Look around you. Unless you’ve just landed from Mars it can’t have escaped your notice that not all properties are selling. But it’s more complicated than that. Property values have dropped over the last few years. This means some homeowners will have less flexibility when it comes to selling. Not just because they have less equity to put down on their next home but for some it may mean negative equity.
As the market’s become steeped in gloom fewer properties are being put up for sale. Selling may not be attractive if you can’t find your new dream home.
Not everyone who thinks about renting their home out is trying because their home hasn’t sold. It can be appealing if you’re facing a temporary move or relocation or are perhaps moving in with a new partner or family member.
But don’t make the mistake of thinking renting is cheaper than selling. It may not be. A family home may not cut the mustard as a rental property without some investment. It can take some grafting to get a home spruced up for letting. We spent £13,000 on ours. You may not have to spend that much. It depends on the current condition of your home, its ‘rentability’ , and the kind of tenant your hoping to attract. There are also costs involved in maintaining the property going forward and possibly using a letting agent to find you a tenant or manage the property for you.
But these costs can be dwarfed by other considerations. If you’re stuck in a one bed flat, and need more space for a growing family, monetary costs may not feature much in spurring you on to find a larger house whether you can sell or not.
Renting your home may or may not limit your housing options going forward. We were lucky. We remortgaged our Bristol home to buy another smaller property. But renting to buy another property may not be viable. This is one of the compromises you may face if you decide to find tenants for your home.
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