buying a house

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spoonsey
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2010 5:39 pm

buying a house

Post by spoonsey » Sat Jul 18, 2015 11:08 am

Hi,

I have been saving with an ASAP account to buy a rivitalo (row house.). I should have enough by next year for the down payment (the 10% of the property price) and beginning the mortgage.
I am a first time buyer so please bear with me if my question sounds like I am a dummie!
I wonderd if the extra maintenance costs included with buying a property in Finland cover all renovations (pipes, windows, roof etc etc)..or whether an extra loan has to be taken out for these things? (For example paying 280eur per month maintenance fee covers renovations or if an extra loan must be taken out, as it would be if you had your own separate house.)

Thanks

June.



buying a house

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spoonsey
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2010 5:39 pm

Re: buying a house

Post by spoonsey » Sat Jul 18, 2015 4:39 pm

Hi,

thanks! That clears things up a bit more for me.
June (Scottish ☺)

riku2
Posts: 1045
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 10:13 pm

Re: buying a house

Post by riku2 » Sun Jul 19, 2015 9:19 pm

For those new to finland and not clear on this subject, there are different ways to own a house in finland. Owning the house outright where you are responsible for all the bills and maintenance and (as in this case) the house is part of a co-operative where in addition to paying the money up front for the house you pay a monthly fee to cover the regular maintenance. Normally people consider a flat = co-operative type ownership and house = individual ownership but there are cases where the house is part of a co-operative.

I don't see the point myself. If I own a house I don't want to have to pay extra for a childrens playground to be built in front or a shed for bicycles when I don't have kids or bike myself. with the co-operative type ownership you'll pay whether you want these or not (and the discussions will be in finnish).

betelgeuse
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Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 1:24 am

Re: buying a house

Post by betelgeuse » Sun Jul 19, 2015 9:46 pm

riku2 wrote: I don't see the point myself. If I own a house I don't want to have to pay extra for a childrens playground to be built in front or a shed for bicycles when I don't have kids or bike myself. with the co-operative type ownership you'll pay whether you want these or not (and the discussions will be in finnish).
On the other hand it's both easier administratively and you share responsibility for sudden expenses with others. I think it's great that both models are available.

Rip
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Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 12:08 pm

Re: buying a house

Post by Rip » Sun Jul 19, 2015 10:38 pm

riku2 wrote:I don't see the point myself. If I own a house I don't want to have to pay extra for a childrens playground to be built in front or a shed for bicycles when I don't have kids or bike myself.
Presumably for those that have kids (and even if YOU don't, the family you may want sell it later might) having one common one is more cost effective than individual arrangements for individual houses. I assume they are aimed mostly for those that want "own" house, but don't actually want the direct personal responsibility for everything related.

riku2
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Re: buying a house

Post by riku2 » Mon Jul 20, 2015 7:59 am

tummansininen wrote: Might I suggest a more "every man for himself" country without public services, like the one with the stars & stripes perhaps?
Well even in the USA people pay for state education and roads regardless of whether they have kids or a car. What I object to in co-operative housing is that you are not master of your own house. Somebody can tell you what you can renovate/change in your (supposedly) own house. Renting is one thing (you don't own the place) but if I pay 300 or 400 thousand for a house I want to be able to do anything (subject to local authority planning rules) I want inside without asking the neighbours.

On the other hand i've seen people ask here how to clear a blocked sink (by pouring loads of chemicals down it rather than take the u bend apart) so perhaps having someone else responsible for everything more involved than changing a light bulb is a good thing. 16 years of home ownership (full ownership) and I've never used a plumber.

Marsh04
Posts: 351
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 10:04 pm

Re: buying a house

Post by Marsh04 » Mon Jul 20, 2015 9:12 am

Actually we had a young friend and she was even afraid of changing a light bulb because there must be a certified person . And I'm quite sure that she is not the only Finn who has become so dependent and robotic in her thinking .

And you are absolutely right about U-bend as well . It takes five minutes and very basic level of common sense to clean it .

betelgeuse
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Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 1:24 am

Re: buying a house

Post by betelgeuse » Mon Jul 20, 2015 11:21 am

riku2 wrote:
tummansininen wrote: Might I suggest a more "every man for himself" country without public services, like the one with the stars & stripes perhaps?
Well even in the USA people pay for state education and roads regardless of whether they have kids or a car. What I object to in co-operative housing is that you are not master of your own house. Somebody can tell you what you can renovate/change in your (supposedly) own house. Renting is one thing (you don't own the place) but if I pay 300 or 400 thousand for a house I want to be able to do anything (subject to local authority planning rules) I want inside without asking the neighbours.
You have the wrong idea about Limited Liability Housing Companies Act. The barrier to restrict changes inside the unit is quite high:

http://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset ... 091599.pdf
(1) The housing company or another shareholder may set conditions for alteration work, if this work may damage the building or cause other kinds of harm to the housing company or another shareholder. Such conditions must be necessary to preventing damage to the building, preventing other kinds of harm or to providing the related compensation.
(2) The housing company or another shareholder may prohibit alteration work from being performed, if the performance of the work would be unreasonable, considering the extent of the harm caused and the benefits gained by the shareholder.

riku2
Posts: 1045
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Re: buying a house

Post by riku2 » Mon Jul 20, 2015 1:39 pm

betelgeuse wrote:The barrier to restrict changes inside the unit is quite high:

http://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset ... 091599.pdf
(1) The housing company or another shareholder may set conditions for alteration work, if this work may damage the building or cause other kinds of harm to the housing company or another shareholder. Such conditions must be necessary to preventing damage to the building, preventing other kinds of harm or to providing the related compensation.
(2) The housing company or another shareholder may prohibit alteration work from being performed, if the performance of the work would be unreasonable, considering the extent of the harm caused and the benefits gained by the shareholder.
But that was exactly my point. If I pay 300-400 thousand to "buy" a house then I want to be able (subject to the local authority rules) to do anything I like to it, no asking somebody permission, no evaluation of whether the "benefits" to me are acceptable based on somebody else's criteria. My house, my rules. If I want better windows than my neighbour then I should be able to spend my own money and change the windows in MY house. If the house has got a flat roof and I think a sloped one is better then so long as the local authority rules are complied with then I want to spend my money on a new roof for MY house.

Upphew
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Location: Lappeenranta

Re: buying a house

Post by Upphew » Mon Jul 20, 2015 2:04 pm

riku2 wrote:But that was exactly my point. If I pay 300-400 thousand to "buy" a house then I want to be able (subject to the local authority rules) to do anything I like to it, no asking somebody permission, no evaluation of whether the "benefits" to me are acceptable based on somebody else's criteria. My house, my rules. If I want better windows than my neighbour then I should be able to spend my own money and change the windows in MY house. If the house has got a flat roof and I think a sloped one is better then so long as the local authority rules are complied with then I want to spend my money on a new roof for MY house.
Then you should invest in own house. Just like some people prefer to dump 300-400 thousand to Nokia and others start their own business.
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riku2
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Re: buying a house

Post by riku2 » Mon Jul 20, 2015 2:25 pm

Upphew wrote: Then you should invest in own house. Just like some people prefer to dump 300-400 thousand to Nokia and others start their own business.
I bought my own house in Finland 16 years ago. The point i'm making is that in many countries if you buy your own house you fully own it, but in Finland even detached houses might be under co-operative housing company rules and like somebody wrote, you're not actually buying the house but the right to live in a house that is owned by somebody else. If you're new to living in Finland this difference between the two kinds of house ownership (and I mean a house in the english sense of the word, not a flat which finns often call a "house" in the finnish version of english) might not be obvious.

Elephant
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu Feb 20, 2014 6:58 am

Re: buying a house

Post by Elephant » Mon Jul 20, 2015 2:41 pm

Might I suggest a more "every man for himself" country without public services, like the one with the stars & stripes perhaps? ;)
I don't know why/how that myth persists but actually, there are lots of tax payer funded community public services in the US. I've lived in urban, rural and suburban areas and in all those places I paid "local" taxes that went to my town and paid for free public libraries, public playgrounds and parks, public tv channels (PBS), sports/baseball/football fields, communal pool/rec center, public cemetaries (maintenance of). When I lived in the rural area we had a taxpayer funded community center for the elderly, outdoor festivals during the summer and a free dental clinic once a month. And then the usual...roads, bike paths, fire dept, police dept, sewage, public transport, elementary and high school education.
I also paid other taxes that went towards stuff like free medical care for the poor (medicaid), free healthcare for pregnant women, etc....
In addition, US taxpayers fund services such as GPS that are used worldwide for free by everyone else!
We may not have as many free services as Finland but we definitely have more than none :-)

betelgeuse
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Re: buying a house

Post by betelgeuse » Mon Jul 20, 2015 2:50 pm

riku2 wrote: But that was exactly my point. If I pay 300-400 thousand to "buy" a house then I want to be able (subject to the local authority rules) to do anything I like to it, no asking somebody permission, no evaluation of whether the "benefits" to me are acceptable based on somebody else's criteria. My house, my rules.
It doesn't seem like you understood properly the rules for limited liability housing companies. Since it doesn't seem productive use of my time I will not elaborate. It's clear that for ultimate freedom one should be the sole owner of the property. However, my point is that in terms of rights to modify, a limited liability company is not that different.
riku2 wrote: If I want better windows than my neighbour then I should be able to spend my own money and change the windows in MY house. If the house has got a flat roof and I think a sloped one is better then so long as the local authority rules are complied with then I want to spend my money on a new roof for MY house.
You would be able to do both in a limited liability housing company of detached houses. In addition in such a situation the articles of association might be written to give more control and responsibility to the individual owners than the default.

drmkensington
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Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2012 9:14 am

Re: buying a house

Post by drmkensington » Sat Jun 23, 2018 8:09 am

I cant seem to start a new thread so I will post my query here and maybe it will be moved to correct place. I wanted to know on Finnish property contract law. Am I allowed to make a property offer where I specify it is conditional on selling my own property in Finland?

I think this is called a 'resolutive condition'


Thanks for help

david

tavastia
Posts: 527
Joined: Tue Mar 08, 2016 1:54 pm

Re: buying a house

Post by tavastia » Sat Jun 23, 2018 8:58 am

Yes, it's perfectly ok. Also you can put any conditions, e.g. if bank gives you the loan, etc


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