Buying my first house

[Stakeholder 10]

Hello,

I moved to Sheffield 3 years ago and now I’m planning to buy a house in 2020.

 

Ideally something not far from city centre (or at least not far from some amenities), freehold, minimum 3 beds (ideally 4) and if possible new.

 

I have around £100k in cash for the deposit and Something priced around 250k would be ideal, but I can pay more if needed.

 

Do you guys have any recommendations? What are the areas I need to look and the ones I need to avoid?

Im currently living near the city centre (what in theory isn’t a good region, but I never had any problems).

 

Is it possible to get a discount in a house in a new development months before it gets ready?  If so, how can I know about new developments before all  the houses gets reserved?

 

Edited April 14, 2019 by Stakeholder

[ttparsons 10]

Re houses in new developments, make sure you can buy it freehold.  Note that you will probably also spend money on carpets, curtains, fitted wardrobes, landscaping etc. and in the short term if you sold it you would probably lose money.  If you are buying off-plan make sure you are not buying a dark pokey property.  There's something to be said for buying a newish second hand property you can look round if the reason for buying new is good insulation and minimum maintenance.

[Hippogriff 10]

18 hours ago, Stakeholder said:

Hello,

I moved to Sheffield 3 years ago and now I’m planning to buy a house in 2020.

 

Ideally something not far from city centre (or at least not far from some amenities), freehold, minimum 3 beds (ideally 4) and if possible new.

 

I have around £100k in cash for the deposit and Something priced around 250k would be ideal, but I can pay more if needed.

 

Do you guys have any recommendations? What are the areas I need to look and the ones I need to avoid?

Im currently living near the city centre (what in theory isn’t a good region, but I never had any problems).

 

Is it possible to get a discount in a house in a new development months before it gets ready?  If so, how can I know about new developments before all  the houses gets reserved?

 

I have bought plenty of properties and I've never once paid the list price. My first ever buy had a discount of £1,000 on a £60,000 purchase, my biggest discount was £76,000 on a property listed at £278,000. My most amusing was a price paid of £77,777 (because I liked the number) on a house listed at £85,000 (reduced twice to that level).

 

So... don't be taken-in, don't be fooled by "last few remaining", don't give way... if you are dealing with a Developer looking at new builds then try to assess when their end of financial year is... they'll be chasing you if they've not made their numbers. However, among all that positive news is the reality of the times... between 20098 and 2014 things were quite bad in the housing market, and there was great discounts to be had (in the right place) but things a more buoyant now. The trick to buying a house (and this is easier said that done when it's your first one and it's your home and it represents your hopes and dreams) is not to fall in love with a property and then decide to pay anything to get it!

 

With new builds at the early stages... consider things like floor tile upgades, metal sockets and switches, appliance packs, burglar alarms, fencing etc. as upgrades that are "thrown-in" at no extra charge... especially if they're things you'd want anyway... planning and foresight are very useful to you.

 

Whatever you do, do not tell a Developer's salesperson you have that £100,000 as a deposit. They need to think you're a good prospect but pretty near your limit.

[Jeffrey Shaw 88]

But do make sure that you disclose all developer cashbacks/inducements when applying for a mortgage advance.

[Stakeholder 10]

22 hours ago, Hippogriff said:

I have bought plenty of properties and I've never once paid the list price. My first ever buy had a discount of £1,000 on a £60,000 purchase, my biggest discount was £76,000 on a property listed at £278,000. My most amusing was a price paid of £77,777 (because I liked the number) on a house listed at £85,000 (reduced twice to that level).

 

So... don't be taken-in, don't be fooled by "last few remaining", don't give way... if you are dealing with a Developer looking at new builds then try to assess when their end of financial year is... they'll be chasing you if they've not made their numbers. However, among all that positive news is the reality of the times... between 20098 and 2014 things were quite bad in the housing market, and there was great discounts to be had (in the right place) but things a more buoyant now. The trick to buying a house (and this is easier said that done when it's your first one and it's your home and it represents your hopes and dreams) is not to fall in love with a property and then decide to pay anything to get it!

 

With new builds at the early stages... consider things like floor tile upgades, metal sockets and switches, appliance packs, burglar alarms, fencing etc. as upgrades that are "thrown-in" at no extra charge... especially if they're things you'd want anyway... planning and foresight are very useful to you.

 

Whatever you do, do not tell a Developer's salesperson you have that £100,000 as a deposit. They need to think you're a good prospect but pretty near your limit.

I really need to learn more about the UK houses market. Is it valid for used houses, new or both?

 

what I heard is that there are usually bids always higher than the listed price, isn’t it always the rule then?

16 hours ago, Jeffrey Shaw said:

But do make sure that you disclose all developer cashbacks/inducements when applying for a mortgage advance.

Good idea. Thanks.

[lil-minx92 10]

On 14/04/2019 at 16:25, Stakeholder said:

Hello,

I moved to Sheffield 3 years ago and now I’m planning to buy a house in 2020.

 

Ideally something not far from city centre (or at least not far from some amenities), freehold, minimum 3 beds (ideally 4) and if possible new.

 

I have around £100k in cash for the deposit and Something priced around 250k would be ideal, but I can pay more if needed.

 

Do you guys have any recommendations? What are the areas I need to look and the ones I need to avoid?

Im currently living near the city centre (what in theory isn’t a good region, but I never had any problems).

 

Is it possible to get a discount in a house in a new development months before it gets ready?  If so, how can I know about new developments before all  the houses gets reserved?

 

Very very few developments around here will be fully reserved before they are built. Just register with Rightmove and directly with local agents. Local agents will know about upcoming developments before they get listed publicly 

[Eddie_shef 10]

Following this! Very interesting!

[Hippogriff 10]

On 16/04/2019 at 09:39, Stakeholder said:

I really need to learn more about the UK houses market. Is it valid for used houses, new or both?

 

what I heard is that there are usually bids always higher than the listed price, isn’t it always the rule then?

Good idea. Thanks.

I was responding about experiences with new builds... and once or twice off-plot. I would never buy off-plot again, myself. I have promised myself I will only buy something I can see and feel... not something that is yet to be born from plans (I'm talking about an entire development). Too much risk of things changing and they always leave movement for that to happen. With new builds you can go see the showhome, at least, and see and feel that... remember, the show home will be full of delightful upgrades - this is where you can haggle extras in if the Developer is minded to do so... whether they're minded to do so will depend on their performance that quarter, that half-year, that year... all driven by how the market as a whole is doing, not necessarily their product's desirability.

 

Bids higher than asking price exist, absolutely. It's supply-and-demand basics only... and driven by people making emotional decisions, of course. It isn't always the rule at all... and, as I say, I have never paid the asking price, never mind more than. I'd not say it's typical of cookie-cutter estate offerings... more your property that's ultra-special, a one-off, or in a great location, something that doesn't come up often - what new builds have going for them is warranties, the first-time feel, the way you can influence the design and things like energy efficiency and parking etc..

[Stakeholder 10]

Just an update on the thread...

I saw a house that I liked near city centre, advertised on rightmove as accepting offers around 200-210... The owner informed me that received an offer of 222k!

The neighbors house (semi attached to this one, same size/layout), was sold for £196k in Feb, 2018.

 

is the house market is Sheffield that crazy or the seller is bluffing?

[Cyclone 10]

There's no real way to know, so if you think it's worth 200 or 210, just phone the agent and make that bid.  Tell them there's no chain and you can move quickly.  If the bid isn't accepted (and I don't mean on the phone, I mean over the next few days or a week), well, move on, you'll see something else you like.

 

Re: over bidding price, I bought twice, once in 2001, everything we looked at was in a bidding war and going for 10 - 20 % over asking price.  We paid 10% over on the house we finally bought.

Second time, we got 5% of the asking price as the market was much slower.  Tried for 10% off, but they weren't having it, could have maybe held out, but we really quite liked the house, so we went with the 5% under offer and I'm sat here 7 years later.

[nightrider 13]

On 16/04/2019 at 09:39, Stakeholder said:

I really need to learn more about the UK houses market. Is it valid for used houses, new or both?

 

what I heard is that there are usually bids always higher than the listed price, isn’t it always the rule then?

Good idea. Thanks.

In Sheffield you rarely can pay less than the listed price for a used house, due to estate agents initiating blind bidding wars. I understand this is a local thing, and elsewhere you often would be expected to offer less than the price.

[amazon123 17]

17 hours ago, Stakeholder said:

Just an update on the thread...

I saw a house that I liked near city centre, advertised on rightmove as accepting offers around 200-210... The owner informed me that received an offer of 222k!

The neighbors house (semi attached to this one, same size/layout), was sold for £196k in Feb, 2018.

 

is the house market is Sheffield that crazy or the seller is bluffing?

Where is this house? Some areas of Sheffield are going for a fair whack over asking price these days.