Trawling through paperwork as the conveyancing paper-trail starts now shows that property isn't a bad investment - despite everything. I bought my first home in 1987 - sold it in 1998 and made 150% profit on it ---The next property (it was properly valued for a re-mortgage) between 1998 and 2005 gained 200% over what I paid for - and I will (hopefully) net somewhere in the region of 130% of what I paid for it although there have been some big ticket costs on it.
Other snippets - When I bought it the Council Tax was 730 and that has now effectively doubled - water rates have actually exactly halved since the installation of a meter - house insurance was an eye-watering 364 quid in 2002 and I renewed that recently at 190 quid. Oil has gone up from 17p a litre to 56p a litre since 1998 though.
Last edited by: Pugugly on Fri 11 Feb 11 at 18:00
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>> Trawling through paperwork as the conveyancing paper-trail starts now shows that property isn't a bad
>> investment - despite everything.
In the long term, for the past 60 years, it has always been thus.. Only people with short term gain in mind get burned in the property market. I see no reason for that change in the next 60 years.
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We've taken a gamble that we might drop lucky on the "new" place - we've had it for a good price and it's a pretty nice place. Anglesey seems to be on the up. The Air Force base is safe, WylfaB (Nuclear Power Station) is slowly emerging as likely along with a 700m pound biomass Power Station - these, if they come off, will bring high quality long term jobs and er....money. The planis to stay for five years and chop it in if the market is better.....time will tell. Mind you not a bad place to stuck in for ten years.
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The main problem with that Island is the wind, but then if you're not in a tent I doubt that matters so much. A lovely island to drive on too if you avoid the single lane country lanes.
I can see myself retiring some where like that, it won't matter that there is no rock clubs near by by the time I am retired I don't think!
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You're planning on retiring one day? How much is in the pension pot? Sorry Rats, just helping to focus the mind a bit :-)
John
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I will have to work until I am 100 (if I live that long) but I don't have to work in Manchester all my life :).
I have no intention of not working, unless I am no longer able to. Too much ill health in older people is caused by idleness when they retire and sit at home all day doing nothing.
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Touche!
But I'm married so there is no chance of "sitting at home doing nothing" :-)
John
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Road works on the bridge? :-) Sorry, just trying to pull your leg.
As for the general comment, there's that old saying, "Land, they've stopped making it".
John
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..."Land, they've stopped making it"...
He's on an island, they might be doing away with it. :)
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Coastal erosion, yes. How close to the cliff edge is it PU?
John
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About 7 miles one way and 9 or 10 the other !, a rural village far enough from the A55 to be quiet but near enough to be off the island in around 10 minutes !
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Yeah
I would want an exit strategy, all those nuclear bits.
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Matters not, ones mans erosion is another mans land expansion.
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The house we sold in December 2009 effectively trebled in value over the time my wife had it. Over about 13 years.
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Wyfia does put me off a bit but the risk of a fall out is very low.
I just like the place because it is the only place I have driven where I actually wanted to get in the car and go for the drive. No city to escape out of first!
Living there now I would get bored stiff, and a lot of my semi Welsh cousins have moved back to Manchester but when people are young priorities are different.
As for house values, my parents paid £16,300 in 1980 it would be worth £250k now if it was all done up but it does need shall we say modernising (it is decorated nicely but the decortating just hides the faults) it would be worth £170k. God knows how much of that has been paid as interest though to the mortgage companies.
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Ironically Rats, the roads in Gwynedd are far better - the A5025 is what is called a project road by the authorities - i.e. the project being to confuse motorists as to what the limit actually is and fine them accordingly. Mind you there have been at least two fatalities on it in the last three months.
Yet to be really bored - since I retired. I have a lifetime of books to re-read, work to be done now and again and moving houses to keep me occupied. There are reasons for disclosing exactly where I'm going on a public forum, but individual members here will have a standing invitation to visit when in the area !
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...but individual members here will have a standing invitation to visit when in the area !...
We might have to when it turns out Anglesey floats upwards and the island we're on doesn't. :)
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Just wait for Anglesey to float round and visit you
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Given it's intrinsic industries it will be the world's biggest nuclear powered aircraft carrier - rather dwarfing anything the Americans come up with !
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Anglesey: the Island that glows.. in the dark...
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My parent's stone built home was bought for £1000 as a do-er upper - (spent £1000) at auction in 1956. Compulsory purchased by the council for £2,500 10 years later - large garden for 4 x storey council flats.
the 120 year old houses further along the road = £250,000 today - and the flats - still standing, dilapidated and druggie tenants
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>>Anglesey: the Island that glows.. in the dark...<<
The Lamb must be 'bright' then :(
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It does after 10 pints anyway!
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So ... the old Dog has almost sold his 8th property (under off) and is buying a 300 year old cottage with 3 foot fick walls, a bore hole, septic tank, and 1 acre to site his wind generator :)
I had to take a 'hit' on the price, but then I knew our place was over-priced anyway, so that's OK.
We've both fallen in luv with this old granite cottage with slate roof in the deepest darkest depths of Cornwall but, there are any number of things that can go TU between offer and completion, we've always been lucky before - even buying and selling in Tenerife so we'll see how it pans out over the next 8 weeks or so.
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>> .... this old granite cottage...
The nuclear theme continues - anywhere for the radon gas to escape through the 3 foot thick walls?
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>>The nuclear theme continues - anywhere for the radon gas to escape through the 3 foot thick walls<<
I shall check to see if a radon sump has been fitted JH like there was in our place on the moor, but ya know - I'm not too bothered about it really - somethings gonna get ya (know wot I mean)
:)
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You won't be bothered by mobile phone calls either! Good luck D. Is it the rev?
John
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Whereabouts are you living on Anglesey PU? I was brought up there and my folks still live in Amlwch, I go back regularly. I live in S Wales now and it's a bit of an epic drive up there. Biggest difference I find are the infuriating speed limits on the Island, the A5025 in particular. At one time, the only limits were 30s in Benllech and Pentraeth, and it was a challenge to do Amlwch/Menai Bridge in less than 20 to 25 mins!
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Sorry Dog, better if I write in English really isn't it. You had the Right Rev Soapy Smith, or similar, (a well known con man in reality) looking at the place. I wondered if he was the successful bidder.
John
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>>Sorry Dog, better if I write in English really isn't it. You had the Right Rev Soapy Smith, or similar, (a well known con man in reality) looking at the place. I wondered if he was the successful bidder.<<
:) ... The Very Reverend and Mrs Smith I'll have you know, eh - never turned up!
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":) ... The Very Reverend and Mrs Smith I'll have you know, eh - never turned up!"
Jeeves says it was for the best. :-)
John
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>> I'm not too bothered about it really - somethings gonna get ya (know wot I mean) :)
Agreed, none of us live forever, but I can't see a reason to knowingly stack the odds against myself in a way which could be prevented.
Last edited by: AnotherJohnH on Sun 13 Feb 11 at 13:41
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Just been shredding some bank statements from the 90s.....a Cellnet mobile phone was costing me 25 quid a month. No inclusive minutes, no texts (wot they ?) no internet access...., internet with Globalnet,com was a staggering 35 quid a month for dial-up !
Last edited by: Pugugly on Tue 1 Mar 11 at 14:14
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...just been shredding some bank statements from the 90s...
Taking a break from shredding threads on here? :)
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>>none of us live forever, but I can't see a reason to knowingly stack the odds against myself in a way which could be prevented<<
I know someone who died in a modern house.
Plenty of people live to a ripe old age in granite cottages AJH, and not only in Cornwall,
I'll also have a 'private' water supply with (no doubt) a trace of copper, tin, lead, arsenic etc., etc. etc.
Last edited by: VxFan on Thu 3 Mar 11 at 01:07
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I think I'm banging my head against a granite wall here.
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>> Plenty of people live to a ripe old age in granite cottages AJH, and not
>> only in Cornwall,
Yes - however, ventilation was probably better in the past than it is now. If you limit your exposure to radon gas, it will be better, no two ways about it. There's a nice map available at www.ukradon.org/index.php. It used to be thought that the risk to smokers from the effects of radon gas was less than that to non-smokers, due to the increased thickness of the mucous lining of the lungs preventing alpha partticles from reaching cells (although, of course, the risk from smoking is a bigger one). In mines, for instance, the number of working levels of exposure to radon acceptable is strictly defined.
>> I'll also have a 'private' water supply with (no doubt) a trace of copper, tin,
>> lead, arsenic etc., etc. etc.
Yes, but you're very likely to have filtering equipment to remove most of this contamination.
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 1 Mar 11 at 17:53
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He's probably only getting what some people pass over good money for at Barrett & Holland.
John
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Perhaps he should bottle it?
Lupus Spring
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>> Perhaps he should bottle it?
>> Lupus Spring
I expect it will glow in the dark too like "Peckham Spring Water"
as in Only Fools and Horses episode. "Mother Nature's Son"
Last edited by: AnotherJohnH on Tue 1 Mar 11 at 18:24
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>>There's a nice map available at www.ukradon.org/index.php. It used to be thought that the risk to smokers from the effects of radon gas was less than that to non-smokers<<
Cheers FT ... although the main part of the cottage is mid 18th century, 50% is a recent extension, but when I receive the property searches I'll check to see if there is a Radon sump.
And, the first thing I'll do is to have the water analyzed by SWW and fit a comprehensive filter, even UV if necessary.
Here's a pic of the Inglenook + clome oven ~ www.flickr.com/photos/43576259@N04/5488636507/
Thanks for the camera recommendation btw - anyone wanna buy a Finepix bridge camera :)
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Nice Art Deco lamp in the corner, Lurcher!
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>>Nice Art Deco lamp in the corner, Lurcher!<<
It's not mine Roger - I haven't moved in yet! wait til I get my Argos stuff in there :)
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Don't be forgetting the office chair, now!
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>>Don't be forgetting the office chair, now!<<
Yea! - I need a new 'office' chair, what one did you end up with?
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>>what one did you end up with?
I'm ashamed to say that I haven't bought a new one yet, but it won't be much longer. I'll let you know.
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... need a new 'office' chair...
Aaargh - don't mention office chair, we'll get that spammer back again.
I've mentioned it once, let's see if we get away with it.
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Set fire to my cheque books today....well not quite, torched some old cheque stubs. A survey in 1998 cost me 355 quid - my latest one 420 quid and for a far better product.
Top tip of the day. If you get any work done make sure it complies with Building Regs., and get Make sure the contractor actually registers it as such. Two gas contractors failed to do so as well as a nationally known double glazing company who failed to register with FENSA in 2005. All overcome but potentially costly if you had to go down the indemnity insurance road.
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>>> If you get any work done make sure it complies with Building Regs.
Yes crucial.... we've had some very difficult questions come up right in the last days from a buyer's solicitor over such stuff.
Our current place was somewhat in the wilderness regarding such paperwork... us being only the second owners in 86yrs and it never having been surveyed, mortgaged or altered in its life.
Now just prior to sale we've certificates for windows/doors, new boiler and all wiring... but I'm sure the solicitor for any potential buyer will find something... like deatil issue with the elec pole wayleave at £2/yr or similar.
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After learning the hard way (house underpinnings known known to use until a survey)... found you can check building regs, planning permission and FENSA stuff for free at the council yourself. I found out all about the underpinning etc and so did these checks on the house we bought before a survey. Found all the windows, extension, etc details on was happy.
Another house we pulled out of buying was interesting - nothing at all for the windows or the large kitchen extension. Hmmm. How can that be the case?? Didn't have to find out.
Something else that I wondered about the house without even evidence of planning permission (before the rules changed) and no building regs.... I did wonder where access to the drains had gone. Under the kitchen I think.
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Disconnected Jottings on houe prices. - Zero
