It just drags on and on, every week get the paper and trawl round scum-pits.
I've put offers in and got nowhere, and now on the basis of principal i have decided not to offer when it goes to 'best and final closed bids'-its more stress than its worth.

How is any first time buyer meant to afford it?

Im left with a few options...

1) find a rich man to buy me a nice house (though i've had no look so far)

2) Live with my parents forever (arggghhhhh)

3) Move somewhere without quite such an annoying house market as Sheffield

4) Shut up moaning and just get on with it

no. 4 wins (damn!)

Know just how you feel poor thing. Finished up buying brand new - put your name down - it's yours, no hassle. You can also get everything that goes inside of your own choice. I know new houses aren't to everyone's taste but it gets you onto the property ladder relatively easily and you can always move on at a later date - which was my plan but now couldn't bear to give it up. Good luck!

Hi Dizzymink- basically the same as Trishtee, we ended up buying our apartment off-plan due to being out-bid thousands of times!

The best thing about buying off-plan is that it gives you time to save up for furniture etc before you move in.

I can't afford to even afford to pay £300 pcm rent which is wanted from most decent places in Sheffield. :|

I totally sympathise DizzyMink.. I spent years bidding on houses, gave up after a while and spent my deposit going travelling cos I was going to go mad otherwise from the constant disappointment!

But I saved up again and eventually bid on a house in the Mark Jenkinson auction and won! As it happens if I'd had to choose one house out of all of the houses I looked at it would have been that one. So it all turned out good in the end and it was worth all the hassle!

I know the principle of last and final bid is rubbish but you do have to bid at that point... just bid less before. I learnt from experience that its not worth bidding UNTIL last and finals really.... I used to put one low bid in then wait til I was told of last and finals cos whatever the estate agent tries to tell you they always do go to last and finals (or they did when I was bidding anyway)

I don't know what the housing market is like now but when I got mine 2 years ago I was always bidding 7k over the last disclosable bid and not getting it. I'm sure it can't be that bad now.

Hang in there anyway and GOOD LUCK!

In a way, I'm glad that I don't have to do all this again. I got my house when the market was rising. People down South *never* bid above the asking price. Most ppl under-bid the asking price to begin with. I dunno what it is about Sheffield that makes the agency start with a lower amount and make people overbid.

Becareful not to overbid an area. I think I alone must've overbidded too many times and raised the cost within this area I live in now ! Over these past 4 years, it's kind of plateau-d a bit. So maybe it even'd out a tad. A good agent would kind of slow you down... on the biddings. I got smart and used to bid like 100 more or something. It may be ridiculous but... one of the bidee must take control and slow things down. But then some nutter will come out of nowhere and overbid by like a 1000 just to ensure they get it, and cos they can afford it. Which topples and raise that area's value a lot more.

My only advice for first-time buyer is possibly to buy a bit of a dump and then do it up yourself slowly. It's what I had to do in the end too. There were problems with this place, and I did work out the cost and budgets and things. Less people fight for this kind of place too cos it's too much hassle. But it is the only way to buy sometimes.

Its no better trying to get a move if youre renting - Im sick of pursuing exchanges and applying to different housing associations, checking waiting lists etc....

If you could manage it, buying new would mean you dont get outbid, but I realise the prices these days are astronomical. Buying a dump and doing it up has its problems, I tried this many moons ago, but the building society would not release the full mortgage until certain repairs were completed and this caused me problems.

My only advice for first-time buyer is possibly to buy a bit of a dump and then do it up yourself slowly. It's what I had to do in the end too. There were problems with this place, and I did work out the cost and budgets and things. Less people fight for this kind of place too cos it's too much hassle. But it is the only way to buy sometimes.

Hmmm... not so in sheffield. All the houses I bid on were total renovation projects needing everything doing - it seemed to me like there were more people bidding on those cos people wanted a bargain house that they could do up and make a profit on. Even the totally horrible ones were going 7k+ over the last and final offers..

You could get a really small property in a good area. I got a studio flat in Broomhill about 10 years ago. Not even a bedroom separate from the main lounge, but it got me on the ladder. By luck of course the market boomed. It is now worth alot more. When you outgrow it you could let it and buy something bigger too. I did it worked out very well. Of course if it is in a scuffy area you won't get good tennants.

I got a purpose build flat in a block of 18; but there must be all sorts of flats above shops etc (just avoid chippies, pubs etc!). Or buy a terrace and let some rooms like my mother in law did - works for her.

Blundells at Banner x are trying to sell it for me btw!

Hmmm... not so in sheffield. All the houses I bid on were total renovation projects needing everything doing - it seemed to me like there were more people bidding on those cos people wanted a bargain house that they could do up and make a profit on. Even the totally horrible ones were going 7k+ over the last and final offers..

I do understand. I guess when I bought my place, the market was also rising.

I remember bidding in 'popular' areas like Crookes or Ecclesall Rd. One house on Ecclesall Rd went into a bidding frenzy and ended up to be like 10k over the asking price, which was bloody ridiculous ! I had to pull out cos I wasn't gonna play that kind of game. I'm sure other bidee must think it's a bargain.

That lesson taught me to stay away from popular areas, and just look for decent, and okay-ish area to live. For me, my house is nowhere nr the nightlife as in Ecclesall Rd, or Crookes. Yet nowhere near good decent six form schools. It's close to the city centre, and is affordable. It's good enough for me.

Areas I suggest people to look at now is near London Rd area, or Highfield area. A few people bought near Queens Rd. Or East Bank Rd area. I think other first-time buyer areas like Sharrow was quite good for city centre. Sometimes one or two odd road, which looks a bit shabby than the main area is worth considering.

thanks 4 ur comments.....just gotta keep my head up and keep going!

Dizzymink- If you don't mind me asking... what is your house buying budget?

erm, i'm looking at propeties between about 100-170k i really really really dont want to spend over 140 if i can avoid it to allow money for all my white goods and furniture and appliances (i live with my folks and own literally nowt except clothes shoes and handbags!!)
if i was to spend 170 i think i'd be stretching too far and if the market wobbles so would I!

Know how you feel...

Last house I bid on went for about £15k more than the asking price! And I don't think it's worth that much. But it's very difficult to tell what to do.

Is it best to

a/ go in low and wait for Best and Final bids (I did this before and someone came in and got the house beforehand... see my thread on Blundells Horror Story)

or b/ just go in and offer what you think it will go for on the Monday morning?

Two of my friends went for option b/ and offered 12k and 8k over the asking price to get their houses, but that was 5 years ago so God knows what you have to do now.

Dizzymink-

With a budget of £140,000 you could easily afford an off-plan two-bed apartment in the city centre or an off-plan 2-3 bed house on several of the new build developments around Sheffield (e.g. Gleadless, Norton Lees, Norfolk Park, Manor etc).

You have plenty of options rather than just sticking to the traditional estate agent route!

Lib1

I currently have a terrece house for sale in a area easy to let you could think of buying a property and renting a couple of the rooms which would pay some of your mortgage, i have done this in the past. www.tamika924.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk

Hi
Dont know if its worth a look, but I live on a house on a newish estate in Wincobank (Ridge View Drive). From the looks of it Blundells currently have one of the houses on their books at 120K they are generally very good value, nice houses built in Yorkshire stone. Ive lived here for 4 yrs, very happy etc.

I've been looking in Hillsborough for 5 months and have now lost out 6 times in a row. I fell in love with a house this weekend and phoned this morning to make a bid only to find that it was already bid up and over what I can afford. I have officially given up. There is nothing nice in my budget!

Hi
Dont know if its worth a look, but I live on a house on a newish estate in Wincobank (Ridge View Drive). From the looks of it Blundells currently have one of the houses on their books at 120K they are generally very good value, nice houses built in Yorkshire stone. Ive lived here for 4 yrs, very happy etc.

We've just moved onto this estate, and we're very pleased we have. The estate is extremely quite and has good elevated views of Meadowhall and the surrounding area.

As GitarooGirl says, one is up for sale. For 120k you get a lot of property for your money on a very nice estate, a bargain all round.

I have only been doing it for a week or two and I already feel like pulling my hair out. Thehouse that we have put an offer in on, closes tomorrow and is already 5 grand over the asking price. I am starting to have nightmares about horrible houses:(

where is it? The house that I really want was 15k over the asking price this morning and hasn't gone to best and finals yet. I was expecting 10% over the asking price of 100k but it has gone still higher. I am in despair about the whole thing - you have my sympathy!!

which areas are you interested in?

erm, i'm looking at propeties between about 100-170k i really really really dont want to spend over 140 if i can avoid it to allow money for all my white goods and furniture and appliances (i live with my folks and own literally nowt except clothes shoes and handbags!!)
if i was to spend 170 i think i'd be stretching too far and if the market wobbles so would I!

erm, i'm looking at propeties between about 100-170k i really really really dont want to spend over 140 if i can avoid it to allow money for all my white goods and furniture and appliances (i live with my folks and own literally nowt except clothes shoes and handbags!!)
if i was to spend 170 i think i'd be stretching too far and if the market wobbles so would I!

Well depending on what you want that is a very good budget. If you was looking at a very popular area and a big house, yes i can see why you would struggle. But i live in a nice area and for that you can get a decent size 3 bedroom house.

I thought the 'final bids' thing had gone. I refused to get involved in it. It was bid and it was either accepted or rejected. If i got into bidding against others i basically didn't.

they all seem to go to final bids, even when the estate agents say they won't. Its a transparent way of driving the price up, but everyone does it anyway. It drives me mad.

they all seem to go to final bids, even when the estate agents say they won't. Its a transparent way of driving the price up, but everyone does it anyway. It drives me mad.

Talk to the vendor directly, look them in the eye, make an honest offer then shake hands on it. Call the estate agent to tell them that you're offer's been accepted and request that they call the vendor to confirm this.