To think this is an indication of all that is wrong with the UK at the momeny

[Southdownsbelle]

My friend is trying to buy her first flat - a 1 bed. She has saved for years to get a deposit together. She has been out bid twice by property developers buying for cash- one of the property developers owns 20 properties so could keep leveraging & outbidding first time buyers.
It massively fucks me off and is symbolic of all the ills of this country- profit over people! No one needs 20 properties- it’s just greed.

Aibu?

Yanbu. I agree with you op

i'm concerned for young people in these difficult times and it's only going to get worse.

I’m just fed up of it- it’s ruining the country & peoples lives

Yanbu I have an issue with property developers and their “portfolios” for the exact reason you are talking about.

Yes, I agree but as long as there are people / property developers/ rich landlords with spare cash then the problem won’t go away.

Bricks and mortar, in the UK, has always been seen as a better investment. Rental incomes far exceed what a deposit in a bank or building society will ever yield , in terms of profit/interest.

I despair of the massive amount of house building that is currently underway . The vast majority are described as luxury apartments or luxury family homes. We don’t need more of theses... they are usually bought in bulk, probably at a discount, and are rented on privately at a price that far exceeds housing benefit.

What we actually need are more ‘affordable’ homes that real people can actually afford , or homes that can be used as social housing, for those whose earnings aren’t able to buy.
This is where the government needs to step in.
It needs to ensure that affordable/social housing is being built ( very rare) and maybe limit the number of properties to a buyer. I understand that Housing Associations need access to properties in order to provide homes for the more vulnerable, but I don’t understand why we have Housing Associations in the first place. What was wrong with council houses? Just smacks of the government fobbing off its responsibilities.
There endeth the rant! ( sorry)

Another electioneering post.

The government have already done something about this and made interest on morgages not tax deductible. Making buy to let unprofitable for most people.

The property market is stagnant in most area of the country at the moment.

I don't. It's not greed, it's business. Does a car dealer need a 100 cars? No, he/she sells them and makes money on the profit. A developer doesn't buy property just for the fun of it, they buy then develop and sell on or rent out. That's their business, and a much needed one.
Its unfortunate your friend has been outbid. But it's not the developers fault.

I’ve absolutely no problem with people owning and renting out properties, until it comes to them outbidding ‘ordinary’ house buyers. There should be some sort of system put in place that only so many properties can be owned by landlords in each area. That way ordinary people have a better chance of owning.

Yanbu

Really, electioneering is your first thought underneath? It could be I suppose, but the over-inflated cost of housing in this country is a pretty widely recognised issue and people talk about it a lot whether we have a pending GE or not. And really, the market being flat in most areas is hardly solving the problem. It's just avoiding adding to it in some cases. I'm a homeowner, but our system is deranged.

The only solution to the housing crisis in the UK is for government to ensure that 100s of thousands of new properties are built in areas in which people want to live. The population has rocketed over the past 20 years and supply has not kept up with demand. So prices have risen and will continue to rise. Labour, Lib Dems and Conservatives have all failed on this issue.

Your friend is in a fairly unusual part of the country.
The change in tax legislation combined with new rent legislation has made buy to let much less attractive for new investment.
This has meant that more buy to let landlords are selling and fewer are investing.
The plus point of this for people who are landlords is that relative scarcity is keep rental cost up.
I know this because I rent my home out while overseas and I get state of the market updates from my letting agency.
Brexit has also depressed the market in the London area.
It isn't a good market for landlords so I surprised your friend has had this issue.

The government have already done something about this and made interest on morgages not tax deductible. Making buy to let unprofitable for most people.

Except the most wealthy who don't have mortgages. They're still raking it in.