Ways to buy outright with a small lump sum?

SStackhouse

Hi

I’d appreciate some advice from anyone who may have been through a silmiliar situation recently. Due to a number of circumstances, I don’t have a chance of getting a mortgage (that AIB ad where the actor gets a mortgage still galls me 2 or 3 years after it first aired!!!) Anyway, through a combination of savings and inheritance I have a lump sum which is not a lot but now that we’re in recessionary times, I may have a chance of buying a house outright such as www.daft.ie/1448218 or www.daft.ie/1476245 which look well kept and wouldn’t require huge amounts of structural work.

However these are too far from the cork city suburbs where I’m from. I’m pretty sure I would be laughed out of the shop if I asked an estate agent for a property within my budget closer to the city. So my real question is what other sources are there to find out about properties within my budget but not more than about 10-15 miles from the city. I’m sure there must be properties out there that people haven’t bothered to do anything with but would sell if the right buyer came along. I’m sure if I lived in a more rural area, I might hear of properties in the pub etc. I’ve thought about placing an ad in the paper but reluctant to leave myself open to freaks and weirdos.

Any ideas or relevant experience? From non- freaks and weirdos haha

Thanks

homah_7ft

Could you rent for a while and put yourself into a position to get a mortgage in a year or two? Can you get a personal loan to boost your options (though this is a more expensive option).

SStackhouse

Unfortunately due to a big downturn in work, renting or getting a loan is pretty much out of the question at the moment. I'd really like to put this money to good use while the property market is in the buyer's favour...

The_Conductor

SStackhouse wrote: »

Unfortunately due to a big downturn in work, renting or getting a loan is pretty much out of the question at the moment. I'd really like to put this money to good use while the property market is in the buyer's favour...

The way things are looking- its entirely possible that the property market may have significantly further to fall (the Examiner last week reckons that the downturn may be only half way there yet......)

Of the two properties you've linked to- the EUR90k one looks like an altogether better prospect- the other one, while its on more land- read as though it needs to be gutted and rebuilt........?

S.

SStackhouse

Yeah hard to know when prices will hit rock bottom...i have no trouble waiting a bit but the tricky bit is hearing about the under E100k properties that mightn't necessarily make it onto an estate agent's window....

AARRRGH

SStackhouse wrote: »

Unfortunately due to a big downturn in work, renting or getting a loan is pretty much out of the question at the moment. I'd really like to put this money to good use while the property market is in the buyer's favour...

I think it will be a buyers market for a number of years (I can't see where any good news is going to come from to reverse the trend of falling prices) so if you can withhold from buying for 18 - 24 months you'll save yourself money, or possibly get that dream home closer to the city.

House prices are still way overpriced btw.

TheCityManager

Hold onto your money...you'll get A LOT more for it in a year or two

johndaman66

Sstackhouse sorry if I'm jumping to incorrect conclusions but I'm guessing from you opening post that you may have lost your job recently. If this is the case and assuming you are free and footloose I'd be inclined to hold off on buying and not committ myself to any particular area in case a job opportunity presents itself in another part of the country. I would hope and I'm sure most would expect the unemployment situation to turn around in the medium term. But as for property prices I think they have a long way to fall before they show any signs of increasing