Buying my first flat (Liverpool) after always living in a house. Would really love to hear your thoughts from personal experience!

[FlatFlatEric]

I'm living in a small, three bedroom house where there used to be six of us and now it's just me. Despite it not being that big, it's more than I want to maintain. I find myself living totally in my bedroom and just using the kitchen occasionally. I'm in the process of selling up and I'm looking to downsize to a flat so I can have more money to travel and to decorate a place totally to my taste, which I've not been able to afford to do where I am.

I know there will be pros and cons to living in a flat, noise and bad neighbours being one potential downside, but I would love to hear any opinions on what to go for and what to avoid because I think I've pretty much made my mind up.

One thing putting me off is that I could have a smaller mortgage but to live in a nicer flat I'm going to have to pay more of a maintenance charge which kind of feels like dead money. Also I'm worried about how much they can put ground rent and maintenance up by.

I'm looking at Liverpool City centre and had a walk around yesterday and again would love to hear anyone's personal pros and cons and things to avoid or look out for!

My daughter lived in a flat just offf Duke Street in the city centre. She loved it. That was a converted warehouse.
Slightly further out there are some gorgeous flats overlooking Sefton Park,
What budget are you thinking?

Don’t do it.

Even when you’re mortgage free you’ll have a never ending service charge to pay which might end up costing more than your mortgage cost and there’s very little recourse. Flats are the first thing to lose value and be difficult to sell in a property downturn and so you might find yourself losing money if you ever come to sell it.

That’s the advice I wish I’d been given before I bought my flat.

I’d look in to the background of the property management company. A friend of mine has been stung very badly with a dreadful property maintenance company who take the high fees but don’t do maintenance work to the standard required. It’s been very difficult to do much about it. It’s put me off ever buying a flat when I downsize.

People will say don't do leasehold but you can do leasehold and not have a horrible time but there's always a risk.

Look for share of freehold or leasehold with right to manage it gives you more say.

Ground rent and how high it goes up by is in the lease the ones linked to inflation are the worst.

You want a lease of over 90 preferably 100 years as 80 and under marriage value makes it expensive when extending.

A lot of the issues to do with section 20s and issues with service charges aren't uncovered until you go through the conveyancing process, avoid lifts and amenities for lower service charges.

Not the city centre! Have a look on princes avenue/ullet road, you're still really close to town but much much nicer areas, closer to parks, probably a bit cheaper and you're more likely to get share of freehold which is better. Some newer (but not new) ones on Linnet Lane too which are nice.

Daughter's service charges on her flat were a rip off, the flat above had a leaky shower (which they didn't fix) which affected her flat. The buillding was listed, no cavity walls, high ceiling and absolutely freezing. The other flats were a mix of tenants and homeowners, some dumped their rubbish haphazardly near the bins so the outside always looked a pigsty. She's just moved/escaped to a small house and so much happier. She's learned the value of a dry , well insulated home.

Avoid basement flats, they are unpopular, harder to sell.

I too would avoid a flat. My first purchase was a top floor flat in a old house. In the house was 3 flats and 2 apartments at the back. 5 owners paying into the management company. The owners of the management company lived in the apartments at the back. Their side was lovely, neat and tidy in the communal areas. My side was awful with 25 year old carpets and no decorating in communal areas. There was never any money apparently to do my side but their side they found the money! Also management fees go up if you need to claim on the building insurance. So if you were at the bottom but someone upstairs had a leaking ceiling it, you in theory would have to pay towards their repair despite it not being your flat. I don't know Liverpool at all but maybe downsize to a 1 bed bungalow instead x

What about a small, modern, two bed house?

Where I am (north east) we have loads of flats that are purpose built but look like houses and generally two share a freehold so no nasty charges. I had one like this in London too, loved it. They also come with gardens/yards.

I got rid of my flat in london years ago, noisy neighbours downstairs, awful, poor insulation and now the current owners have received a bill for 70k for new fire regulations work...i know someone still in the block so relieved i dodged all that.

I would go for a share of freehold type flat - one of my brothers lives in a lovely old house that's been well maintained as the owners own a share of the freehold, it's split to 4 flats - one on each of upper 2 floors and 2 ground floor flats (smaller). You really don't want to head into retirement paying masses of ground rent / service charges forever more with no upper limit - could cost you a lot more than you pay now.
Advantages of living above are less noise and some heat from below.
Have you considered a 2 bed house? Or moving areas to somewhere less expensive? Or renting out a spare room for now (perhaps a weekday rent out Mon-Thurs nights only) to pay for renovations and then retiring to a cheaper area when you retire?

I missed having my own outside space when I had a flat.

Wow thanks everybody! I'm genuinely truly thankful for all of these messages. I was expecting more of a mixed reaction but it looks like overwhelmingly buying a flat compared to a house comes with far more risk than I'd actually anticipated. Two of my best friends both live in flats and they're really happy but they rent, not own.

It's kind of burst my bubble of living in the bustling centre but I definitely don't want to find myself paying more as I get older rather than reducing and paying off a mortgage.

I'm so glad I asked!

I'm in my 40s but retired on ill health grounds and when dc move out (probably 2-3years) I'm going to need to downsize which will also mean moving to a cheaper area. Due to mobility issues I'll need groundfloor only. This really narrows me down to bungalows or flats. I've looked at different options in my area but one thing that did worry me was the cost of leaseholds/maintenance costs (in my area your looking at average £2000 a year), which I know is low to some but over 35 years I'd pay £70000 (that's before any price increases). I know some of that is off set by no building insurance, lower maintenance but it's still a lot of money and with the other risks mentioned on here I'm thinking either a flat that is part of a freehold (some are like houses split into two) or a small bungalow.
My grandparents have a coach house style flat basically a flat above some garages on an estate about 20 years old, own entrance so have put a stair lift in, and no leasehold charges. Could something like that be OK?
If your looking for longevity you also may want to consider transport links, medical care, local shops. When I. Became disabled I had to stop driving and realised how poor our transport system is (I live in a village which was ok when well). This will be one of my priorities when moving. I think don't rush into it research all your options and definitely think about how long you'll be there for, what you may need in the future.

Would a small bungalow or one bedroom house work? I

Lived in a (purpose built) flat 35 years ago and never again.

Nightmare. Neighbours, noise, service charge, no garden.

Never ever again.

I bought a share of freehold flat, shared with 3 neighbours. They're all lovely. There's no service charge or ground rent. We just split the cost of buildings insurance and accountants fees. I chose a flat that is modern and easy to maintain. I would never buy an older place because of the amount of work to the building. I hardly pay anything where I am. Council tax is the lowest band too. Very happy. My only niggle is that I can hear my downstairs neighbour, but it's not awful.

I really really really still have my heart set on a flat but I'm also going to listen to my head. I am not going to commit to somewhere with maintenance fees which range in the centre from £1,000 to £3,000 in my price range.

I don't drive and it would be perfect if I could be in or very close to Centre. I'm going to have another look at having a share of freehold and I had a cursory glance last night but it looks like that's going to be really difficult to find. Investors seem to snap them all up or they are mainly for student accommodation. There are some freeholds for sale but with sitting tenants.

I just felt excited at the fact it would be a short commute to work and that I'd have more access to shops, services and stuff that's going on.

Have a look at spring hill court, L15 9EJ, in leafy suburb next to Allerton road

I am in exactly the same position! I had an accident and had to live in my son's apartment for awhile and absolutely loved how easy it was just being on one level. I've spent years thinking about this and everyone is right on here. The service charges can change and as I have retired now that is just completely impractical for me as the charges could be as much as three or four monthly state pensions per year. It's the unpredictability that is stopping me as well. If the service charges go up too much then I wouldn't be able to sell an apartment and wouldn't be able to afford to live in it. Don't forget the management company can change, too.

Where I live everybody owns their own house. Like other posters have said if you move into an apartment block a lot of them will be rented out and some people just don't have the interest in keeping the place clean and safe. I remember my son's student block which had rats running around outside because students were not putting the rubbish in the bins but next to them instead.

It's such a shame as I fancied city centre living as well but when you think about it there isn't a community there - that would be fine for a while but I think as you get older it's something you might miss.

I'd love to know what you decide to do! What I would really like is a block of owner occupied apartments where everybody has retired or downsized but where people don't need staff caring for them. If anyone knows of such a place, let me know!

Never again! Noisy neighbours if you get them are a nightmare. I never wanted to go home.

Are there any 1 or 2 bed houses you could look at instead that are cheaper but don't come with all the charges?

I live in a lovely 2 bedroom small flat in a block of 12 and I love it. It is very cheap to run and simple to furnish, maintain etc. It was built in the 90s and has excellent sound insulation. We pay £300 per quarter maintenance fee which covers insurance, communal area cleaning and maintenance, gardening, roof, car park and drain maintenance, window cleaning and replacement, painting inside and out. We have a lease of 900 years plus and run our own management committee to attend to repairs and legalities etc.

You will always have to pay to maintain any property and the benefits of living here are numerous. Allocated off street parking, security, friendly faces around, sharing things. Don't get blinkered. It's not all black and white. You need to research the length of lease, ask to see copies of last meeting minutes to see if any maintenance projects are in the pipeline, ask how much of a reserve fund there is for unforseen repairs etc. There is lots of information out there about things to ask when buying a flat. But certainly don't dismiss it out of hand. Flats can be really wonderful!

@marshmallowfinder that sounds absolutely brilliant. It's very affordable too. Is there a sense of community within the block?

The only reason I'm in a flat is I live in London and can't afford anything else. Honestly, if you can afford a smaller house in anyway that would be infinitely better!

Even when I pay off mortgage I'll be paying thousands in service charge and ground rent every year, on top of council tax. If the freeholder needs to do major work to the block they can and do charge you - this can be 10k or more out of the blue! Also terrible neighbours and noise issues.