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Original poster

Would you buy a flat to get on the property ladder?

80 replies

Spagbol78655 · 08/02/2021 20:41

Would you buy a flat in order to get on the property ladder or would you just keep saving until you could afford a house?

OP posts:
FTEngineerM · 08/02/2021 20:43

Buy a flat.

You can sell the flat and probably make a small profit which will go towards the house.

That’s assuming you’re renting at the minute. If you’re not and living free with parents or something then no I’d carry on saving.

wheresmycrown · 08/02/2021 20:47

Depends what sort of flat and location. But mainly no. There would be the odd exception

Daphnise · 08/02/2021 20:47

At the moment I'd never buy a leasehold of any sort- cladding, service charges, major repairs, greedy managing agents, flooding from flats above you....

And many more....

wheresmycrown · 08/02/2021 20:47

How far off are you being able to buy a small house? Maybe change area slightly?

SendMeHome · 08/02/2021 20:49

No. We did, and nobody is buying them now... so we’re stuck here. We’re very lucky that our service fees are low, as is our ground rent, but we’ve been flooded by upstairs three times...

Chicchicchicchiclana · 08/02/2021 20:49

Of course I would and I did and so did everyone of my age that I know.

purpleme12 · 08/02/2021 20:49

Mmm I think I might till I could get a house

PresentingPercy · 08/02/2021 20:50

There are wonderful converted warehouses. Old houses divided up into flats and low rise older style maisonettes and flats. None have issues. Look for long leases. Buy in a great location and beware of high maintenance charges. Flats are perfectly acceptable. You won’t get a mortgage on a clad one.

bridgetjones1 · 08/02/2021 20:51

NO!! Especially not a flat with more than 3 floors, lots of flats can’t currently get fire safety certificates because of the fallout from Grenfell. Some owners in cities are paying hundreds of pounds per month on “waking watch”

LaurieFairyCake · 08/02/2021 20:51

Depends WHERE Confused

I've owned 6 houses in my life then moved into London and bought a flat Grin

Pipandmum · 08/02/2021 20:51

Everyone i know started with a flat (London). Now everyone has a house (mostly outside London). Not one was a high rise - mostly converted terraced house or, in my case, a purpose built Edwardian flat, with one above.

NotExactlyMrsCurrentAffairs · 08/02/2021 20:52

We did. Wish we'd have carried on saving for a house in hindsight. Service charges were extortionate.

ReefTeeth · 08/02/2021 21:04

No.

We started looking at 2 bed flats in zone 2 and bought a 2 bed house in zone 3.

Financially, it has been the best decision we ever made buying that 2 bed house.

abstractzebra · 08/02/2021 21:07

It depends on what sort of set up it is.
I've got a lovely flat and I get people stopping me outside to ask me how I got it as the block looks so lovely and it's in a fantastic area. They are mixed HA and owned.
It's purpose built with reasonable service charges (most of the time). Only eight flats on two floors.
The main issue is the freeholder, the Housing Association, who are incompetent, unhelpful and badly organised.
I'm lucky enough to have some savings and am thinking about looking for a freehold property but I don't really want to spend every penny I've got to do this, especially as apart from the freeholder issue, I absolutely love where I live.
Changes are coming so I think that if you choose wisely and are prepared to wait until those changes come, it could be a good investment.

CherryBlossomTree7 · 08/02/2021 21:10

I would much prefer to save for a house, even if it took a lot longer.

But yes, I would buy a flat but probably only if I needed to move very soon and couldn't afford a house.

Original poster
Spagbol78655 · 08/02/2021 21:11

Sorry noticed a few people have asked where, hopefully south east thinking potentially Berkshire. Joint income of 42 k and deposit of 60 k if that changes anything

OP posts:
womanity · 08/02/2021 21:11

Depends on how confident you are you’d make money on the flat. If you’re absolutely certain it would retain value/increase value, then yes.

But flats often don’t.

(Location, fees, type of flat, how many other flats of that size/type there are.)

Findahouse21 · 08/02/2021 21:13

No. Moving when you're both selling and buying is so much more stressful so would hold out for a property that I planned to stay in for at least 8-10 years.

wirldsgonemad · 08/02/2021 21:17

No, go for a freehold house or nothing

FinallyFluid · 08/02/2021 21:21

Not in a million years.

ThatsnotmyBorishishairistoneat · 08/02/2021 21:22

Yes I would

MilkshakeandChips5 · 08/02/2021 21:33

Yes. We did as first time buyers but in a small block with six flats and three floors. We looked at houses but could only afford small and they had no storage. We've enjoyed our flat for five years with a manageable mortgage and have been able to save well. We have low service charge and an excellent property management company that also makes a difference. It's worked well for us. We're looking to move soon and selling does seem to be a challenge but also not many houses on the market either!

WonkyCactus · 08/02/2021 21:40

No. I've lived in flats all the time, I've been renting, and I am so over it. Now hoping to buy later this year and it will be a house for sure. I cannot wait.

2orangey · 08/02/2021 21:43

There are many different types of flats, not all are tower blocks or have cladding...

We bought a flat as we can't afford a house in the area we like. Ex-council maisonette. 4 flats in the block, each with its own bit of garden and its own front door.

Not glamorous at all but nice enough and more modern / slightly bigger inside than the terrace I used to live in.

Ground rent and service charge both very low. Freeholder is Housing Association, no issues with getting them to do work so far.

Not sure if it the property price will go up as much as a house but we got it primarily for the location.

burnoutbabe · 08/02/2021 21:47

I got a flat and 20 years later still in it. Zone 3, 10 min walk to tube, 1000 year lease, own share of freehold. Only three stories high.

Works fine for 2 of us.