Official UK Property Thread

[Raggs]

So I own a house (and owe a bank)!

Had the builders in today to take a look and give us a quote. He also had a nice idea on how we can make the small bathroom a bit bigger, but it may have to wait until we have a few more pennies! Wife has expensive tastes, or at least expensive tastes in things that can at least be argued to be worth it.

[Lobby]

So I own a house (and owe a bank)!

Had the builders in today to take a look and give us a quote. He also had a nice idea on how we can make the small bathroom a bit bigger, but it may have to wait until we have a few more pennies! Wife has expensive tastes, or at least expensive tastes in things that can at least be argued to be worth it.

Hopefully you’ve got a bit more room than this 7sq m flat which is up for auction



Oh, and congratulations.

[inactionman]

So I own a house (and owe a bank)!

Had the builders in today to take a look and give us a quote. He also had a nice idea on how we can make the small bathroom a bit bigger, but it may have to wait until we have a few more pennies! Wife has expensive tastes, or at least expensive tastes in things that can at least be argued to be worth it.

Nice one, hope you're very happy there.

I really don't miss the rental market, it's sometimes a pain being the one responsible for annoying repairs (tiles off roof etc) but it means you can do with it what you want and there's no worries about rent hikes or repossession.

Re. expense, if I can offer benefits of my experience, just dole it out through time and do things properly, I've known a few people who have tried to do it all in one on a budget and it's not always gone well, or they'd wished they'd made a few different decisions up front. Sometimes it's good just to live there for a bit to see what you really want to change - or you just get used to the kitchen doors all wobbling on their hinges.

[Paddington Bear]

I'm sure the novelty wears off but I've quite enjoyed doing up my place - a nice sense of purpose in sorting your own place out. Didn't really expect to find that the previous owners had removed all circuit breakers so that was an unplanned cost but otherwise haven't minded it.

[inactionman]

I'm sure the novelty wears off but I've quite enjoyed doing up my place - a nice sense of purpose in sorting your own place out. Didn't really expect to find that the previous owners had removed all circuit breakers so that was an unplanned cost but otherwise haven't minded it.

Ah, the joys of uncovering bodged DIY.

[SaintK]

Bonkers!!!!

Imagine distilling your life to fit in just 7 square metres. There would just about be space for a bed, a toilet and shower, a sink, a microwave and some storage. But no room for a kitchen to cook in, decorations, a place to store equipment for hobbies, or to have anyone round to visit.

This is life in London’s smallest microflat. Located in a Victorian conversion in Lower Clapton, east London it is thought by its sellers to be the smallest to have gone on the market in the capital. The minimum price set by auctioneers is £50,000, but it is expected to go for more as it was bought for £103,500 in May 2017.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2 ... e-metres

[Raggs]

So I own a house (and owe a bank)!

Had the builders in today to take a look and give us a quote. He also had a nice idea on how we can make the small bathroom a bit bigger, but it may have to wait until we have a few more pennies! Wife has expensive tastes, or at least expensive tastes in things that can at least be argued to be worth it.

Nice one, hope you're very happy there.

I really don't miss the rental market, it's sometimes a pain being the one responsible for annoying repairs (tiles off roof etc) but it means you can do with it what you want and there's no worries about rent hikes or repossession.

Re. expense, if I can offer benefits of my experience, just dole it out through time and do things properly, I've known a few people who have tried to do it all in one on a budget and it's not always gone well, or they'd wished they'd made a few different decisions up front. Sometimes it's good just to live there for a bit to see what you really want to change - or you just get used to the kitchen doors all wobbling on their hinges.

Yeah, it's things like kitchen counter surface (the kitchen is absolutely horrendous atm, and we plan on knocking a wall down into the lounge and opening it up anyway). We're going for basically the most expensive one, but at the same time, you can put hot pots and pans down straight onto it without having to worry etc, so it's suitable for actual living, rather than having to try and constantly have mats etc for hot stuff. For me, that's an investment and although it's costly, it's worth it as we plan on being there for some time.

Big tiles for the floor is going to be expensive because she's found an expensive one. In fairness, the cost isn't important to her, it's just the one she really likes the look of, and again, it's high quality, which is no bad thing.

[inactionman]

Bonkers!!!!

Imagine distilling your life to fit in just 7 square metres. There would just about be space for a bed, a toilet and shower, a sink, a microwave and some storage. But no room for a kitchen to cook in, decorations, a place to store equipment for hobbies, or to have anyone round to visit.

This is life in London’s smallest microflat. Located in a Victorian conversion in Lower Clapton, east London it is thought by its sellers to be the smallest to have gone on the market in the capital. The minimum price set by auctioneers is £50,000, but it is expected to go for more as it was bought for £103,500 in May 2017.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2 ... e-metres

I'm a contractor and travelling for work was - pre-covid and, for me, pre-family - a fact of life. When I lived in the West Country I knew loads of people who worked in finance and would mostly work out of London, and in their case going for a pied-a-terre like that -as the article states - actually makes sense. They would literally only sleep in it and have breakfast there, which makes for a pleasant lifestyle as they'd eat out with friends most nights and not have to join the great unwashed on the home commute, and being able to keep work computers, changes of clothes etc there and not worry about dragging luggage about, stupid train fares or delays or on extortionate (and frequently unavailable) hotels just made life easier.

Feck living there if it's your actual home though.

[inactionman]

So I own a house (and owe a bank)!

Had the builders in today to take a look and give us a quote. He also had a nice idea on how we can make the small bathroom a bit bigger, but it may have to wait until we have a few more pennies! Wife has expensive tastes, or at least expensive tastes in things that can at least be argued to be worth it.

Nice one, hope you're very happy there.

I really don't miss the rental market, it's sometimes a pain being the one responsible for annoying repairs (tiles off roof etc) but it means you can do with it what you want and there's no worries about rent hikes or repossession.

Re. expense, if I can offer benefits of my experience, just dole it out through time and do things properly, I've known a few people who have tried to do it all in one on a budget and it's not always gone well, or they'd wished they'd made a few different decisions up front. Sometimes it's good just to live there for a bit to see what you really want to change - or you just get used to the kitchen doors all wobbling on their hinges.

Yeah, it's things like kitchen counter surface (the kitchen is absolutely horrendous atm, and we plan on knocking a wall down into the lounge and opening it up anyway). We're going for basically the most expensive one, but at the same time, you can put hot pots and pans down straight onto it without having to worry etc, so it's suitable for actual living, rather than having to try and constantly have mats etc for hot stuff. For me, that's an investment and although it's costly, it's worth it as we plan on being there for some time.

Big tiles for the floor is going to be expensive because she's found an expensive one. In fairness, the cost isn't important to her, it's just the one she really likes the look of, and again, it's high quality, which is no bad thing.

The house we bought and moved into last year has brand new kitchen that is far too small for the house and has a wooden work surface, although it looks lovely it's just a bad idea - especially with little kids who distract when you're holding hot pans (and, as we found out, bottle of red wine that had splashed down the sides a bit)

It's just too new and tidy to justify ripping out, so in a way I wish it had ben a bit more tired so we could get what we want fitted.

And that's my First World Problem for this week.

[Raggs]

The house we bought and moved into last year has brand new kitchen that is far too small for the house and has a wooden work surface, although it looks lovely it's just a bad idea - especially with little kids who distract when you're holding wooden pans (and, as we found out, bottle of red wine that had splashed down the sides a bit)

It's just too new and tidy to justify ripping out, so in a way I wish it had ben a bit more tired so we could get what we want fitted.

And that's my First World Problem for this week.

Ours has a wood top, red cupboards, black and white tiled backsplash (different sized tiles in a cross), wood laminate floor, yellow walls...

It was going no matter what

I am now intrigued by the builders suggesting of expanding the bathroom/wet room though. It's very small at the moment, and an extra 40cm would make a big difference, and wouldn't take much, or we could get maybe another meter, if we can move the boiler to the next cupboard down and change the doors. We'll see how many pennies that would be though, likely too much for now.

[SaintK]

Bonkers!!!!

Imagine distilling your life to fit in just 7 square metres. There would just about be space for a bed, a toilet and shower, a sink, a microwave and some storage. But no room for a kitchen to cook in, decorations, a place to store equipment for hobbies, or to have anyone round to visit.

This is life in London’s smallest microflat. Located in a Victorian conversion in Lower Clapton, east London it is thought by its sellers to be the smallest to have gone on the market in the capital. The minimum price set by auctioneers is £50,000, but it is expected to go for more as it was bought for £103,500 in May 2017.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2 ... e-metres

I'm a contractor and travelling for work was - pre-covid and, for me, pre-family - a fact of life. When I lived in the West Country I knew loads of people who worked in finance and would mostly work out of London, and in their case going for a pied-a-terre like that -as the article states - actually makes sense. They would literally only sleep in it and have breakfast there, which makes for a pleasant lifestyle as they'd eat out with friends most nights and not have to join the great unwashed on the home commute, and being able to keep work computers, changes of clothes etc there and not worry about dragging luggage about, stupid train fares or delays or on extortionate (and frequently unavailable) hotels just made life easier.

Feck living there if it's your actual home though.

That was my point and the fact that someone is going to pay £100k plus for a room!!!

[Happyhooker]

Bonkers!!!!

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2 ... e-metres

I'm a contractor and travelling for work was - pre-covid and, for me, pre-family - a fact of life. When I lived in the West Country I knew loads of people who worked in finance and would mostly work out of London, and in their case going for a pied-a-terre like that -as the article states - actually makes sense. They would literally only sleep in it and have breakfast there, which makes for a pleasant lifestyle as they'd eat out with friends most nights and not have to join the great unwashed on the home commute, and being able to keep work computers, changes of clothes etc there and not worry about dragging luggage about, stupid train fares or delays or on extortionate (and frequently unavailable) hotels just made life easier.

Feck living there if it's your actual home though.

That was my point and the fact that someone is going to pay £100k plus for a room!!!

Saintk, that's about 500m away from me and there are some very good pubs nearby.

I'm not saying I'd buy it, but if you come down this way and I'll show you it to laugh at.

[Jim Lahey]

I'm thinking about getting out of the BtL game. Its a serious pain in the arse.

I have 2 ex-council homes that I picked up on the cheap in NI in 2019 that are privately rented to tenants, both of which receive housing benefit. The ROI on both houses works out at between 13-17% when fully rented and rent fully paid but the housing benefit for each covers only 80% of the payments and since the pandemic the tenants haven't bothered paying the remainder, which is the cream of the deal, so I'm probably only getting 8-10% ROI.

Factor in the hassle of dealing with letting agents and the fact that the eviction process is a bollocks given the lingering pandemic restrictions I am considering cashing out and using the funds to pay off my own house's mortgage which will mean a net loss in terms of monthly cash flow but a massive net gain in terms of less mental clutter .

Anyone else selling up while the prices are high?

[SaintK]

I'm a contractor and travelling for work was - pre-covid and, for me, pre-family - a fact of life. When I lived in the West Country I knew loads of people who worked in finance and would mostly work out of London, and in their case going for a pied-a-terre like that -as the article states - actually makes sense. They would literally only sleep in it and have breakfast there, which makes for a pleasant lifestyle as they'd eat out with friends most nights and not have to join the great unwashed on the home commute, and being able to keep work computers, changes of clothes etc there and not worry about dragging luggage about, stupid train fares or delays or on extortionate (and frequently unavailable) hotels just made life easier.

Feck living there if it's your actual home though.

That was my point and the fact that someone is going to pay £100k plus for a room!!!

Saintk, that's about 500m away from me and there are some very good pubs nearby.

I'm not saying I'd buy it, but if you come down this way and I'll show you it to laugh at.

[inactionman]

I'm thinking about getting out of the BtL game. Its a serious pain in the arse.

I have 2 ex-council homes that I picked up on the cheap in NI in 2019 that are privately rented to tenants, both of which receive housing benefit. The ROI on both houses works out at between 13-17% when fully rented and rent fully paid but the housing benefit for each covers only 80% of the payments and since the pandemic the tenants haven't bothered paying the remainder, which is the cream of the deal, so I'm probably only getting 8-10% ROI.

Factor in the hassle of dealing with letting agents and the fact that the eviction process is a bollocks given the lingering pandemic restrictions I am considering cashing out and using the funds to pay off my own house's mortgage which will mean a net loss in terms of monthly cash flow but a massive net gain in terms of less mental clutter .

Anyone else selling up while the prices are high?

Not sure if this applies in NI, or if you bought straight from the council - in England there's sometimes a rule that says if you sell on a right-to-buy or ex-council house bought on favourable terms within a given time period you have to offer first refusal back to the council, and they can pay what you originally paid plus interest (or something like that). I assume it was intended to stop speculation. The only reason I'm aware of it a colleague is buying such a house and it's within the 10-year limit, so he needed confirmation in writing from the council that they wouldn't exercise that right to repurchase.

We rent our house down south out but it's actually to protect against rising prices - if we sold up then there's a strong chnace differences in house price rises would see us unable to return. Of course, the rental income is handy for our mortgage up north, but if we sold up our rental we'd be near enough mortgage free - assuming we did it quickly enough to avoid the worst of the capital gains.

We did rent out our first home for a good few years (we took equity out as deposit on our family home, rather than try to sell it, as we didn't want to get caught in a chain), but it's a horrible business and I was glad to get shot of it. The house was poorly built and a constant worry, and one tenant in particular was a royal pain in arse. We used the money we made on its sale as deposit on our house up north which is a situation I'm much happier with - I never intended to be a property magnate and two rentals was at least one too many. Holding on to the rental would perhaps have been more financially prudent - especially given the likely northwards movement of house prices in that area - but it's just not worth the pain.

[Torquemada 1420]

I'm thinking about getting out of the BtL game. Its a serious pain in the arse.

I have 2 ex-council homes that I picked up on the cheap in NI in 2019 that are privately rented to tenants, both of which receive housing benefit. The ROI on both houses works out at between 13-17% when fully rented and rent fully paid but the housing benefit for each covers only 80% of the payments and since the pandemic the tenants haven't bothered paying the remainder, which is the cream of the deal, so I'm probably only getting 8-10% ROI.

Factor in the hassle of dealing with letting agents and the fact that the eviction process is a bollocks given the lingering pandemic restrictions I am considering cashing out and using the funds to pay off my own house's mortgage which will mean a net loss in terms of monthly cash flow but a massive net gain in terms of less mental clutter .

Anyone else selling up while the prices are high?

Your yields are a lot higher than in England so stop complaining!