v6g I plan on 30% nominal house price falls.
The only real cost per month is:
Your released equity in the bank earning interest (around £430 a month per £100k)
PLUS
The mortgage interest you used to pay per month (around £500 a month per £100k)
PLUS
The monthly saving in Buildings and Life insurance premiums
PLUS
Whatever you budgeted for house maintenance per month
MINUS
Your new monthly rent.
In my case its a massive monthly saving to rent from a dumb BTL landlord than from the Halifax. In the current ridiculous house market it if laughably easy to rent a house that would cost you double to buy using a mortgage. Landlords are subsidising their tennants in the hope of future capital growth. Which is now capital shrinking. Which is why we have a nasty crisis. If they want to let me rent their house for (a lot) less than it costs them to buy off the bank then I'm not going to complain.
When it comes to buying you are a chain free buyer able to gaurantee to exchange within 6 weeks. That is worth tens of thousands of pounds when it comes to negotiation time. Find a distressed seller and it can be worth more than that.
Its just a little late to STR now but probably still worth it. You'd be amazed at how nice estate agents are to you when you are chain free with a chunky deposit
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YellowSub - I can't think of anything more important to a Wannabes career than whether they start out in a recession or a boom. Given the amount of discussion on which school to go to (as if it matters) I think we can afford one thread on the looming crisis..