(edit title) Is it the best time to buy an apartment in Sthlm? Buy now or wait? Options

[Ben5]

Hi guys,

Like thousands of people in Stockholm i was looking desperately for a descent place to rent but no luck.
However as I am having a good position in my company as well as my Swedish girl friend, we decided to take
a brave step and apply for a mortgage, and we manged to get a promise from a bank to mortgage us an apartment
in Sthlm for 2 m Kr.

Firstly when I heard the news I was so exited but then when I started to think about it more I started to freak out, as I was told that the prices are going down and the crisis is about to hit here, while other people advised me to do it now because they think prices will go up within few years as there is no hope of solving the hosing problem in Sthlm and apartments in the city will be always under demands.

It is a bit of situation and I am confused, so please food for thought.

Regards

Ben

[byke]

its never too early to invest in bricks.

[skogsbo]

I agree.

If you want to invest for 2,3,5 years then perhaps you should wait and look for slump. If you want to invest for 20-25, for life then sooner is always better.

However, do your maths. Make sure you are better of buying rather than renting the said style and size of property that you want. Obviously include all the fees etc. House where you own the whole lot, rather than a flat where you will always be paying an additional fee/rent to some communal fund is probably better and cheaper. Even when you pay your mortgage off you could still be paying several thousand kr into a communal fund.

Might you move away and want to rent it out?

Not your first thought now, but will you have kids in 3,5,8 years? Not wanting a flat with stairs, preferring a house and garden. Plan ahead as it's a long term investment.

[Ben5]

Thanks folk,

According the statistics and the market study the prices are falling down, so waiting until finding something good I think will be a good strategy...

[Mib]

It's swings and roundabouts....recently a 10sqm apartmenet sold for 110,000 p/sqm!! The smaller apartments 6 years ago were hovering around the 1 million mark...now 1.5 million upwards. There are many factors including the quality of the interior, location etc etc. The illusion of prices rising making you richer is such BS....unless you plan to move to a cheaper place, downsize or move country. If you plan to sell and your property has increased by 1 million, but you want to buy a bigger place or similar, you will pay the same if not more and add to that the 22% tax on the profit.

If you need a place to live, try to buy something as close to the centre as possible or in a desirable area with a good quality interior, so you don't have to spend more money...unless of course you're good at DIY. The way I see it is that renting is a waste of money and had I listened to others 15 years ago, i wouldn't have any capital or very little as I was very lucky to get on the bandwagon in the UK in the late 90's. Unless you're buying more than 1 property, then treat a property as a home...not an investment. But buy what you can afford with a gap in case you get stretched due to rate increases and if you can buy close to the centre, you'll be more protected if/when a downside occurs in the future.

[skogsbo]

If you need a place to live, try to buy something as close to the centre as possible or in a desirable area

totally agree, location is everything. Better to buy small in the best area, than the opposite.

Think what is the first search field people consider?

[byke]

As what others have said, central stockholm commands the greatest prices in the whole of sweden.
And for good reason, too.

The capitol has grown greatly over the past few years, and like any other thriving city helps attract the best national and international workers. Who in turn make good paychecks and help push up prices.

Add to this the limited amount of space (especially in the center) leads only to ever increasing price rises. And even if the Swedish bubble was to burst, one of the very safest areas has to still be central stockholm given its desire.

[djmarko]

well I am selling my apartment in Gotgatan, its a 46sq metres, fresh interior, I put my apartment in hemnet a few weeks ago, the original response was immense, the viewing went well, in fact, an interested person requested an early viewing and even made an offer which i did not accept as i wanted to give others a chance to bid as well, the property is located right next to the tunnelbana and i have practically everything right at my door steps, good shops, restaurants, skrapan, I think the market has slowed down a bit, people are no longer as enthusiatic than a couple years ago, again you have the 15% deposit to contend with, maybe in hindsight, i should have accepted the initial bid i got, I have already bought another new production and i guess i need to sell in order to buy my new apartrment, has anyone been in this situation before?? I will definitely tell anyone to buy rather than rent, its quite difficult to get an apartment in centrol stockholm and you end up moving every 6-12 months, think about the rent money wasted, I think the world economy is stagnant, interest rates are quite low now, there might probably fall further, i suggest you buy now!

[byke]

Just out of interest, whats the square meter price like for that part of Stockholm?

As while its definitely considered a "hip" area of stockholm - does it not more so appeal to younger buyers? compared to say just over the bridge past Slussen - heading towards Gamla Stan etc ...

About 6 years ago I tried to buy a nice place in söder, but got stuck in a bidding war and dropped out ... that was when the market seemed to be at its strongest. But even if I had of bought that apartment, it would still be worth allot more today even after the "slump".

[Bender B Rodriquez]

http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000175.htm