No viewings

[Ellena646]

Hi, we have been on the market for four weeks and not had one viewing. The agent just keeps repeating "It's August, very quiet" on a loop, although we are now in September. Just wondering if anyone else is experiencing the same thing. Not sure if it's the agent, the market, the price... Never been on the market and had zero viewings in the first month before...

Fgs just get them all deleted, please!! 🙄 But stop going on about it!! 🤦🏼‍♀️

You make points (they are assumptions really, you have no idea for example what individuals pay in rent, mortgage costs at the various price bands are a matter of record and easily researched)

You still have not answered the questions - Who is buying form landlords?
and where do people live when they are on a "waiting list" for rental?

They are just trying to wind you up, this discussion is going nowhere.

I stand by my comments above!
I do think that advising youngsters to do any of the above forever is absurd advice!

If your parents are kind enough to let you live with them whilst you save for a deposit for a house purchase then doing this is great advise! Not long term though!
why would you think that advising youngsters to rent, paying off a landlords mortgage in the process, or waiting for an inheritance when they could buy is good advice?
If labour offers 100% mortgages with no deposit do you still think they should rent forever?

I stand by my comments, it is foolish if there is an alternative!

Definitely a shortage of rentals where I live. In my postcode suburb of around 27,000 residents, there are currently only 22 houses available for rent on Rightmove. These are 2 bedroom houses upwards. The absolute lowest price is £1350 pcm, the highest is £4500 pcm.

I would imagine that there are significant regional variations. Locally to me I see a three bed home for rent for £1100pm and almost next door one for sale that would cost an approx £1500 on a 90% 25y mortgage. The Tennant will not need to save for maintenance costs.

Everybody's circumstances are very different but I see no issue renting if you lack the funds to buy or if you think prices will fall while you save the difference towards the deposit.

There is NO right answer about what is best. I already told about my experience renting a lovely home on a 2.8% yield. I could never afford to buy it but I could certainly afford to rent it.

Thank you! Someone stating facts and speaking sense at last! 👍

It's variable, personal and regional. It's a pointless argument

Average salary is apparently £33k.

It’s an expensive postcode, some ordinary homes but an also lots of wealth - big houses, private school families, many will have a salary way, way over that average quoted.

The tenant won’t have to pay maintenance costs but would have an asset at the end of it if purchasing their own home.

You rented a lovely home which you would never have afforded to buy, that’s great if you want to rent forever but I would rather pay towards an asset that I get to keep in the end so would opt for a more affordable house that I could purchase.

Renting is sometimes necessary but I would never advise to do this long term.

You need to look at the whole UK though, not just one postcode.

There is no single right advice. I can't say this too often.

For example, If you have a mobile job then the last thing you may want is an illiquid asset. It would be preferable to rent and save to buy a home for retirement. You see this often in the services.

Agreed, I am banging my head against a brick wall 🤦🏼‍♀️

It’s been like this for a good few years now

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/renting-crisis-britain-mould-tenants-b2517034.html

Thank you for link. Says it all really.

You haven’t received a response from the ‘we are praying for a housing market crash so we can bag a bargain’ gang as they are probably busy emailing the editors to add their negative spin to the link. 🤦🏼‍♀️🙄

🙄 Unbelievable 🤦🏼‍♀️

It"s from Rightmove (rolls eyes) and as the article goes on they basically admit that rents are falling and supply is increasing, not really the best article to get us believing that massive mortgage debt is the way to go?

Did you have a viewing yesterday OP?

Here is a link from people on the ground talking about their experiences with the recent rental market. So not a link with statistics. This is just the first one I opened so many more the same.

If you don’t skip this post and take the time to read all the comments maybe you can give your thoughts now?
Same goes for all the other non believer posters, but I am sure they will just conveniently skip the post as it doesn’t suit their agendas.
Let’s see who does and doesn’t respond!

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5130373-is-this-what-the-rental-market-is-like-now

I rented recently due to a relocation before buying a house and also manage a team of people, many of whom rent.

The rental market now is absolutely awful. Any rental property advertised was going within a day. When we did manage to get a viewing, you'd get a 10 minute slot and there would be a queue of people before and after you. To be eligible to rent it you had to fill in a form explaining why you'd be a good tenant, as you were effectively competing against the others. We ended up having to pay considerably more in rent to be able to get somewhere.

As to where the people are currently living whilst they go through all of this.

• in current rental with an eviction notice hanging over them desperately trying to find somewhere. The local council has been inundated with applications for housing from people being evicted by landlords.
• couples living separately with parents or in house shares when they'd have set up home together by now.
• overcrowding with families living in far too small accommodation because they can't get anything else.
• people doing crazy commutes because they can't find anywhere to rent where they now live. Or becoming weekly commuters.

Compared to when I'd previously rented about 20 years ago!

Thank you for taking the time to post this 😊 Sorry to hear how hard it has been to find a rental.
This says it all. Posts from real people living it as we speak.

I will add my post again so others can see why I reinforce that if you can start life buying it’s the best route. Once stuck in the rental rut it’s impossible to get out!

www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5130373-is-this-what-the-rental-market-is-like-now?page=1

It's a questionable time to buy a house at the moment I think.

A lot of sellers stuck on the market, unable to lower their price and unable to sell for what the market is willing to pay, so not that much good value out there.

No one has a crystal ball re mortgage rates, but I think taking the latest move downwards in rates as a signal that mortgage rates will continue to fall is unwise. UK rates are pretty much pegged to US ones, and the BOE does not set the price of money, the market does. At the moment it looks like bond yields are moving in the opposite direction to CB rates. It will be the bond yields that set mortgage rates, not CB rates.

I also think there are probably a lot of changes around the corner in legislation with the new government in place, both to housebuilding and the rental sector. There are also a lot of potential changes in the offing regarding things like leasehold and ongoing issues with things like cladding.

I think as a potential buyer you should always be looking out for value, but it doesn't feel to me that at the moment people should have much fear about missing the boat, there will be plenty of other, if not better tickets available in the future. To me it's unlikely prices are going to rocket in the near future.

GasPanic

First time buyers especially can find some good houses at the moment as no one knows if prices will stay the same or rise.

One thing is certain, the rental market is awful and getting much much worse so if you have to choose between the two, it’s a no brainier.

What are your thoughts on the post below and the appalling state of the rental market?

www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5130373-is-this-what-the-rental-market-is-like-now?page=1

I mean it's an anecdotal.

I'll give you my anecdotal. In some places it is probably hard to rent and lets are in demand. In others less so. In my area it doesn't seem so bad. And tenants are better protected than they have ever been.

Pre covid I spent a lot of time renting and lived in a variety of places and never seemed to have that much trouble finding a place.

I don't see much value in the market at the moment for first time buyers.

Overpriced poor quality new builds with onerous contractual/leasehold terms.

Second hand ftb houses stuck overpriced in the market because their occupants can't afford to sell for less to make a step up. Prices may have pretty much stalled rather than increased or dropped, but inflation has eroded asset value in real terms. Volumes appear to have plummeted through the floor.

What we seem to have at the moment is stagnation, or some may call it pre realisation.

GasPanic quote:
What we seem to have at the moment is stagnation, or some may call it pre realisation’

Yep, realisation will set in when buyers have listened to people like yourself and others on here when they are stuck
renting for years on end and worrying when they will get evicted with no where to move to 🤦🏼‍♀️

GasPanic quote:
‘Pre covid I spent a lot of time renting and lived in a variety of places and never seemed to have that much trouble finding a place’

Covid started in the UK in December 2019.
so you are referring to almost 7 years ago!!! 🤦🏼‍♀️

The people living in the rental nightmare in the post below is now:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5130373-is-this-what-the-rental-market-is-like-now?page=1

Can’t believe you’ve just ignored the facts in front of you and are still justifying yourself. 🙄