Why Are Uk Houses So Expensive?

[Jack8991]

So I’m a teacher earning around £30,000 a year, 23 years old living at home with parents. My grandma was saying that when she dies (which hopefully isn’t for a very long time), I could buy her house, which is a semi detached estimated between £190-200K. I’ve been told by a family friend who is in banking that on my salary I’d be leant roughly £90-100K for property, so I always tell my gran there’s no way I could afford it as I’d have to put a deposit down of about £90-100K just to be loaned the rest. Even a lot of terraced houses are out of my price range. I just find it frustrating that I’ve worked hard since being at school to go on to get a degree and a career to not even be able to afford my own home. I know there’s renting but I don’t want to be paying out for a house I’ll never own until I die. Thanks

[Jack8991]

Douglas- actually no they don’t. I don’t know when you went to school but judging from your name I doubt it was anytime recent

[elliemay1]

I hope you don't mind me asking this but when your Grandma dies will you get a share of the money when her house is sold? If so you could use that on a deposit for a smaller house to begin with

[Jack8991]

Neveracrossword- well not in so many words but that’s the general thing what they’re saying. They don’t say get a career and still only be able to afford to live in a deprived area

[Jack8991]

Ellie may- yes I am but I’m hoping that’s for a long time yet

[douglas9401]

I'm sure you're right, Jack, and not at all inattentive and naive.

Have a nice day now.

[pastafreak]

I think you will have to lower your expectations just a bit.
A slightly less than desirable area does not have to mean drugs and knives. It might very well still be a family area but with houses or flats that need some work to be brought up to your standard. And while it's great that your goal is to have your own property, expect to have to wait. So saving for a few years is to be expected. You can't always have what you want when you want it.

[Jack8991]

One thing about this site is you come on here to ask a question and then a group of OAPs come on to start trying to tell you off lol. Same on another question once I asked about does excess oil production make hair look thinner and this old man came on shouting the odds through his keyboard

[pat2604]

Jack, I would have loved to have lived in the same area as my parents and have what I was used to. The fact is we couldn't afford it. We didn't expect to live as our parents did. My parents could only afford a better house in middle age by the way. They couldn't afford to give us any financial help, and as for grandparents they had nothing to leave us!

[pat2604]

OMG, I should have recognised the name!

[Jack8991]

Tbh I don’t know why a normal semi detached house is having super high expectations, it’s just normal. To me having super high expectations is aiming for a big detached house with electric gates

[Togo]

Douglas has lovely hair for his age. None of that weak wimpy stuff about when we were in school. Have you seen the price of oil these days?

[pat2604]

Not worth my time answering. Glad I have a wise son though!

[pastafreak]

I should also say that my daughter and her partner make very, very good salaries. They are mid/late 30's. They finally bought a flat 2 years ago...london. Smaller than my flat, cost about 3-4 times as much. They saved (while paying her 7 years of student debt along with huge rents), plus had some help from her grandmother. But they were patient and got something. Not in the best neighbourhood but up and coming. That's what most young people expect to do.

[Neveracrossword]

Jack8991, where I live, most 23-year-olds can't even contemplate buying a studio flat. Wanting a 'normal semi-detached house' is out of the reach of ....most people in their 20s in many parts of the country. The expectations are, indeed, super-high if you are wanting to live in, say, Edinburgh, Manchester, central London, much of Yorkshire....

[douglas9401]

Why thank you Togo, looks like all that oil has caused a mask to slip. :-)

[pastafreak]

What part of the country are you in?

[Neveracrossword]

One thing about this site is that you come on to help and discover some 'youngster' trying to tell you off for having the temerity to answer reasonably, realistically etc. Still, we aim to help everyone...

[Jack8991]

I live in Wigan, so if you was to go living in a flat or terraced house here, it’s in a disgusting area full of scruffy rough people amongst drug users. I live in a middle class area in the Wigan borough which is very respectable, so as you can imagine it would be very depressing going from that to an area full of noisy rough people

[Jack8991]

Neveracrossword- the title of my question was why house prices are so expensive, I was just adding context to explain why I was asking that question. You didn’t answer my question title you just tried to tell me to go living in a scruff area

[Neveracrossword]

Jack, I think you may be confusing what has been said in various replies - at no point did I tell you to 'go living in a scruff area'. I'm sorry everyone went from the general 'Why are UK house prices so Expensive? to the particular, why you couldn't afford to buy a property. That was because your OP was so concerned with the effect on you, and everyone responded to that. PS I think the average price of a semi in the Wigan area is around £163,500.