Buying a house 2013!

techdiver

jython98 wrote: »

Property price down again in March http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/property-mortgages/property-prices-fall-again-but-pace-eases-29221812.html

I am amazed that the Indo reported this at all.

I'll be looking out my window tonight for the pig flying across the blue moon!

gmisk

khards wrote: »

And mortgage interest rates are up, that alone should knock another 10% off by the end of the year.

So much for all the $h1t about prices rising! I wonder how many got suckered in by the end of mortgage interest relief stunt.

Still hundreds of vacant and empty properties over in Dublin, Cork and Galway.
The Troika are now pushing for the banks to clear their books of this mess to expect lots of these to start coming to market in the next few months.

Expect mortgage rates to go up further to cover the banks losses on their non-performing loans.

Was the change in mortgage rate not just for variable rate mortgages? Have fixed mortgage rates been effected? When does it come into affect?

khards

No mention of fixed rate mortgages yet, but fixed are only fixed for 1,2,3,5 or 10 years then you will drop out into the SVR at whatever rate the bank wants to charge you.

Think carefully about signing a 25 year contract where the bank can extract as much money from you as they wish.

khards

No mention of fixed rate mortgages yet, but fixed are only fixed for 1,2,3,5 or 10 years then you will drop out into the SVR at whatever rate the bank wants to charge you.

Think carefully about signing a 25 year contract where the bank can extract as much money from you as they wish.

killers1

khards wrote: »

No mention of fixed rate mortgages yet, but fixed are only fixed for 1,2,3,5 or 10 years then you will drop out into the SVR at whatever rate the bank wants to charge you.

Think carefully about signing a 25 year contract where the bank can extract as much money from you as they wish.

Fixed rates are for 1,2,3,4,5,7, & 10 yrs and at the end of the fixed period you have the option of taking another fixed product. You can go through the life of your mortgage without ever being on an SVR if you like.

khards

killers1 wrote: »

Fixed rates are for 1,2,3,4,5,7, & 10 yrs and at the end of the fixed period you have the option of taking another fixed product. You can go through the life of your mortgage without ever being on an SVR if you like.

Fair enough, but when you come to re-mortgage after say 5 years the next fixed mortgage you take out will be higher than the SVR, so you might as well stay on SVR from the start unless you are expecting rates to spike up.
Fixed rate or and teaser rate mortgages caused all kinds of issues in America as when peoples fixed rate ended they found their payments doubled.

Now fixing the interest rate for the life of the mortgage is what people need for peace of mind and security.
Fixed for life mortgage will stop the banks screwing people over when they feel like it.

crazy_kenny

Offer accepted on unfinished bungalow 4.5 weeks ago. Still nothing happening. Solicitor says he is waiting on contract. Their solicitor says they are waiting on deeds from the bank before contract can be drawn up. It's seems a very slow process. Is there anything I can do to speed things up?

killers1

crazy_kenny wrote: »

Offer accepted on unfinished bungalow 4.5 weeks ago. Still nothing happening. Solicitor says he is waiting on contract. Their solicitor says they are waiting on deeds from the bank before contract can be drawn up. It's seems a very slow process. Is there anything I can do to speed things up?

Unfortunately not. The process of the vendors solicitor obtaining their clients authority to take up the title deeds and subsequently issue contracts to your solicitor can take a bit of time. Vendors would be doing purchasers a favour if they authorised their solicitor to take up the title deeds when they decide to put the property on the market, unfortunately however, most wait until they accept an offer. All you can do is ask your solicitor to check in once a week with the vendors solicitor for an update on when they might arrive.

engineermike

killers1 wrote: »

Unfortunately not. The process of the vendors solicitor obtaining their clients authority to take up the title deeds and subsequently issue contracts to your solicitor can take a bit of time. Vendors would be doing purchasers a favour if they authorised their solicitor to take up the title deeds when they decide to put the property on the market, unfortunately however, most wait until they accept an offer. All you can do is ask your solicitor to check in once a week with the vendors solicitor for an update on when they might arrive.

Hi,
Killers is right in that due process for each party takes a bit of time - but if you know the vendor directly, or have had any form of communication with them during the viewing / or through the locality, you can always let them know your keen to close & get them to light a fire underneath their solicitor. Checking in once a week with your own isn't a bad idea to let them know how keen you are to complete, but also you get the heads up of any issues that may arise during the process that may complicate or add time to your possession of the home.
It happened to me when buying my family home a few years ago, but sort of in reverse , the vendor met me by chance in a local filling station when things where in 'process' with the solicitors for the completion of the sale. The guy said to me that they were trying to get it finalized to make an offer on the property they were after, and he asked if anything was holding things up from our end / legal etc.
There was nothing I was aware of, but I said I'd follow up with the solicitor to see if there was an issue or something I wasn't aware of .
I wasn't to pushed or ringing the solicitor before I met the chap that day, as I had 3 more months paid up on the rental we were living in at the time.
So 2 calls to my solicitor in the next week to check if there was anything further or what was holding things up, and I had the keys in my hand a week later.
Sometimes it is just a matter of following up - and letting the professionals involved know that its a matter of urgency, and request that they follow up on any documentation not yet received.
Rgds,
Mike F

quad_red

Sigh - found a house we're really interested in.

Initial viewing last week. Like it *allot*. Want to see it a second time before we put a bid in...

But the EA has now cancelled twice, with an hours notice, to second viewings (Monday night and now last night).

We were supposed to meet Friday at lunch (and had made work arrangements) and now they've cancelled that one.

The house is currently rented and I don't know if there are issues with that.

Not very encouraging though

mel.b

Woohoo, sale agreed today! Massive thanks to Killars1 for all his help so far Fingers crossed everything else runs smoothly and i'll have my own little piece of ireland in a few months time

efb

6 months in mine just checking in to see how the 13's are doing. Well done to all those that have sale agreed/got the keys. It sure is a stressful time, but so worth it

Norwesterner

jython98 wrote: »

Property price down again in March http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/property-mortgages/property-prices-fall-again-but-pace-eases-29221812.html

Same date. Same newspaper, Same journalist.
"House slump over"
http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/property-mortgages/house-slump-over-but-recovery-will-be-slow-says-ratings-agency-29230074.html

2mature

Similar story as yourself Mel B., SALE AGREED as of Monday and Killers1 has been brilliant at getting the whole process going for me. Delighted I decided to go with a broker because it has made the process a whole lot less stressful thus far. Survey and that my next step, hopefully all will go well...Congrats!!

Dublin25

Still waiting on the bank to come back with the loan offer, we got approval in principle ages ago and found the house after then. Surveyor done, solicitor arranged, vendor seems good to go. Broker says we should have it this week.
The waiting is killing me!!!!!!!!!!

jython98

Hold tight lads, repossession is on the way http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/time-to-do-your-homework-on-the-options-pitfalls-and-solutions-for-salvation-29236735.html

lima

jython98 wrote: »

Hold tight lads, repossession is on the way http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/time-to-do-your-homework-on-the-options-pitfalls-and-solutions-for-salvation-29236735.html

lol at 'your' house! It's the banks house.

Galego

jython98 wrote: »

Hold tight lads, repossession is on the way http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/time-to-do-your-homework-on-the-options-pitfalls-and-solutions-for-salvation-29236735.html

The problem is that banks have a big interest in house prices therefore they will not be fool to over-flood an already depressed market. I even wonder; they will repossess and then 1- resell these properties straight away or 2- hold them in the books for a while or 3- rent them. Hard to tell!
I can only see foreign banks, repossessing, re-selling and getting the hell out of here. This is of course no good for the country - I cant believe how uncompetitive the banking industry is in this country. You really do not know (to which extent) until you live abroad, trust me on that.

I hear that on the ground that AIB is already doing deals with those most distressed mortgages - parking (or freezing) debts and leaving only that sustainable part of it outstanding for now. Of course this will not suit everyone.

The key will be the BTLs. Here banks should be aggressive but again I do not see them taking this route. The reason is because all TDs and influence people in this country have tons of investment properties and the whole Irish Welfare and Irish politics are made around how to keep this circus going, rent allowance, interest relief, etc.

I will prepare my popcorn and watch with interest the next couple of years. It will not happen from one day to other.

Glenbhoy

gmisk wrote: »

Was the change in mortgage rate not just for variable rate mortgages? Have fixed mortgage rates been effected? When does it come into affect?

Just for variable thusfar, but the key thing to remember is that each increase in the variable rate decreases the max amount that banks can lend to new applicants as these are the only mortgage (ignoring fixed for the purposes of this post) that new applicants can avail of.
As the maximum loan amounts decrease, one would assume that house prices can't increase.

khards

Galego wrote: »

The problem is that banks have a big interest in house prices therefore they will not be fool to over-flood an already depressed market. I even wonder; they will repossess and then 1- resell these properties straight away or 2- hold them in the books for a while or 3- rent them. Hard to tell!

The banks are keen to move on the 20,000+ who are 2 years (24 months) worth of payments behind on their mortgages.
As you probably realize most of these are hopeless cases and many of the loans involved are secured against BTL flats and abandoned properties in the middle of nowhere.
Th banks have noting to lose and everything to gain by taking these properties back.
Most of these properties as with most repossessions will require work undertaking and will be uneconomical to rent, so they will either sell them or let them stand empty.
If they repossess them and put them onto the market for the outstanding mortgage amount then they get to keep them on their books at the original valuations, it is therefore more than likely they will stand empty.
The only way they will sell at a value less than the original mortgage is if they need the capital.

So in summary, there will be lots of repossessions, BUT the banks will not be giving them away in a fire sale.
It will give the market the much needed stock it needs for rentals and sales, it will also free up many of those buildings that have been empty for years and put them into use.

adam88

Absolutely devastated.

Sale agreed start of feb. contracts signed start of April. Delay was due to issue with maps and vendor being ill. Alas I though I'd have my house Friday two weeks ago.

But then things went pear shaped. The vendor now doesn't want to sell the house due to an emotional attachment. Talk about a saga

killers1

adam88 wrote: »

Absolutely devastated.

Sale agreed start of feb. contracts signed start of April. Delay was due to issue with maps and vendor being ill. Alas I though I'd have my house Friday two weeks ago.

But then things went pear shaped. The vendor now doesn't want to sell the house due to an emotional attachment. Talk about a saga

Sorry to hear that. I had a similar case last year that dragged on for 9 months with the vendor constantly changing their minds. Eventually the sale went through. It might just be a knee jerk reaction by the seller and fingers crossed they come around. Maybe they just need a bit of time to think about it and in the cold light of day will realise that they wanted to sell in the first place. Still, a terrible thing to happen at this late stage. Hope they change their minds for you.

Galego

killers1 wrote: »

Sorry to hear that. I had a similar case last year that dragged on for 9 months with the vendor constantly changing their minds. Eventually the sale went through. It might just be a knee jerk reaction by the seller and fingers crossed they come around. Maybe they just need a bit of time to think about it and in the cold light of day will realise that they wanted to sell in the first place. Still, a terrible thing to happen at this late stage. Hope they change their minds for you.

Killers,

Am I right to think that the EA only gets the commission from the sale once the contract has been signed?

I also take it that any expenses carried out by this point, bank valuation, etc, are not refundable.

Does the solicitor charge any fee at that point even if no contract is signed?

kennyb3

Surely if contracts are signed and exchanged - the vendor doesn't have a choice on whether to sell, they've a legal obligation.

Had they not returned the signed contract?

killers1

kennyb3 wrote: »

Surely if contracts are signed and exchanged - the vendor doesn't have a choice on whether to sell, they've a legal obligation.

Had they not returned the signed contract?

It's only binding when both parties have signed. Chances are the vendor hasn't signed as they tend to leave this as close to the closing date as possible in order to keep the option of pulling out if they wish.

killers1

Galego wrote: »

Killers,

Am I right to think that the EA only gets the commission from the sale once the contract has been signed?

I also take it that any expenses carried out by this point, bank valuation, etc, are not refundable.

Does the solicitor charge any fee at that point even if no contract is signed?

Hi Galego,

The EA's job is to find the vendor a willing purchaser. Once they have done that and the purchaser has signed a contract the EA is legally entitled to look for their fees to be paid. I had the same situation a few months ago where the vendor pulled out a couple of days prior to closing. I rang the EA to remind them that if they looked for their fees (which they were entitled to) this might help the vendor change their mind back. The EA was initially a bit reluctant to go down that road and operated a no sale no fee basis. The sale went through a week later.

The valuation report and survey fees are not refundable but if the vendor pulls out at the last minute I'd suggest telling your solicitor to write to the vendors solicitor looking for reimbursement of the fees. It will be the vendors decision whether or not they agree to a refund.

What the solicitor charges & when is up to them. Some solicitors will look at the bigger picture and if a purchase falls through won't charge their client any fees on the basis that they will eventually buy a property and will use the same solr to complete. The vendors solicitor will make a similar call on whether they charge the vendor or not for work done to date.

adam88

killers1 wrote: »

It's only binding when both parties have signed. Chances are the vendor hasn't signed as they tend to leave this as close to the closing date as possible in order to keep the option of pulling out if they wish.

Contracts were signed and vendors solicitor wanted to close sale ASAP and then boom. Vendor decided to pull out. I know there's a formal contract but that's not much good when he won't play ball

killers1

adam88 wrote: »

Contracts were signed and vendors solicitor wanted to close sale ASAP and then boom. Vendor decided to pull out. I know there's a formal contract but that's not much good when he won't play ball

You had signed the contracts but the vendor obviously hadn't. Unfortunately until they sign the contracts they are entitled to pull out. If they have signed contracts you can force them to close but I'd imagine they haven't signed.

adam88

killers1 wrote: »

You had signed the contracts but the vendor obviously hadn't. Unfortunately until they sign the contracts they are entitled to pull out. If they have signed contracts you can force them to close but I'd imagine they haven't signed.

Both of us signed and swapped contracts. But I'm thinking the process of forcing to sell will be messy. What's your experience lads

killers1

adam88 wrote: »

Both of us signed and swapped contracts. But I'm thinking the process of forcing to sell will be messy. What's your experience lads

Talk to your solicitor, but you're in a stronger position if contracts were exchanged.