Should there be a ban on buying more than one property

[Anna B]

Am I right in thinking there are a large number of very nice, brand new flats in Sheffield standing empty?

[area 51]

Can you believe that I am now the only person in my dept at work that owns their own home? There used to be 3 of us, but 2 left. Now all my colleagues are forced to rent.....and each and everyone totally hates it!!

 

How unfair and unjust is that!

I have 2 younger brothers that have also been forced to rent. Then the viscous cycle begins. They are trapped, never will they be able to save thanks to the downright greedy landlords. The Gov't should sort this problem out. Whichever party pledged to scrap buy to let would get my vote.

 

I hate the parasitic leeches. Most have either inherited, bought prior to the property boom or had some other good fortune to start them off....and then they just assume they should have a surplus pot of money rolling in each month, plus the poor sod is paying the property mortgage off for them. They then walk off into the sunset on the sheer misery and unhappiness of the wretched souls who are forced to bow to their demands.

 

About time the whole 2nd home ownership was taxed 90%....to hell with them!!

I totally agree with you,i own one property and i live in it and thats how it should be.Homes are meant for living in not as an investment.Its because of all the buy to lets that the young cannot get on the housing ladder.They are artificially keeping property prices up and the interest rate low.I hate it i really do and i deal with some landlords at work and some leave a lot to be desired.The way they talk about their tenants is dreadful,they talk about them has if they are not human beings while they drive the latest sports car and play golf all day.Tax them to the hilt i say.Capitalism and greed at its worst.

[Obelix]

Am I right in thinking there are a large number of very nice, brand new flats in Sheffield standing empty?

 

And thats perhaps the problem. Why should first time buyers expect to aspire to such a place? I certainly didnt

[Cyclone]

Yes cheap affordable housing in 1999 that you benefited from those suffering the misery of the property crash at the beginning of the 90s who previously got their property break from a mixture of either right to buy or previous property crashes during the 80s

 

Property prices always rise and fall. That's life.

 

Generations have been through this and there has always been those in each one willing to scrimp save and sacrifice to take that break and others who prepared to sit there on their backsides waiting for it to be handed to them on a plate.

 

Yes it is tough for the current generation to get on the property Ladder but that doesn't mean it's impossible nor does it mean that a generation previous have not face similar hurdles.

They haven't though. Look at the actual numbers.

Not a new phenomenon. People think they have it tough now perhaps they should go back 30 years when the mortgage interest rates through the roof and the listening bank well and truly closed their ears to those unfortunate enough to default on them.

A different challenge, but yes, those times were pretty hard, my parents have stories about how the mortgage payments just kept going up.

 

---------- Post added 06-06-2017 at 07:41 ----------

 

No

I expect others to earn their way and not expect others to fund them.

Maybe, I have too many morals and principles. I wouldn't expect charity in any form if I didn't deserve or really need it.

But others, they know who they are, take all the freebies, like bottom feeders.

 

 

Parasites - that's it!!

 

When I was a student I wanted to rent. When I first graduated I wanted to rent. Many people don't want to buy, so once you've destroyed the rental market, where will these people live?

 

---------- Post added 06-06-2017 at 07:43 ----------

 

The double garage already has all services installed incase it were ever to be converted into a granny flat of sorts or we may put our names down for council tenancy. Either way we will stand on our own 2 feet. We've never claimed charity nor bleated poverty either. We simply get by. If we can't afford something we leave be.

I guess it sounds strange to some.

 

What if your child has got a job in Birmingham and doesn't want to live in Sheffield? Tax them at 90% of the value of the house when you pass it on? Or is there some window for them to sell it at market value so they don't own two houses... (Assuming they're successful and can buy a house in Birmingham).

[Anna B]

And thats perhaps the problem. Why should first time buyers expect to aspire to such a place? I certainly didnt

 

But if they are standing empty, why are the prices / rents not falling? Surely this is what would happen if simple market forces were at work.

 

As for 'aspiring' to them, some are pretty small and very basic. A good starter home maybe, but not much else. Certainly not big enough for a family.

[L00b]

But if they are standing empty, why are the prices / rents not falling? Surely this is what would happen if simple market forces were at work.

Only if, collectively, enough of their owners needed a quick sale/were desperate for occupancy.

 

The interest rates remaining as low as they are, and the economy remaining generally buoyant, both help owners/landlords in that respect.

 

And emptiness is not necessarily synonymous with made available for sale or rent anyway. Many could be 2nd homes in partial/temporary use, e.g. holiday homes, or smaller home near work used Mon-Fri and empty at weekends, main family home a way away. I have known colleagues working up here and having their families staying down South, using that setup. All these are off the market, they don't contribute to its pricing equilibrium (other than by potentially constraining supply, i.e. pushing prices up).

As for 'aspiring' to them, some are pretty small and very basic. A good starter home maybe, but not much else. Certainly not big enough for a family.

I'd argue that many young adults raised on a staple of sitcoms festooned with (typically, 'upper middle class') lifestyle brand-sponsored studio environments and locales, to say nothing of the always-on celeb culture imagery on TV and social media, don't know better to aspire to.

 

To be blunt and distasteful: they're supermarket till drivers on NMW but want to live like Kim Kardashian or, well, someone on £250k+ a year (to sustain the sort of lifestyles portrayed in sitcoms and the like), and the never-never gets them halfway there or as close to, from too early an age. There's (one of -) your problem with 'aspiration' at the first time buyer level. Nothing wrong with aspiring at all...but a healthy dose of financial sense and perspective helps more.

Edited June 6, 2017 by L00b

[El Cid]

Maybe the answer would be to allow tax free ownership of 2 homes - one for personal use and one for renting, with high taxation on the third and subsequent properties.

 

This may allow for a reasonable supply of properties being available for rent whilst allowing first time buyers the chance to get on the property ladder.

 

What I'm deadly against is the Rachman situation of the 60's.

 

I think we should just tax foreign overseas buyers more, if possible. There is too much money chasing houses.

[blackydog]

This is part of the problem, my first house was a tiny two up two down, it's taken 10 years to get to the level you mention above. When people say they cannot afford housing, if you question them further what they mean is that they cannot afford a perfect home in the perfect area. Like you say you can buy a £50k home with a £2500 deposit and your mortgage would be about £150 a month.

 

I did a Right Move search - 50k 1 mile of Sheffield city centre - 6 properties for sale. Three of them could just about be classed as family homes at a push. UTB

 

edit - extending search to 3 miles gets you a nice 2 bedroom terrace at Page Hall.

 

---------- Post added 06-06-2017 at 11:47 ----------

 

Parents do and they do it quite often as well. I saw it a lot when I worked in a local Estate Agent.

 

Also seen a few people on the tv show Can't pay we'll take it away, when they have the high court bailiffs round as their son or daughter hasn't paid and the parents are now liable.

 

---------- Post added 05-06-2017 at 18:18 ----------

 

 

I honestly wouldn't worry too much anyway SgtDave, I work in the industry and buy to let is dead at the moment.

 

There is new regulation in place that is making mortgage finance much more difficult (especially for higher rate tax payers). There is also the additional stamp duty land tax which you may not think is a lot but if you're buying at £100k now you are faced with a £3k tax bill and you no longer get the tax benefits on mortgage interest.

 

In the area I know around Mosborough, the prices set by estate agents seem very speculative. Some properties have been for sale for months. I have looked at a few and would only be interested at approx 10k - 20k less than the asking price.

Edited June 6, 2017 by blackydog

[Guest]

I did a Right Move search - 50k 1 mile of Sheffield city centre - 6 properties for sale. Three of them could just about be classed as family homes at a push. UTB

 

edit - extending search to 3 miles gets you a nice 2 bedroom terrace at Page Hall.

 

---------- Post added 06-06-2017 at 11:47 ----------

 

 

In the area I know around Mosborough, the prices set by estate agents seem very speculative. Some properties have been for sale for months. I have looked at a few and would only be interested at approx 10k - 20k less than the asking price.

 

A property is only worth what someone is prepared to offer for it.

[blackydog]

A property is only worth what someone is prepared to offer for it.

 

It is but the estate agents are putting the ideas into sellers heads that their properties are worth £xx, so they are then reluctant to accept what is a realistic market price.

I've looked at 2 detached houses that have been for sale for ages, and the condition lets them down. Mediocre finish, boilers on their last legs, leasehold, rotting woodwork, postage stamp sized gardens that look like Wembley in estate agents pics etc etc.