During my school years, my parents seemed to move every
other year (or it seemed that way). In reality, looking back at the house moves,
we actually moved three times before I left home. However, whilst my parents
kept the removal van people in business whilst I was at school, from research I
have carried out it shows things have changed
considerably in Royal Tunbridge Wells over the last few decades, and
interestingly, the trend is getting worse ... for the removal van people at any
rate!
In Royal Tunbridge Wells, there are 24,962 properties.
However, after we remove the 3,725 council houses, 5,353 privately rented
houses and 239 houses where the occupants live rent free, that leaves us with 15,645
owned properties (be that 100% outright, with a mortgage or shared ownership).
This means 62.7% of the properties in Royal Tunbridge Wells are occupied by the
owner (the national average is interestingly 64.2%) but the number of people
who have sold and moved house in Royal Tunbridge Wells, over the last 12
months, has only been 1,453. This means on these figures, the homeowners of Royal
Tunbridge Wells are only moving on average every 10.76 years.
These are the reasons. Firstly, the cost of moving house has
risen over the last twenty years. Secondly, with many remortgaging their
properties in the mid 2000’s before the price crash of 2008, there is a
reluctance or inability in a small minority of homeowners to finance a home sale/purchase,
due to lack of equity. These are both factors driving fewer moves by existing
homeowners.
However, the big effect has been the change in house price
inflation. Back in the 1970’s and 1980’s, house prices were doubling every 5 to
7 years. Even in Greater London, with its stratospheric property price
increases over the last few years, it has taken 13 years (August 2002 to be
exact) for property values to double to today’s levels.
This change to a relatively low inflation Royal Tunbridge
Wells property market (i.e. Royal Tunbridge Wells property values not rising
quickly) is significant because the long term consequences of sustained low
house price growth is that it eats into mortgage debt more slowly than when property
price inflation is higher. Royal Tunbridge Wells homeowners cannot rely on
inflation to shrink their debt in real terms as much as they did in say the 1970’s
and 1980’s
.
So what does this all mean for Royal Tunbridge Wells buy to
let landlords? Well for the same reasons existing Royal Tunbridge Wells
homeowners aren’t moving, less ‘twenty something’s’ are buying their first home
as well. Royal Tunbridge Wells youngsters may aspire to own their own home, but
without the social pressure from their peers and parents to buy their first
property as soon people reach their early 20’s, the memory of the 2008 housing
crisis and the belief the hard times either aren't over or the worst is yet to
come, current and would-be homeowners are warming to the idea of renting. I also believe UK society has changed,
with the youngster’s wanting prosperity and happiness; but wanting it all
now... instantly... today... without the sacrifice, work and patience that
these things take. As a society, we expect things instantly, and if it doesn’t
come easy, doesn’t come quick, some youngsters ask if it is really worth the
effort to save for the deposit? Why go without holidays, the newest iPhone,
socialising four times a week and the fancy satellite package for a couple of years,
to save for that 5% deposit if there is no longer a social stigma in renting or
pressure to buy as there was... say... a generation ago?
Even though,
in real terms, property prices are 5% cheaper than they were ten years ago
(when adjusted by inflation), 21.4% of Royal
Tunbridge Wells properties are privately rented (nearly double it was twenty
years ago). As a result, the demand for rental properties continues to grow
from tenants, meaning those wishing to invest in the buy to let market, over
the long term, might be on to a good thing? For advice and opinion on the Royal
Tunbridge Wells Buy To let property market, one source of information is The Royal Tunbridge Wells Property Blog
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