To feel panic to owe this much on my mortgage?

It will cost money to move eg estate agent fees, stamp duty etc plus you would probably want/need to decorate etc. Go to Moneysavingexpert and look at mortgage overpayment calculator. You'll be amazed how quickly you'll pay off as you're overpaying by £500 a month.

See it as rent. If you can afford it, don't worry and enjoy where you live. It's called a mortgage for a reason! In twenty years time you may wish to downsize and find you have built up a nest egg towards a smaller property.

I'm 36 and due to living in London 18 years am not on the ladder yet, also worried about when we do get on but better than renting in old age.

Well we owe ~£240k on a £1m property and are in our mid forties, so I think your £220k sounds not too bad! Joking aside, we are very cautious with money and although I do have some concerns about the size of our mortgage, it doesn't keep me awake at night. I think it’s a fairly standard amount - we have friends who owe more on less valuable properties, but most people our age seem to be in a similar position to us unless they’ve already inherited and have paid their mortgages off.

If I were you I would get rid of the financed car before I worried about the affordable mortgage - I hate the idea of debt (other than a mortgage), and so we just buy our cars outright and have older / crappier cars. In the long run they cost a lot less than if we were paying finance on newer fancier cars.

As someone has said, a house is good debt. It's increasing in value whilst providing somewh nice to live.
Id just make sure I can afford to keep paying it and cut back elawwh. The car on finance is what id query.

I would say you're in a great position. I'm 39, have £300 in savings and am very much reliant on my husband as my job has a low wage.
Our mortgage is double yours!
If you can comfortably pay it and you have savings then what's the problem?

I am 46 and owe 370. I think the think to worry about is whether you can afford the monthly repayments.

You say you overpay but what is your interest rate on mortgage? If it’s low this is pointless your £ could be working harder
what is the interest rate on car? Usually these are high interest and make more sense to pay down first

if both below 5% you’d be better off investing the money a cash isa would pay 5% interest or a global tracker stocks and shares isa buy ups and downs

You need to consider your age when it’s paid off. That’s the only issue if you can afford the payments. This is how mortgages work. I’m 10 years older than you and have a mortgage over double that, so I’d chill. 😜

Mortgage isn't really a debt like any other debt. You have to have a home to live in until the day you die. So you're going to have to pay a monthly sum, usually the majority of your wages you're whole life. The difference between renting and owning is that when you're dead, there's some asset left for your kids.

As long as you can afford the repayments, I'd just stop worrying and enjoy your house

Also, don't listen to your parent's generation when it comes to how much you owe on a mortgage, how long your mortgage is etc. The housing market is completely different now to when they purchased.

DH and I are 44 and first bought in 2009. DFIL casually said we mustn't have too much longer to go on our mortgage by now since they got a 20 year mortgage when they bought and overpaid so they were mortgage free by the time they were 50. Our mortgage currently runs until we're in our 60s since house prices are high where we live so we got a 35 year mortgage. We've since moved and extended so we have added more money to the mortgage but a little bit of overpayment has knocked a couple of years off.

When people complain about super long mortgages I think they are overlooking the fact that for a lot of people the only other alternative is to rent until they die.

As long as you can afford it, the amount is irrelevant really. Think how much you would potentially pay in rent over the rest of your life if you rented rather than owned and your remaining mortgage will feel like a bargain. Plus your mortgage will reduce in real terms over the years, whilst rent would increase.

Don’t think about it in those terms. You already own more than half your house and your equity increases with every payment. Repaying a mortgage is a marathon, not a sprint. If it makes you feel any better we didn’t clear our mortgage until we were both over 60, you’re likely to be quite a bit younger than that.

Objectively, you're doing fine OP. You're in a much better situation than me (ten years older than you, bigger outstanding mortgage, less in savings, no scope in my budget for overpayment).

It is terrifying when you first have to take on all the financial responsibility on a single income. I am constantly thinking about money.

The advice to stop overpaying and build up some more savings is good. Then you can choose how much to overpay in one lump at the end of the year, for example.

If you haven't seen your GP then it is worth speaking to them in case you need support with the anxiety. I found counselling invaluable in the early days after my separation and really recommend it as a safe place to get things in perspective.

Hopefully the kinder people on this thread have put your mind at rest to some extent about your financial situation.

Agree.

Many people do not have £500 a month. Let alone

£500 to overpay on a mortgage.

Overpaying by £500 a month is amazing and will seriously knock off years which means will knock kff interest

If you can pay for childcare , mortgage and overpay you are doing fine don't panic

I would overpay a bit less and build up savings , having several months mortgage payments or money for repairs and big bills is much more reassuring.

You can downsize in the future.

If you can afford it now and overpay without going without and it's right for you I'd continue.

If in 15 years time when you child may be going off to uni or getting a job and don't need speaker for toys etc you can sell up then.

OP I would put the over payments into savings as I think having more savings will reassure you. Perhaps talk to a financial advisor about your options if you're not comfortable making decisions yourself; I understand, there's so much change and it can feel overwhelming.

I owe £190k on a mortgage, only just manage the monthly payments (thanks Liz Truss!) and am on my own... I also don't have a job at the moment! But it's the one thing that doesn't keep me awake and money always worries me... It's because this is my place, I love it, I never thought I'd be able to get a property and when the Truss situation first happened I decided if the worst came to the worst I'd rent it out and move in with my parents. The way I see it isn't that it is a debt, but it's my little nest. You can easily manage this, but it's entirely natural to feel like you can't at the moment. You feel vulnerable and are dealing with so much change, I would use the money you overpay to talk to a therapist who will be able to help you see your situation very differently. You're doing brilliantly.

No it isn't. The poster has anxiety. If any post is insensitive it's yours!

Op I'm sure it's been mentioned but it maybe worth putting the 500 per month into savings with a high interest rate so it makes money then pay off mortgage in chunks but you also have the savings there should you need them..

I completely understand how daunting it must feel but wait 10 years and see where you are then..
See where interest rates are etc.

I’m a similar age and owe more, but we are a two parent family…. Child in nursery. Most of my friends are in exactly the same situations and many are now in discussions about house upgrades… so a much BIGGER MORTGAGE!

I have always planned to ride out the nursery/ early years then when we are abit more stable we will start to over pay the mortgage (the hope ha).

Don’t stress about it, give yourself some leeway during this economically difficult time and expensive time with the children. Then make a plan when you can. But genuinely your situation sounds very very financially normal.

A lot of people can’t buy homes until their mid-30s now so I would say your situation is normal/decent. We’re getting ready to buy our first home at a similar age to you.

You need to divert the £500 for the next 6 months to have some liquid cash - then go back to overpayments.

I think you are fixating because it feels like a huge burden on your own.

You can do this!

Once your equity goes up you can reduce the % rate and the payments come down. You’re not far off by the looks of things. The overpayments will ensure an earlier finish in payments.

That’s not a large mortgage. If you can manage the repayments then it’s fine.