Thread: Keep house or sell?

Two and a half years ago I got married and let my property out because my husband was moving overseas with work. Since then we have had another baby and cannot move back into the house (it is a 2 bed, my children are a DS and a DD and there is 9 years between them).

I am currently only clearing £80 per month from the monthly rent after paying out for Mortgage and insurances. This figure does not include paying out to maintain/repair any part of the property.

I did quite a lot of work to the property whilst I lived there (new boiler/new soffetts and fascia's/new fence/new flooring throughout the whole house/new doors) and since then have been lucky that there has not been many maintenance issue's, although I have had workmen round to complete minor improvements that I did not get the opportunity to get done before I moved out.

Late last year a different tenant moved in to the property. Since then there has been a catalogue of issue's which have cost me over £1000 (ie starting into negative figures). As I now have to look at this as a business I am thinking of selling.

On the emotional side the agent aren't helping very much with the maintenance and a lot of it is left to my parents who live around the corner. This week they have been called out about six times. My Mum has broken her foot as well, so my poor Dad is really stressed out, which in turn is making me feel incredibly guilty.

To give some background to this we are due to move back to the UK next year. We will have accomodation, but as my husband only has 4 years left in this job we will have to buy a family property. We are going to be buying in a place that is a about 20-30k cheaper than where my current house is.

The tenancy agreement comes to an end in February. The LA has said that I can have the house on a "rolling agreement" from then on and have the house on the market with them at that time and that as long as I give the tenants a minimum of 2 months notice to vacate then it will be fine. I do feel a bit guilty about doing this, but I cannot keep up the cost of repairs if it continues and save for the house we will need.

I have spoken to my financial advisor who is looking into the best instant access savings accounts for me, and I am going to get agents from the area we want to move to to send me regular updates on houses that meet our specifications so that if the market starts to pick up we can look at buying instead of just looking.

Sorry it is long, but I needed to get it off of my chest with someone (many) that isn't either related to me or that has a vested interest.

WWYD?

i think you doing the right thing there, might take you a while to sell your house anyway with the current market.
try to get as much rent out of it as possible......
and i hope you find your new home x

Would you need to sell this house to buy somewhere else when you return to the UK? (I may have missed the answer to this)

If you would then I think your doing the right thing by selling, your never going to use it as a family home, so whats the point of keeping it unless you want to have a second investment property. From a financial point of view its costing you money and there may be better options for your money. It might mean your in a better position in the future to buy, rather than having to wait to sell this home in a few years time.

As for the agents are you paying them a fee to manage your property and things like maintenance? If you are then its not acceptable that they are contacting your parents.

As for the tenants, you will be giving them enough notice as per agreement, I know when we were looking to buy there were houses being marketed with tenants who would like to stay on, this might be a selling point to some buyers?
If not a chain free, empty house are always desirable.

Best of luck x

If the house is in a MoD area approach about renting it out to them.

I would sell, the market is starting to lift up and houses in certain areas are going like hotcakes.

Or you could finish renting via an agency, as I know their fees are high (used to be a lettings account manager, so I know the pain your face would make, each time you saw a statement from them). You could finish the agreement with the agents and continue a rolling contract with the current tenant, until you get someone to buy the house? Or is it easier all round jsut to let via an agency?

But I would look into selling, get yourself a little nest egg ready and waiting for when you'd like to buy somewhere with your family

Can I be dizzy for two seconds?

I think you should sell and we have a really massive party! on a boat somewhere- with the guy from the old spice ad!

Originally Posted by dizzy.chick

Can I be dizzy for two seconds?

I think you should sell and we have a really massive party! on a boat somewhere- with the guy from the old spice ad!

Ohhhh I like this option!

Originally Posted by dizzy.chick

Can I be dizzy for two seconds?

I think you should sell and we have a really massive party! on a boat somewhere- with the guy from the old spice ad!

I like this option too, but need the money for the next house

Boots - House is not in an MOD area unfortunately so don't have that option

Don't forget to factor in Capital Gains Tax to any profit you may make on a sale. I was also thinking that now it appears to be a lot harder to get a mortgage does already owning a property, albeit rented, put you in a slightly stronger position with lenders? I don't know the answer but just thought I'd throw that one in?

For a start I would rid yourself of any guilt about the rolling tenancy- if I am correct you have to give two months notice and they only have to give you one months notice- I'm sure if they found somewhere else they wouldn't give you a second thought!

The letting agents seem to be failing on their part so I'd give them a big kick up the backside.

I personally would sell. What is actually going into your pocket after paying insurance and mortgage fee's isn't a huge amount-especially given the hassle its causing you and your parents...and possible future costs for repairs or whatever.

The housing market does seem to be picking up and I think you can be more confident that people looking to buy are actually in a position to buy as the mortgage companies are so more strict and are not just giving mortgages to any Tom, Dick and Harry.

As for actually buying yourself, I found when I worked in the Estate Agents a buyers financial situation and the fact that they are ready and able to move/complete swayed them much more than the actual offer- its surprising what a little chat on a viewing with the vendor about your financial status etc can do to make you the better option over someone who's come in with a full asking price offer but aren't entirely ready to make the move ASAP.

In the field you're in, you'll know what a difference a good sized deposit can make when hunting for the right mortgage.

Good luck in whatever you decide. Its a biggy to think over

C5 because I lived in the house for so long that I am not subject to CGT unless I sell after Feb 2015. Lenders are not interested if you currently have lending or not to be honest. They are just interested in your affordability. Although the fact that I have held a mortgage and other credit before now and that it has all been paid on time and in full will help me.

I think your right ER. The fact that we would be looking at a 50/50 buy (cash/mortgage aip) and would be chain free would make us appealing to a vendor. Plus the fact that we can complete in a hurry or at leisure helps too I think.

To be honest I think I am going to have to do it. If something came up that was really expensive we would struggle to pay for it at the moment.

When you look at it from a business point of view £80 a year is less than £1k a year, less any taxes, which is why if you have any expenses you are so easily going into nil profit. But you already knew that - you don't me to tell you that, I just thought looking at it from that perspective of £1,000 might make it easier for you. As at the moment, your parents are doing all this to-ing and fro-ing for quite a small amount of money.

So perhaps the way to look at it is this, are you charging enough rent for your property and/or are rents likely to go up soon? If the answer is yes as you are in a fantastic location, rentals are strong and agents are desperate for properties such as yours then I would hold on.

But if the answer no then I would sell, but in the current climate you need to have a bit of savvy about it. You sound as if you have already done a lot of work to your house, but lots of properties near me are going on the market with Planning Permission granted for extensions, conservatories, garage or loft conversions and I can only guess that the architect drawings are included in the sale. Is this something you could think of doing to give your property a USP?

I don't know how much equity you have in your house, but if you have enough have you thought about buying a holiday cottage somewhere? I have a friend with two and she makes more than if she worked in London full-time. There is definitely the demand for holiday homes and a good property management company should be able to look after all your bookings, maintenance, call-outs etc., for a small percentage of the rent you achieve. I was looking at three bedroom properties in mid-august and there was nothing under £2,500 for six people for one week. I would do this like a shot if I could.

Sorry to go slightly off-topic on you Gonzo, but just wanted to give you a further option that would make a nice amount of money for the next few years.

TLC xx

To be honest ER there is nothing that would give it a USP so to speak. It is a 2 bed mid terrace with a garage in a block, 45ft back garden ish. Infants, Juniors and Senior schools are very good schools within walking distance. Excellent transport links (train to London, M3, M27, Bus serice, Coach service). Walking distance to town. So has plenty going for it.

The "holiday home" idea would be fab, but we really need to buy within the next 3 years tops anyway for our DS's education so not really worth the expense of conveyancing twice.

I have about 95k equity in the property currently (after fees from EA and Sols) which would make a nice amount of interest even at a dispicably low rate.

The house is on a guaranteed income scheme, which is great in theory but they charge 23% for the benefit. I can't really change this at the moment because of where we are.

To be honest I think I have pretty much made my mind up now. It is just so hard, especially when my husband keeps saying "It is your house, your decision". Talk about buck stopping here!

Plus then I can buy lots of these:

Irregular Choice

Originally Posted by Gonzo

Plus then I can buy lots of these:

Irregular Choice

d@mn you, now i want a pair of Burlesque Beauty shoes grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr SELL THE HOUSE RIGHT NOW.................gumtree it

Originally Posted by Gonzo

Plus then I can buy lots of these:

Irregular Choice

why did you not tell us about this site earlier????????

Originally Posted by padme

why did you not tell us about this site earlier????????

I am sorry! They are lovely shoes.

You Showed me and now I am poor

Originally Posted by dizzy.chick

You Showed me and now I am poor

Don't blame me for your weakness!!!

Plus you are poor because you just bought a house!

I'm not sure I'll be much help but I'm currently trying to sell a flat I have down south and my god I had a nightmare with the last set of tenants (and the letting agents). I lived in the flat for 2 years and barely had any problems whatsoever, this family (in a 1 bed flat, not exactly my idea of the best people to move in) caused so many problems and damage that I spent so much getting it all fixed that when I approached the agents about getting new tenants I was totally fobbed off - not a happy bunny. We finally got rid of them and it was a great weight off my mind - esp as I live at the opposite end of the country so can't really do much from here.

We do have it on the market at the moment but I am discovering that the agent its on with is just as useless as the previous one as they're not telling me anything so I have no idea if we're getting interest/viewings/offers etc, if it doesn't sell within the next month (or get a decent offer) then it'll be going back on the rental market as its going to cost too much to leave it empty. Not really looking forward to next year when I'll be trying to sell this house or rent it - don't fancy the second option if the flat down south is still being rented as the stress will just be too much.

I'm a home owner - get me outta here!!!