how do people afford to buy houses nowadays?

Originally Posted by Gnan

it's within the IHT threshold anyway so i'm ok

it's all rather mercenary this isn't it

Its not just the house fella. its everything in the estate.

Any savings, pensions, shares, assets, houses etc. It all goes to the estate, and it soon adds up to more than £275K.

yeah - that's everything they were honest, hard working and had morals hence didn't earn very much money

Originally Posted by Gnan

yeah - that's everything they were honest, hard working and had morals hence didn't earn very much money

Fair nuff, just thought id point it out incase it was a case of misunderstanding.

cheers! if they DO have any hidden assets, i'm sure i'll find out the hard way

Don't forget to take the mortgage off the value of the estate.

I'm sure that none of us regards their parents as their best investment

There are a lot of ways around IHT. You just have to know what you're doing

I cursed at my dad and told him I did not want anything left for me after his death. I insisted he enjoy the autumn years to the fullest and gladly he took my advice.

Unfortunately he did pass away not too long afterwards, handcuffed to a four poster bed in the penthouse suite of a Hotel in Miami in the presence of a 25 year old blonde with rich endowments.
Whisky bottles were scattered about the room and traces of a strange powder like substance on the bedside table,along with a bottle half filled with a certain performance enhancing drug. Even in death he still somehow managed to have a sense of humour as the coroners stretcher carrying him out, seemed to have a very odd but noticeable peak beneath the blanket.

Originally Posted by Sythree

Don't forget to take the mortgage off the value of the estate.

I'm sure that none of us regards their parents as their best investment

There are a lot of ways around IHT. You just have to know what you're doing

no mortgage

Gnan wrote:

no mortgage

Not always a good move mate.

Originally Posted by Peter Henry

You see as long as you think that renting is "paying dead money" and the cultural concept of "an Englishmans castle is his home" prevails......nothing is ever going to change.

Problem is because this is a university City the rents are a lot more than the morgage payments

I'm so glad i live up north. Cant justify moving south when you can get a large 3 bed house for £130k on a decent plot of land here. When i buy later this year i'll be looking at houses in the region of 100k which need a little modernisation.