Home purchase is so much harder for young people than it was 20 years ago

a reply to: Gothmog

Would you still be able to afford that house now if you were working the same job, or has it's value increased faster than wages?

Question to those who buy houses, refurbish them and sell them "at a great profit" (quote from this thread):

Aren't you a part of the problem?

Because, yes, you put effort into the house, but you still make a "great profit" by selling it. Edit: Which means that the price of the house went over-proportional up!

Is this late-stage-capitalism or what?

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy
a reply to: Gothmog

Would you still be able to afford that house now if you were working the same job, or has it's value increased faster than wages?

Actually , I own a house nearly 3 times that size . I would say yes. I work a much better and different job for the last 25+ years than I did then. Although , the last I heard , the job I had then pays much better these days. $7 -$8 / hr. as opposed to about $17 / hr today.

a reply to: ManFromEurope

I'm not sure renovators are so much part of the problem as people who buy properties solely to rent out, thereby reducing the stock of housing actually for sale on the market.
Renovators/developers can only sell at market value.

a reply to: Gothmog

That's interesting.
So would you say that the massive difference in property/wage rises over the last 20 years (as has happened in my area) haven't been as extreme where you are?

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy

originally posted by: surfer_soul
a reply to: andy06shake

It’s because anybody with any savings whatsoever has been investing it in property.
Prices keep rising disproportionately to inflation and its considered the easiest and quickest legal way of making money. Government policy hasn’t helped neither has the greed of the banks.

It all comes down to greed at the end of the day.

Excellent points.
Savings, even in an ISA, are making such a poor return that property is the biggest lure. A friend of mine bought a house cash recently and the rental income is making him about 7% per year. You could only dream of that from a bank or other investments.

This seems to be the current real estate pattern in the US. Landlords buying up multiple properties and renting them out for cost of ownership plus ~10%. Its affecting housing starts as more multifamily rental units are being built than single family structures since single family structures are not as efficient to rent. Home ownership percentage in the states has come back some from a low of 62.9 in 2016 to 64.2 January this year so some single families with money are finding ways to buy.

Back when the house prices were low it was smarter to Lie Lie Lie and use cashovers from credit cards to make up the difference. House prices have more recently reached the level that you could get in trouble for doing that though.

Don't buy into this. If you're credit rating is good, you can get a loan for a home these days with zero down payment and 4% to 5% mortgage rate.

If your credit rating is not good that is a separate issue than the current housing market.

I bought my first house in 2006 with zero money down and about 4% interest. I did pay the closing costs out of pocket but I could have rolled those up into the mortgage if I chose to do so.

originally posted by: Lysergic
a reply to: CornishCeltGuy

Houses are like 500 to 800 where I be.

200k is in the ghetto

in the ghettoooo

200k is the ghetto???!
It's the average in my town.
It's all a bit of a mixed bag where I am though, rich and poor live on the same streets with very few enclaves of poor estates.
Example, there are million GBP apartments in my street, yet my little house is only worth around 200k. House across the street from me went for £700,000 last year...and yes, they look down on me lol.

a reply to: Cauliflower
It seems to be a developed world problem then, not just here in overcrowded UK.

a reply to: jjkenobi

Which bit don't you buy in to?
The bit that houses in my area were easily affordable on a 3X wages mortgage but the same house is now 10X the value of the wages of the same job in local government?
Have the prices of property not increased faster than wages in your area over the last 20 years?

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy
a reply to: Gothmog

That's interesting.
So would you say that the massive difference in property/wage rises over the last 20 years (as has happened in my area) haven't been as extreme where you are?

In the US , in the State of Georgia
And you would be correct...as far as "averages" go.
But , the young uns here had rather rent/lease something outside of their budget because their friends do...
You can still purchase a nice home in the country for less than their rent/lease per month
I just dont understand.

And that would include county taxes. In the city , the utility bill pays the taxes. SO , on a lease / rent a person is paying the taxes for the rental property..

originally posted by: Lysergic


in the ghettoooo

should I read that in Cartman's voice?

originally posted by: network dude
a reply to: CornishCeltGuy

I bought a big house on a golf course in 2003 for $160 and just sold it this year for $185.
We bought a small 2 bedroom house on some land and did a total refurb on it. Only paid 55 for it. So the market here is low. I think it all depends on the area.

Sorry, only just saw this. Yes I guess it varies wildly on the area. Up in Liverpool (England) right now the local authority are selling terraced houses for £1 with a committment to spend at least ten grand or whatever restoring them.
They are desperate to improve a run down area, got a mate who's bought two and working on them right now.

a reply to: Gothmog

I just envy the amount of land you have available and how cheap it is compared to overcrowded England!
I often search what I could buy in the US and my gosh yes, jealous!

a reply to: CornishCeltGuy
we have 5 acres.
A peaceful farm in the country. About 45 min from a big town and 10 min from the small town we live in.

originally posted by: network dude

we have 5 acres.

So much property, I'm just imagining all the disposal room I would have...

*le sigh*

a reply to: network dude

Sounds amazing!
Search farmland prices in SW England, bet you'll be glad you live where you do!

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: network dude

we have 5 acres.

So much property, I'm just imagining all the disposal room I would have...

*le sigh*

You would need to buy a family farm for that much space...
That would cost.

a reply to: Gothmog


There'd be several families in that farm.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Nah, you'd be surprised what can be buried in only half an acre.