Time to buy?

[lynchbhoy]

I'm advising mortgages at the minute and my advice to you would be if you see a good price take it!

From what I've seen it's not so much that demand has fallen for buying houses it's more that lenders are crapping themselves that they've lent money to people who won't pay them back. As far as I'm aware the problem now is not buying a house it's a problem with getting a mortgage and as long as you're comfortable enough to get a PROPER mortgage at the 85% mark I would say go ahead.

But doesnt that just meant that prices must fall much further - if banks are unable/unwilling to fund purchases at current prices, then prices must fall even further.

yes , that
or
waiting for the common consensus to stop saying 'recession, recession' and start saying stability (as its the scaremongering that the sky is falling down that actually chokes the economy, industry, recruitment, employers and banks etc - no any actual drop in sales, productivity etc etc).

I mean , even 1% growth in the economy is still GROWTH , hardly a need to go mental and chanting doomsday incantations.

While all those predict 'downturns ' and bubonic plague, theres money to be made...
Screen, do you lads do 'overseas' mortages? up to what % are you prepared to give out?

[screenexile]

I'm advising mortgages at the minute and my advice to you would be if you see a good price take it!

From what I've seen it's not so much that demand has fallen for buying houses it's more that lenders are crapping themselves that they've lent money to people who won't pay them back. As far as I'm aware the problem now is not buying a house it's a problem with getting a mortgage and as long as you're comfortable enough to get a PROPER mortgage at the 85% mark I would say go ahead.

But doesnt that just meant that prices must fall much further - if banks are unable/unwilling to fund purchases at current prices, then prices must fall even further.

yes , that
or
waiting for the common consensus to stop saying 'recession, recession' and start saying stability (as its the scaremongering that the sky is falling down that actually chokes the economy, industry, recruitment, employers and banks etc - no any actual drop in sales, productivity etc etc).

I mean , even 1% growth in the economy is still GROWTH , hardly a need to go mental and chanting doomsday incantations.

While all those predict 'downturns ' and bubonic plague, theres money to be made...
Screen, do you lads do 'overseas' mortages? up to what % are you prepared to give out?

No we don't they're far too much hassle for not enough money. You're better getting a specialist in that field and I would stay away from Bellaghy anyway!! 

You are right Bogball prices may fall or they may rise but basically anything could happen so if you see something that you think is good value at the minute I say go for it because you don't know what will happen.

Screen - What type of LTV's are the lenders asking for thses days? Are those with higher deposits/more equity in their homes and thus lower LTV's getting offered lower interest rates? I have read in various places this is the case but would like to hear from someone working in that area on a daily basis.

Some lenders are going up to 90% but most of the High Street Lenders are moving to between 75-85%.

As far as Higher deposits and more equity yes that is true, the less LTV you have the less you will end up paying on a mortgage.

I would also like to say that anyone considering Sub Prime lending don't bother. It's crazy money for little gain and you will lose your house if you use a sub prome lender. The only people I would advise to use a sub prime lender would be people who have a lot of cash but no proof of income. People with low incomes and a bad credit history are refused proper mortgages for a reason and if a High Street lender thinks you can't afford to pay their low rates what makes you think you can pay the higher interest rates and charges associated with a sub prime mortgage?

[Croí na hÉireann]

I think what we're seeing at the moment is what they call the dead cat bounce. What with stamp duty getting sorted in the budget and the talk of interest rate falls some people are buying. I believe prices will fall to about 2003 levels, which would be another 15% of what they were worth at their peak (say they've lost 10% already).

What lynchbhoy says though makes sense, if u can afford it, the location is ideal and ur gonna be living in it for 10+ years then now would be a good time to buy...

[Rois]

People with low incomes and a bad credit history are refused proper mortgages for a reason and if a High Street lender thinks you can't afford to pay their low rates what makes you think you can pay the higher interest rates and charges associated with a sub prime mortgage?

What about people with high incomes, good credit history but no savings for a deposit?  I bought a house last year with a 100% mortgage that the bank gave me because I could afford the repayments.  If I was looking now, I prob wouldn't get the same mortgage because I had no deposit (a 15% deposit would have been about £47k - yikes!!!) but I'm in a secure job, as are most people compared to this time last year. 
Jobs aren't being lost in general, wages aren't going down, affordability of repayments isn't changing.  I'm just thanking my lucky stars I did it last year.  Paying last year's over-inflated prices in the north now seems like a missed opportunity for people like me who are a year behind, so I'd echo the points made above that if you can afford it, go for it now.

[screenexile]

People with low incomes and a bad credit history are refused proper mortgages for a reason and if a High Street lender thinks you can't afford to pay their low rates what makes you think you can pay the higher interest rates and charges associated with a sub prime mortgage?

What about people with high incomes, good credit history but no savings for a deposit?  I bought a house last year with a 100% mortgage that the bank gave me because I could afford the repayments.  If I was looking now, I prob wouldn't get the same mortgage because I had no deposit (a 15% deposit would have been about £47k - yikes!!!) but I'm in a secure job, as are most people compared to this time last year. 
Jobs aren't being lost in general, wages aren't going down, affordability of repayments isn't changing.  I'm just thanking my lucky stars I did it last year.  Paying last year's over-inflated prices in the north now seems like a missed opportunity for people like me who are a year behind, so I'd echo the points made above that if you can afford it, go for it now.

Yeah but Rois what happens when you come out of your fixed term and you are looking for a remortgage in a few years? I'm also presuming that you are on an interest only mortgage.

If your house has not valued any higher you will be in a worse position as you may have to come up woth a few pounds in order to get a remortgage at a decent rate as 100% is not being offered anymore. Otherwise you will end up paying the Higher SVR and you will probably still not be paying any of the capital off.

I'm not saying this will happen to you but it is happening to a lot of people coming out of their fixed terms at the minute and they are finding themselves in a predicament. My advice would be that of any mortgage that a bank will offer you... save your deposit before you go for your house as it will stand to you in the long run rather than hoping above hope that your house values higher and you will be earning more money in a few years time.

[Rois]

My advice would be that of any mortgage that a bank will offer you... save your deposit before you go for your house as it will stand to you in the long run rather than hoping above hope that your house values higher and you will be earning more money in a few years time.

See that worries me when I hear it from you as that's exactly what we thought last year.  In fairness our house went up by £40k before we moved in (it was a new build and identical house went for much more than ours) so our mortgage is about 88% of the price of the identical house, and my salary has actually gone up about 20%.  I take it we should throw any spare pennies against the mortgage then?

I dread to think how long it would take me to save £47k if I was doing it again.   

[magpie seanie]

If you are buying a house to live in and will be there for 10+ years then it takes a lot of the risk factors out of it. That being your intention and you see a place you like at a decent price and can afford the repayments then go for it. Prices may continue to go down in the next 12-36 months but over 10 years you should be up overall barring bad luck.

[lynchbhoy]

People with low incomes and a bad credit history are refused proper mortgages for a reason and if a High Street lender thinks you can't afford to pay their low rates what makes you think you can pay the higher interest rates and charges associated with a sub prime mortgage?

What about people with high incomes, good credit history but no savings for a deposit?  I bought a house last year with a 100% mortgage that the bank gave me because I could afford the repayments.  If I was looking now, I prob wouldn't get the same mortgage because I had no deposit (a 15% deposit would have been about £47k - yikes!!!) but I'm in a secure job, as are most people compared to this time last year. 
Jobs aren't being lost in general, wages aren't going down, affordability of repayments isn't changing.  I'm just thanking my lucky stars I did it last year.  Paying last year's over-inflated prices in the north now seems like a missed opportunity for people like me who are a year behind, so I'd echo the points made above that if you can afford it, go for it now.

Yeah but Rois what happens when you come out of your fixed term and you are looking for a remortgage in a few years? I'm also presuming that you are on an interest only mortgage.

If your house has not valued any higher you will be in a worse position as you may have to come up woth a few pounds in order to get a remortgage at a decent rate as 100% is not being offered anymore. Otherwise you will end up paying the Higher SVR and you will probably still not be paying any of the capital off.

I'm not saying this will happen to you but it is happening to a lot of people coming out of their fixed terms at the minute and they are finding themselves in a predicament. My advice would be that of any mortgage that a bank will offer you... save your deposit before you go for your house as it will stand to you in the long run rather than hoping above hope that your house values higher and you will be earning more money in a few years time.

why would you want to re-mortgage?
keep the mortgage, and for us the variable interest rate is better (as has been for the past 5 years or so) as it is more or less guaranteed to be 0.25% - 0.50% above ECB rates, your british rates are a good bit higher and I feel for you  , but then again I think on average, your house prices are lower.

if you need a second re-mortgage, then its time to get a second job or go on the game...(theres always saddos like max who will pay for it- gender is irrelvent)

[Bogball XV]

If you are buying a house to live in and will be there for 10+ years then it takes a lot of the risk factors out of it. That being your intention and you see a place you like at a decent price and can afford the repayments then go for it. Prices may continue to go down in the next 12-36 months but over 10 years you should be up overall barring bad luck.

good advice all, heed it.

[muppet]

My brother went to view a €1m+ showhouse near his own mainly out of nosiness. The estate agent was chatting to him and asked him where his own house was. When he told them straight away the estate agent offered him market value for his own house if he bought one of the new ones. That is not a good sign.

Estate agents taking trade-ins of old houses shows that 1) they know it is very difficult for people to sell them and 2) they are getting desperate.

As Seanie said if you are buying to live medium to long term its probably ok to buy now. Investors will be getting out thought rather than getting into the market.

Norn Iron might get attractive though for southern based investors if sterling continues to fall. 

[spectator]

But doesnt that just meant that prices must fall much further - if banks are unable/unwilling to fund purchases at current prices, then prices must fall even further.

Interesting article in the indo today;

"The upshot of all of this is that house prices will have to fall further if new buyers, now restricted on what they can borrow, are to be tempted back into the market."

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/credit-crunch-is-hitting-firsttime-buyers-wallet-1349065.html

[ludermor]

there a few big building companies in huge trouble at the minute with a load of developments complete/nearly complete that they cant shift. so they are left with completed developments costing huge payments to the banks with no income on them. thus in turn leading to the banks holding finance for further developments so they are caught in catch 22. They will have no options but to sell the developments at rock bottom price in order to get money in. I can see a lot more serious drops in some new development in the near future.