To buy or rent - London

[AspiringHotelier121]

Hi all,

The dream for me has always been to live in the city - I am from the Midlands.

I have recently been promoted in my job to become a Regional Manager for a leading hotel chain covering London and South East. This role obviously comes with a significant salary increase.

We currently live in the West Midlands in a four bed property that we have owned since 2006, the mortgage will be paid off at the end of this year.

I have been told that I will need to relocate closer to London for work which I’m happy to do - but I’m weighing up the pros and cons of selling my current house and buying a property on the outskirts of London/ Kent or just renting out my Midlands house and then renting a property in London…

Our house is worth £600k and we know if we sold it and brought a house closer to London we wouldn’t have as much space!

We wouldn’t plan to move back to the Midlands for the immediate future but could do long term..

Anyone done this?

Congrats on the promotion.

What part of London would you move to? Closer to Zone 1 and it’s more expensive obviously.

If it was me, I’d be selling the midlands home and finding a property that would be suitable even if it meant that I had to rent for a period of time.

You could obviously get a mortgage and with a hefty deposit, it could push you into looking at properties close to the £1 million mark - especially with the high salary you earn.

I am a landlord and in your situation I really wouldn’t bother with the faff - just sell up. Unless of course you want to return to that exact house in the future - then rent it out..

If it’s a long term job, i’d sell up. You’re probably going to have to increase your mortgage or downsize though.

Don’t rent out your main home if you can possibly avoid it.

The Renter’s Rights Law and other legislation means that the risk/benefit no longer stack up. 40-45% of the rent goes in tax, 10% to a managing agent (which you need unless you are local) endless list of repairs, certificates, checks and now selective licensing (effectivelly an additional tax). Combine that with Capital gains tax (no longer your main residence) and the difficulties of removing difficult or non paying tenants and you are much better off selling and investing the money (in NSI if you are risk averse).

Whether it makes sense to buy again depends on the length of your likely stay in your new job and associated transaction costs.

If its long term id buy in london if only because they are making renting a closed shop.
It will be such a shag to keep the Midlands place...

Unless you expect to be in London less than. 2 years I would sell up and buy there.

Did you negotiate a relocation allowance?

I'd rent in the region for 3or4 months (leaving current home empty). Then, if I liked the position and area, I'd sell current property and look for a new 12 month rental so I could fully survey the best options for location for me and my family before committing to an onwards purchase.

Congratulations on your promotion!

How big a place would you need?

How big a mortgage would you be prepared to take on?

Renting in London would use up a lot of your money.

I'd buy if possible.