's savings account for 3 years. Hmm now that's interesting - might speak to some of the family about that. It still earns 1.5% for them so might see if anyone's willing to shift some cash around for us.
Quote from: Sam on March 24, 2013, 22:46:35 PM
Quote from: Dave on March 24, 2013, 22:38:42 PM
Quote from: Sam on March 24, 2013, 18:26:15 PM
Quote from: Adrock on March 24, 2013, 10:52:20 AM
I, for one, dont understand the preoccupation in this country with wanting to own your own house. In and around London its cheaper to pay a mortgage than rent in the majority of cases, so that would make sense. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, is that the case too? If it isn't there really is no need for people to own their homes.
Might be the other way around. I pay 1850 rent a month on a flat worth 500k. A mortgage on that would be about 2.2k a month if I put down 20%.
nah - 1732 with 20% deposit - and you could get it down to £1,600 with a 30% deposit....(HSBC lifetime tracker) also consider that part of that is being spent on capital repayment - tis probably more reasonable to compare the rent with just the interest portion of the mortgage in terms of the actual 'cost' to you in the long term. Buying would be a preferable option if you're planning on staying somewhere for a decent length of time... (obv you've got stamp duty etc.. and legal fees too presenting extra up front costs)
20% is 100k down and 30% is 150k. That's a big chunk of change for anyone so obviously it's easy to say, yeah put down 20% or 30% but its far easier said than done.
That said, this bbc tracker at 5% shows repayments at 2300 a month on 20%
http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/property/mortgagecalculator.shtml
And once interest rates start to increase in the next few years, could be an expensive hobby buying a house !
Well if we're talking about buying then having a deposit is kind of implied... I guess for people who don't have one the new govt scheme this thread is about comes into play (they'll lend the 20% deposit for properties up to 600k) - either way at current prices it is cheaper than renting long term.
As for 5% have you seen interest rates recently? I can get 2.69% with HSBC... would require a fair few rate hikes to get to 5% - though it is certainly possible and I guess people who've taken out huge multiples (mine is less than 3 * salary) might struggle if rates rise.
Well I couldn't get 2.7% as a contractor. Might get like 4.7%
one of you is tlaking about interest rates on a mortgage and one on savings? no? totally different things.
Quote from: bytejunkie on March 26, 2013, 09:20:16 AM
one of you is tlaking about interest rates on a mortgage and one on savings? no? totally different things.
nope we're both talking about mortgages
though its fair to conclude that whether buying or renting is a good option is fairly dependent on your particular circumstances
a lot of people have the idea that buying is *always* a good option "property always goes up innit" etc.. and as a nation we do have this obsession with owning our own homes
if you're only planning on being in a place for a year or two, if you've got a bearish view on the property market, if a mortgage would present a significant cost due to a small deposit or if you're self employed and so have to pay a higher rate then with any of these factors renting might well be the optimal choice
I actually know of one contractor who has recently taken up a full time job with the intention of not remaining there for more than a year for rather beneficial reasons - she wants a mortgage and she wants to have a kid & claim maternity pay...
add another to the list. ive taken a year long contract to get my credit history solid so i can get a decent car loan. the banks dont care that im earning the equivalent of 70k a year, they won't lend me 3k to get a car. so a lower paid long term contract it is. ho hum.
I had a terrible credit history. I ended up having to get a credit card, and clearing it every month, and getting a contract mobile phone.
My history was that bad that only Capital One would touch me, and i had to go through specialist insurers and phone types.
Now, my history is perfect :D
Quote from: bytejunkie on March 27, 2013, 08:45:05 AM
add another to the list. ive taken a year long contract to get my credit history solid so i can get a decent car loan. the banks dont care that im earning the equivalent of 70k a year, they won't lend me 3k to get a car. so a lower paid long term contract it is. ho hum.
Just curious but why do you need to borrow 3k to buy a car if you're earning approx 70k a year? Can't you just pay yourself 3k in dividends?
everything i earnt from that ridiculous contract went into the pot to pay for the new house.