London flat - Would this sales history give cause for concern.

[another20]

One bed flat, zone 2, in old Georgian building, share of freehold - was sold in 2004, 2007, 2010, 2014 and is up for sale now. Is this too often - does it raise alarm bells? Or do one beds churn faster especially in London. Current owner is BTL investor wanting to offload

£350k if refurbished to a really high standard

£310k if in need of work

Are you sure it is Georgian? I have had a quick look at prices, and although some are over £500,000 there are plenty that are Victorian and not in need of refurbishment for around £420,000 and below.

I would say 350 at a push. They're being greedy and opportunistic. That's 120k in 3 years...60k a year. I don't think things have been increasing at that rate

I also that sounds like an increase in line with house prices. I bought for 275 in 2013 and sold for 420 last year in an area outside of london but in the south and with similar rises to london.

Sorry must be Victorian then as 1870 not Georgian.

I think £400 is over the odds for what they paid, but maybe they struck a good deal at the time? It has been on since Dec - no other 2nd viewings to date.

We paid £390k for a one bed in zone 2 in 2016. Conservation area but south London not north. There was a huge price increase over the last 5 or so years.

We also own share of freehold. No management company. I'd imagine frequent sales are due to people upsizing. We fortunately have scope for extending / changing layout but if we didn't, I'd be looking to move as baby due this year.

Where is it in stoke newington? Obviously you won't want to be exact but if it's lordship park side there's an issue with kerb crawling. Not sure if that's relevant.

Screamer - yes it is on Lordship Park!

Sounds like the current owners are being a bit greedy.

I'd be a little wary of the sales history. I have a 1 bed flat in zone 2 and the flats in my block have very little turnover. People tend to keep them and rent them out rather than sell them on so finding one to buy is like gold dust. They rarely come on the open market.

I'd check out how bad the red light issue is near you. It's quite localised so might not be a problem at all. I've had several friends live either near lordship park and a couple on it. I don't actually think any of them were bothered by it, but it might be worth bearing in mind. Also the price jump does seem unusual. I'd be upfront with the agent and ask his thoughts on the difference, he might be honest.

It's a funny market at the moment.

Four hundred thousand pounds?!?!? For a one bedroom flat?!?! Christ almighty.

You could buy a huge house with land here in the Yorkshire Dales for that! In fact you could in most parts of the country. Except London it seems.

Crazy. Extortionate even.

Oh it’s stoky? That explains the price rise!

I think stoky is totaly over rated and over priced (and the least convenient zone 2 location possible)

Nice restaurants tho.

Fluffy - does it explain the price rise tho? I thought stoky had its hey day years before, so was an established popular area 2014 to now - so “standard” London price rise rather than a real “hotspot” at that time. But doesn’t seem to be anything decent for that price there now.

Do you know that there have been actual sales every time? Some of them could have been remortgages.

GU24Mum - is that how it works - that remortgages are listed on LR & RM?

No, they're not. Only change of ownership.

Only full market price sales show on rightmove etc. No divorces, part shared ownership transfers, foreclosures etc.

3-5 years is pretty common ownership period for a 1 bedroom flat.

I know nothing of London prices. seems others have you covered here.

Many years ago we lived just inside the ‘popular’ N16 postcode on Cazenove Rd (Hadley Court); our flat faced Upper Clapton Rd (E5). I loved it there as there was a ‘hidden gem’ just across the street.....the beautiful Springfield Park, with bands playing in the bandstand in the Summer. I really enjoyed living there, we hardly ever used the car as transport was so good and lots of shops and restaurants within 0-15 minutes.

We were walking distance of Clapton station and Stoke Newington station, with Clapton being very slightly closer.

There was a bus stop near our flat so I would take the 253 to Manor House tube station (Piccadilly Line).

What I’m thinking is that perhaps you can cast your net just a little further and look at the E5/N16 borders around Upper Clapton and Clapton Common? You definitely pay more for the N16 postcode that’s for sure, but you can still be in Zone 2 if you look at E5.

Clapton is pretty pricy as well, it’s no longer a hidden gem and is very much a mainstream location.

Just to say that if it's a landlord wanting to offload while the going's still good, then given that there are plenty of others the same at the moment, I would certainly try a fairly cheeky offer. And especially if it's empty - LL will very likely still have costs while no rent is coming in.

If the place needs a major refurb, the price does seem high compared to the previous sold price.

I think you have to forget about what was paid in the past. You do not know if it was bought from a family member and discounted.

What you need to do is look at prices now. Does the price stack up if work needs doing? Is the location so good that its worth the money? We tend to buy flats that have been well maintained and refurbished. Getting work done is a nightmare and you cannot increase the value of a 1 bed flat that much. So make an offer based on realistic costs for refurbishment.

We sold our 1 bed flat in Hackney after 3 years as we needed more space (I'm pregnant). We paid £380k in early 2014 and sold it for £500k in late 2017. It had changed hands a few times before then since it was converted (from an old school), with each buyer staying for 3-5 years, so I don't think either the price increase or the sales history is cause for concern as a general proposition for a 1 bed flat in a trendy bit of london.

Depends obviously on specific flat and location though.

Bubbles - I agree that getting work done is a nightmare in London with the building skills shortage which puts costs through the roof - thats even if you can get a builder to come and quote. Not an issue for us as family are builders. Probably why it has not had any second viewings to date.

From the figures it seems that the biggest jump was between 2004-7 which would make sense to me as this area was a "hot-spot" then.

I understand that flat is currently let to a family friend so doubt there is an issue with voids - they can probably sit it out and wait for their price.

I will do search to see how much others have shifted in price over that period to get an idea of what is reasonable - but it has deteriorated significantly in that time, so need to take that into account. Good point about a ceiling on one beds - need to make sure not to spend too much so that on resale price is competing with a 2 bed.

I lived in Stokey 27 years ago when it was rough as anything. If I lived there now I'd live in Gibson Gardens .

Tinkly - you could have been living here - £385K just sold 37m2 / 400 sqf

www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html?prop=67026131&sale=5946769&country=england

I lived Highbury Corner / Cannonbury 27 years ago - way too scared to cross the BallsPond Rd to the badlands of SN ....