To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

I'm looking to get onto the property ladder.

Up until recently, I'd been priced out of the market. But now with property rpices diving and with my nice new job, I'm finally in a position to mortgage myself to the max!

The thing is: Do I buy a flat in London or a house outside of London and commute in?

There's pros & cons for either. - Less than an hour commute & easy access to lot's of stuff or a longer commute but at least I live in a house. With a garden.

Which would you choose? And why?

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

I live where I live because it takes me 20 mins to get to and from work including getting Vixis to work as well.

I figure that 7.5 hours a week NOT spent travelling is worth the extra in rent.

Personally I would wait until house prices stop dropping before you buy - which should be in a few months.

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

Hard choice.. Depends who you are really, city boy or country bumpkin.

Im a country bumpkin. I can see the fun of living in the city, lots of clubs and bars etc. But you need to be a socialite and enjoy spending all your time out partying. there will still be an element of commuting, tubes n such, so your still be spending 30 min odd travelling.

Or live outside the city. Commute in, taking more time out of your day, more stress, BUT, when your home, its quieter, you may have a garage for your bike, a garden to chill out in, BBQ's in the summer etc. The quieter life.

I personnally went for the quieter life option. Nice house, garage etc... I have 2 ponds, I would have no ponds in London. It attracts lots of wildlife, which london doesn't have so much. Then I quit my city job anyway, so was the best thing for me.

I like the country, and the quiet though.

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

It depends where your friends are and what you're social life is like. And well personal preference whether you want a house or a flat. A flat outside London to confuse matters is also a possibility, or a house of course. There are lots of people who used to live in London moving down to Brighton/Hove. And I also know people who have two flats, one in London and one in Brighton/Hove!

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

House any day. I wouldn't want the hassle of a leasehold, rip-off landlords etc.

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

house also defo....i hate our leasehold - have a management company who are terrible

you can put a price on a garden either...well...you can like lol...

my experience - bought a flat 2 (ish) years ago......was told by docs mrs could have kids...within a few months of moving in she was pregnant....
im now hoping to get my son a garden asap.....
id happily commute on the bike

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

Who in their right mind would want to live in london?

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

I voted a House.

The reason I picked a house is because a flat will be leasehold and will probably have service charges attached. Much better to get a house that will eventually be 100% yours.

My friend lives in a flat (not rented, bought) and she pays extorniate service charges. the flat above her has an outside leak which is dripping down onto her balcony & wall. Despite lots of complaints the "landlords" haven't come along to sort it out. Shes now at risk of rising damp. Also, the garden and communal areas have not been very well maintained.

Depending on how you plan to commute into london, you will obviously have to factor in the commuting costs and how much that will add to each year over time. Buying out of london but commuting into it could end up being more expensive in the long run. Thats one of the reasons why my colleauge moved into London because her commuting costs were massive.

Would you buy alone or with people? Would you use a homebuyers scheme (or whatever initiatives there are to "help") or go it alone all the way?

It really does depend what you can afford and what you find...Houses have more longevity whereas you can grow out of a flat rather quickly.

HTH

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

+1

Re: To buy or not to buy: Flat or house?
 

oi, london is not that bad! country bumpkins :p