More EU picking on the UK?

[Kayless]

http://www.express.co...to-slash-house-prices
Most of Europe does not have the home ownership culture that the UK does so they should stay out of our business. Would the proposed rule changes cause house prices to plumet, presumably puting millions into negative equity? Surely the EU has bigger problems that worrying about how to shaft the British!

[modeller]

I don't know if house prices would fall but if they did millions of young first time buyers would be able to buy their own homes, whereas at the moment most will never be able to. If house prices were to fall the building industry would boom and all associated industries, creating thousands of jobs. Just remember it was the uncontrolled rise in house prices in this country and the US that triggered the global crash in the first place.
What the express said may have some truth in it but overall the effect of bringing the ratio of house prices and wages down to a realistic level, would be beneficial.
In the 60s you could buy a house for about 6 times the annual salary . Today it's 10 times. If that gap could be narrowed we would see a boom in house building .
Where I live a small estate was built and they remained empty for a year until the developer cut the prices by 20%. Within a matter of weeks they were all sold.
I dont care what the estate agents and building societies say , they want to keep prices high, which also keeps the value of land high, and their commission.
I know like millions of others that my house has dropped in value but I've still got a house and should I move I would be able to buy a property that has also fallen in value. So I am no worse off .

[ichkeria]

Count me in the "it's a good idea" camp as well.

[Brenden]

I thought it was buy-to-let properties that this proposal was aimed at.

[rojash]

"I thought it was buy-to-let properties that this proposal was aimed at."

Making it harder to buy-to-let would (possibly) lower house prices and free up housing stock for young people and first time buyers.

[Captin Kirk]

I myself do not have any buy-to-let properties so have no interest to defend but just remember why many bought these properties in the first place ... as an alternative to poorly performing and managed pensions. Yes at the cost to first time buyers but better options need to be available.

[modeller]

I wonder why the express concentrated on the minority buy to rent market ?
Those people did it as a business to make money based on the assumption that property values would keep going up by 10/15%.each year. It couldn't last and the bubble burst.

[jomifl]

Don't believe anything you read in the express especially about the EU

[Kayless]

yes brenden it's about BTL properties but making it much harder to purchase will effect the whole sector.

Good points modeller I guess any change like this will have winners and losers.

[DTCwordfan]

What they should encourage is "let to buy" - I had a deal like that in France.

A monthly rent and you bought into the property.....sell at a given point, you take your percentage of the deal based on the equity you were holding....(back in the mid 80s)

[ChuckFickens]

Sounds like a good idea to me too...

There was a large development of houses and flats near to where I live a few years back that was nearly exclusively purchased by people with buy to let mortgages and most of them were then put on the rental market at silly prices per month (required to get enough income for the owner to actually cover the mortgage).... needless to say hardly any of them got any tenets in due to the high rental prices which left loads of people unable to pay the mortgage on them so about a year latter loads of them got reprocessed.

the good news was a lot of them went to auction and ended up being sold at a much reduced price which actually made them halfway affordable.

[Le Chat]

DT - There is a similar arrangement called 'try before you buy' where if the tenant rents with a view to buying, then the rental paid out is deducted from the price of the house.
I work in the lettings department of an estate agents and the sales side owuld love to see house prices drop, for all of the reasons listed above. It's obviously true that the higher the price, the more the commission but if they ain't selling then there's no commission!
I am also glad to report that in my area (North West England) rental prices are not going up. We have had a few greedy Landlords but unless the property is in top condition, they cannot get the increased rental that they keep hearing about on the news. I try very hard to keep rentals as realisitic as possible as everyone has less money to spend these days.