Rent or Buy?

ftse100

Hopefully posting this in the correct place. At the moment I am working a full time job in an Irish Asset Management company doing fairly well. Im 24 years of age and have been trying to leave home for awhile but due to exams getting in the way i never really have. Ive spent the last few weeks looking at various apartments around Dublin particularly the City Centre (IFSC/Docks) and the rent is madness for the standard of apartments out there.

I'm half thinking of buying an apartment myself or with a good friend of mine. I wouldn't be looking to buy one in the city centre i'd be looking at commuter towns as far out as Sallins in Kildare. Id look at spending 160k or so. I already have about 15k saved.

Do you think buying at 24 is too early and also going into it with a friend is a bad idea?

richy

Too early - no. With a friend - bad idea. As much as you might trust and like them, five years down the road and living with them things could change drastically.

However, if buying with a friend is your only option I would do it to get on the property ladder.

Eric Cartman

do not buy an apartment in sallins. Apartments outside of dublin bus routes are hard to shift and quite undesirable considering you can rent a house for similar money. If your going out sallins direction a 3 bed semi would be your best bet in terms of future sale value or it would still be suitable if your life circumstances changed.

retalivity

richy wrote: »

However, if buying with a friend is your only option I would do it to get on the property ladder.

Jesus no, if your only option to get on the property ladder is to go halfers with a friend, stay well away and rent til you can afford it yourself or with a partner

MrTom1

Also sallins is on a flood plain so house insurance is crazy ; maynooth kilcock are better commuter towns or Enfield

tuisginideach

You are only 24. You will spend prob 30 years paying off a mortgage. Do you really want to look back at 55 and say 'I wish I had ....'?

tuisginideach

tuisginideach wrote: »

You are only 24. You will spend prob 30 years paying off a mortgage. Do you really want to look back at 55 and say 'I wish I had ....'?

A large portion of the population would take your hand off of you offered them the chance to own their house outright at 55.

4ensic15

Ira Gigantic Sucker wrote: »

A large portion of the population would take your hand off of you offered them the chance to own their house outright at 55.

The o/p could pick up a good apartment in D7 for €160k. Interest rates are low at the moment so he could have it paid off in 15 years with lower outgoings than renting the equivalent. No transport costs or time wasted commuting if he works around the City Centre/ Docks/ IFSC. Rent would easily cover the mortgage if he decides to move on to something bigger. I attempted to buy my first house at 24. the deal broke down but I finally bought at 26. I felt a little hemmed in for the first year or two of having a mortgage but it did me no harm financially. By the time I reach 55 that mortgage will be a distant memory and the title deeds will have gathered a lot of dust under my bed.

ftse100

Thanks everyone for your opinions. Yeah I heard Sallins had trouble back a few years ago with flooding but i thought that was sorted via proper drainage but then again if its on a flood plain not much really can be done...

I might around Dublin also. The feeling I'm getting is that i'm better going at it alone and not with a friend.

Big decisions to be made...

blindside88

Definitly don't go in with a friend, the big problem is you are equally liable for the mortgage. If your friend gets into financial trouble and can't keep up his share of the mortgage you could end up with a severely affected credit rating and ultimately a repossession. That's on top of the problems noted already in the thread. Best of luck what ever you decide to do

The_Conductor

Vis-a-vis Sallins- Kildare Co. Co. tried to fast-track planning for >2000 more houses just this week, which was slapped down by Minister Coveney as contrary to the County Development plan and against all logic for the area.

I'm not sure if you've tried to get in or out of Sallins anytime recently- its an echelon of hell........

Where-ever you choose- I honestly think you'd be nuts to consider Sallins.

ftse100

The_Conductor wrote: »

Vis-a-vis Sallins- Kildare Co. Co. tried to fast-track planning for >2000 more houses just this week, which was slapped down by Minister Coveney as contrary to the County Development plan and against all logic for the area.

I'm not sure if you've tried to get in or out of Sallins anytime recently- its an echelon of hell........

Where-ever you choose- I honestly think you'd be nuts to consider Sallins.

Didn't know that, cheers. Yeah I've been through it a few times and it isn't pretty as regards traffic management.

I was looking at Adamstown too but its such a desolate area... Relatively well priced though.

bohsfan

ftse100 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for your opinions. Yeah I heard Sallins had trouble back a few years ago with flooding but i thought that was sorted via proper drainage but then again if its on a flood plain not much really can be done...

I moved from Lucan to Sallins just over a year ago and love the place. There are trains in the morning that can have you in Heuston in less than 25 minutes. I leave work in the city centre at 5pm, walk to Heuston and am through my front door in Sallins before 6pm.

The traffic in the town can be pretty bad but imo it's not any worse than Lucan or Celbridge. They are also starting work on a bypass now, so the problem should be eased in a couple of years.

Anyway- back on topic! I would agree that if you are looking at moving away from the city then you should try and get a house rather than an apartment. It's a much more flexible proposition.

I don't see anything wrong with buying with a friend- you just need to be very clear from the start what the process is when one of you wants out or circumstances change.

SarahMollie

Hi OP,

I see nothing wrong with buying if you can afford it. YOu need to consider more than the cost of just the property however. Have you thought about;

-legal fees
-other professional services, ie valuation/survey
-stamp duty
-management fees
-costs of maintenance and repair, ie having money set aside if your boiler blows

Thats just to start.

You also probably want to be sure you intend staying in Ireland for the next while at least, because as many posters will attest to, being an amateur LL is not something to take lightly.

That said, rents are very high, so if you've really thought through all of the above, why not.

I'd personally go for an apartment in one of the more up and coming parts of Dublin rather than the commuter belt. Parts of D5/7 probably still offer some value.