A house with Windows installed.

Cheap house for sale, luxury swing included.

Only applicants looking to live next to an ‘asshole’ need applied.

A one bedroom, newly built studio flat, looked very spacious. It would have no problems accommodating just the three of us, and also the pricing was within our reach (around the 100k mark).

The securities that a flat offers, especially on higher floors,  is the main tempting factor. The down side is a possibility of having to live with noisy neighbours.

Another problem with flats is you don’t actually own the land that you live on. It is only leased to you for about 120 plus years. Plus you have to co-own that land below the flat with all your neighbours.

With a house, especially on a first buyer’s budget, means that we will have to except the fact that finding a spacious place will not be easy. This is going to narrow our options down to either  a 2 bedroom small house in maybe a good area, or a 3 bedroom in a not so good area.

If we went for 2 bedroom house, it will be ok short term since the little one is still sharing our room. The second  bedroom can be used as a storage area.

Long term, we will ideally need a third room for when he is older and need to sleep in his own room.

Currently, we are comfortable living rent free above my parents leased catering business. This at the moment allows us to save most of any income to put towards the mortgage.

Ideally I would like us to live here for a few more years just so we can save for a large deposit for the mortgage, but with recent talk of them growing tired due to many years of working, my parent could decide to sell the business any time, leaving us more or less homeless.

Finding that ideal house will no doubt take some time.

It also seem that the government hasnt put in any measure to help stimulate the construction industry, as suggested in the pre-budget report.

According to reports there has been 19 percent decline in new homes being built compared to this time last year. With further report of a 5 percent decline in new orders for constructions, it seem the shortage could cause prices to rise due to lack of properties available to meet demands.

“The recent pick up in house prices is based on fragile economic fundamentals such as a weak pound, which has driven overseas buyer demand, and a boost from the stock market recovery, both of which are unlikely to be as supportive during 2010.

“It is very probable the present recovery will stall next year with prices falling by seven per cent as the rate in the increase of new buyers to the market eases, while the low number of properties on the market bottoms out and starts to rise again.

“The overhang from 2010 is expected to make 2011 a difficult year but thereafter we can expect the potential for strong house price growth of six per cent per annum as an improving economy forces increased housing demand to come face to face with restricted supply.

Source

Google  is in talks with British estate agents to launch an online property portal, which experts say could pose a serious threat to existing property websites and local newspapers.

The giant US internet search company launched a property portal in Australia last August through which estate agents list properties for free, showing both pictures taken from its Street View service and details on a map.

Estate agents and property websites expect Google to launch a similar portal in the UK in early 2010, attracting substantial advertising revenue.

Ed Mead, commercial director at Douglas & Gordon, the estate agency, said that it had spoken to Google about the plans. “It looks very simple. If it stays free, then Google has a massive winner on its hands as it will get the backing from estate agents currently paying for rival sites.”

Savills’ Jonathan Cunliffe said: “The interesting thing will be to see how and if they charge for content; that is where the battle between the portals might begin.”

Google refused to comment

Rightmove, the market leader, said that it had no knowledge of Google’s plans, but that a similar service as provided in the US and Australia did not necessarily represent a threat to its dominance among estate agents.

Early signs suggest that Australian estate agents have not abandoned advertising on existing websites.

Ed Williams, managing director of Rightmove, said: “We provide visibility of brand and logo. Agents are spending money on raising brand awareness, not getting more properties online.”

Rightmove charges estate agents an average of £325 per month.

Douglas McCabe of Enders Analysis said: “This sounds like a serious problem for Rightmove and others like them, depending on the model Google uses, but eventually it will affect everyone and newspapers will suffer another chapter in the story of consumers being more and more aware of alternatives to their classified advertising.”Local newspaper property advertising fell by as much as 65 per cent last year, a combination of the downturn in property and the rival service offered by property websites.

Another analyst said: “It would appear that the property websites have got a very difficult and unpleasant choice to make here as to whether they co-operate with Google or not.”

Source