to buy a house at the moment...Brexit

[needsomemotivation]

We are contemplating moving house. Seen a house we like and wondering about starting the whole process. But, what with Brexit, would it be a silly thing to do? What would you do?

I'd wait, but it'll probably turn out to be at least another year before things start to pan out so factor that in to your decision. How much do you need to move?

Don't need to move. Just seen somewhere we like and houses don't come up for sale there often.

This is our dilemma too. So hard to decide

I'd buy the house, it's a house, a home. So what if prices change, they're always changing.

We're very near exchange of a house. TBH, we didn't really care about Brexit because we're moving somewhere we hope to be for many years to come. It beats renting and paying huge amounts to some random woman for a too-small house with awful interior decor!

Was done on here very recently (last week).
I'd wait if I could, but if you regard your house as a home, rather than an investment and consider the cost of not moving (rent? Loss of value on your current home?), maybe it makes sense.

No, I’m not sure what people think is going to happen post-Brexit (mainly as no one knows!); but unless you are planning of buying and then selling within a few years then it shouldn’t be much of an issue. I can’t see a scenario where the end result is house prices dropping ridiculously low, as there is still a supply and demand issue in many places. If interest rate fluctuations are concerning you, try for a fixed term and then reassess this approach in 3 or 5 years. As with any house purchase to be honest, as long as you are happy that for the area and the house itself it seems good value for money then go ahead. I know you already own a house, but I think the rental market will be most affected tbh.

Even if prices go down it's all relative as you'll have sold your house and got the pre Brexit price. And that's an if.

So I'd say if you are going to potentially need to stay put in a bad market it just as well be somewhere you really like.

We're in the same position but are FtB, we're holding out till April. A lot of people here are so you might find your house doesn't shift as easily as you hoped

My DP and I are currently spending well over £1k per month on rent and having finally reached our deposit amount, we started the process of buying a house in October. We're now nearly ready to exchange - I haven't thought for a single second about Brexit as we're not planning on moving/selling for at least 5 years, by which time I imagine the effects of Brexit will be minimal. I wanted to take advantage of the slightly lower interest rates!

FWIW, we're buying in the North West where house prices and selling so far hasn't been hugely affected (unlike my mum's house in Surrey which has been on the market for 2.5 years and counting).

If you’re going to be there a long time, I’d move. Worst case you’ll be in negative equity for a while but prices will rise again eventually. If you’d need to move again I’d stay where you are.

If its a house you plan to stay in for more than five years, ignore Brexit and buy it.

The trouble is is much harder to borrow in a falling market too. So I'd be more inclined to crack on as long as it's a house you envisage staying in a while.

If Brexit becomes a problem then cheap mortgages will to .Buy now,get a cheap fixed rate mortgage and enjoy your new home.
If house prices fall so will yours .

If you’re planning on it being your forever home then it doesn’t really matter if you’re in negative equity for a few years.

We bought in August 2008 on the market downturn, rode out the crash in neg equity, sold 5 years later for what we paid and got a bargain on our second house. No, we didn't make money but we saved 5 years renting and built up the equity as deposit for house 2. I would do it.

I would go for it too. I can't see house prices dropping that much, and if everything goes pear shaped then you might not get the mortgage or as good a deal, so it's all relative really.
We bought around the time of the brexit vote and the housing market definitely slowed. But it picked up again quickly and our house has increased a lot in value, we couldn't have afforded it now.
There's no certainty with the housing market in any climate, so you have to weigh up any potential risk against the benefits to you and your lifestyle.

You never know, it could just maybe pan out ok and all the people holding off might come into play and cause a little post Brexit bounce.

I'd just go for it. There will always be doom mongers about with a reason as to why you shouldn't buy, but for people like that, there's never a good time. Before I bought my first place, I read loads of comments on forums, newspaper articles and so on from people saying that the property market had reached its peak, anyone buying now was insane as prices were on the brink of a crash and so on. It scared the life out of me but I'm glad I didn't listen, because my flat is now worth close to double what I bought it for!