The Property Ladder - Are You On/Getting On?

[Peadar]

A post buy dublinharp on the Valentine's Day thread got me thinking.
Congratulations on the new house by the way, DH.

I hope to settle in Ireland eventually and given my work situation, the first stop will probably be Dublin.
Is it an absolute nightmare at the moment or what like?
Does being tied to a mortgage stop you from living any sort of life outside the home?
Are people who recently got on the property ladder happy that they've made the right decision?
I'm mad for travel so settling down is a big issue for me at the moment.

[tiktok]

Is it an absolute nightmare at the moment or what like?

It's hard to say at the moment. A combination of SSIA's coming into maturity and the scrapping of stamp duty up to €317,000 means you're probably better off in the short term, as the gap to saving a deposit is less (though not small). In the longer term, both of these, and natural inflation will probably continue to drive house prices up for another 2-3 years at least, so your overall mortgage will probably be bigger

Does being tied to a mortgage stop you from living any sort of life outside the home?

No. You have to be sensible about it, but I probably have more money available now than I did when I was saving the deposit, and my rent was €1100 a month compared with €800 for the mortgage. The difference is having to foot those electrician/plumber et al bills yourself rather than passing them to your landlord. And as Conor pointed out, furnishing is expensive (curtains are a crazy bloody price)
But in my first year of mortgage, I feel quite comfortable.
Although with your wanderlust Peadar, you might find those walls closing in

Are people who recently got on the property ladder happy that they've made the right decision?

Definitely the right choice, paid €13000 in rent while saving a deposit at the same time over the last year and a bit, that was dead money, and it's nice to have your own place.

It's not going to stop me travelling though (or spending too much cash on Music )

[cullenswood]

(curtains are a crazy bloody price)

Here, here. And feckin mattresses!! A mattess can be dearer than a bed, what's that all about!

Got on the ladder last Sept, and it is the same as paying rent. Borrowed most of the deposit so when 5 years are up and that is paid back we'll be laughing. Also, got the oven, hob, washer/dryer and dishwasher thrown in when we signed our contracts on time, which meant we could afford a mattress!!

[noby]

We built. Will be in a year this march.
5 years ago I had no intention of building, but with the price of a 3-bed semi rocketing, we reckoned we could build for the same money, if not cheaper. Like Conor, I've been told our house would be worth alot on the market, but I built this house to live in, hopefully for a very long time. Defenitley don't regret it, but can't see myself doing it again. I have to finish this one yet.

"...or the pitter patter of tiny feet came along, it would be very very different."

We have two kids under two, as well as our new mortgage. Makes things tougher, but still manageable. As long as the mortgage doesn't stretch you right to the limit...

[Peadar]

up to us to put in kitchen, tiles, flooring etc.

(curtains are a crazy bloody price)

Thankfully I have some incredibly talented people in my family would could put in a kitchen in a weekend, make curtains for every room in a week and tile a bathroom on a Saturday. They'd jump at the chance to help out.

I get the impression that getting on the ladder is the most difficult thing.
Deposits, legal fees, payments to tradesmen etc.
Once you're on, it's about managing your money.
Going by the rent I've paid in Dublin in recent years, the mortgage payments wouldn't be a problem.

Has anyone bought a house and rented out a room?

[Jim Smith]

Thankfully I have some incredibly talented people in my family would could put in a kitchen in a weekend, make curtains for every room in a week and tile a bathroom on a Saturday. They'd jump at the chance to help out.

Can I marry into your family?

Seriously though, having contacts like that will be a great weight off your mind. There are so many flakes about that are capable of destroying your home that its just not funny.

[Peadar]

Seriously though, having contacts like that will be a great weight off your mind.

I went to see my sisters house when she signed the contracts and it was just a shell.
Went back a few weeks later and it was a home.
I'm handy enough at the old D.I.Y. stuff myself and will hopefully pick up a few more tips from my dad before he hangs up his hammer & chisel.

[Macy]

Getting on the property ladder at the moment - well already paying the mortgage so I suppose on it. Lucky enough that the missus had a site off her old man, so it was just (ha) a case of getting planning, and then finding a builder. Tied to a 10 year clause, but then we don't plan to ever move...

We would've struggled though to raise deposits/ solicitors fees etc if we were to buy one, and we certainly wouldn't have been able to live near her home place.

Hasn't really effected our lifestyles too much so far, as we were paying rent, then saving for a wedding (moved to her parents so no rent), and then the engineer fees so actual spending money hasn't changed that much. Always hated paying rent, but that's more to do with the ridiculous cost in Dublin - easily pay a mortgage and bills for the same amount.

[carrickharp]

I had no plans to buy a house last summer but this property went on the market a home which I think myself is a bargain, well compared to prices everywhere else €145K for a 3 bed roomed house (in very good condition) plus a old two storied house next door which is in good enough shape to be renovated. Also this property is two minutes from the village. The big problem now is finding the cash to furnish the place.

[pete]

Things can real tight at the start when virtually every penny is invested in deposit or fitting out property. I found it took a while before could settle into steady money in & money out.

Biggest hassle I had was with floor/tile guy who got very aggresive when i & bad feeling.

I'm in apartment & almost every owner complaining about Management Fee although its been trimmed down a bit since. Management fee is definitely a hidden annual cost as would be approx equivalent of 2 months rent for whole apt annually. Apartment fine now but don't think would do again. In large well run complex but I definitely wouldn't buy in small complex.

Main advise i'd give would be to ensure get mortgage approval in advance so know how price range before looking. I didn't do this because of cirsumstances & can lot of hassle then.

[Peadar]

Not a good time to be buying, by the look of things.

Taken from The Sunday Business Post online.

The number of mortgage applications will pass the 100,000 level in 2005 after a fresh surge in loan applications in the first six weeks of the year, according to bankers and brokers.

The number of home loan applications has risen by up to 20 per cent in January and early February from the record numbers recorded during the same period last year.

Mortgage brokers predicted that the record number of home loans would spur house price inflation despite survey evidence that the pace of price increases would slow in 2005.

[green army]

lads, if any of yis need a house snagged (preferably the dublin area), just pm me. yis could go for a career change and start up as builders

[Jim Smith]

Hey, this is not an advertising thread, but if you need a competitive quote on legal fees...

A lawyer and a comedian I'll bet you charge for your jokes though

[Eire06]

had the Opportunity to get on the property ladder at christmas there when I came into some money (well enough for a deposit) looked into it freaked out and now I'm headin to austrailia in July with the money instead...

[Peadar]

now I'm headin to austrailia in July with the money instead...

Heaven help Australia!

[Eire06]

Heaven help Australia!

[pete]

It should be set out in the contracts, which are accompanied by a draft of the lease setting out the basis on which the service charge is calculated.

By hidden I suppose meant something thats not high on priority when signing Docs. Probably 11 lifts all which legally have to have phone line & rental paid. Also heard someone had cut into a lift phone line to make foreign calls.

[SÓC]

Also heard someone had cut into a lift phone line to make foreign calls.

The old lifts in UCC's Kane building hand those grill style lift doors that you pull open yourself. As a safety feature the lift would stop when you opened the door.

There are emergency phones in the lift which only require you to dial 1 to get an outside line......