To wonder how anyone affords to move house?

We have had a housing crisis building for decades as politicians have seen ever rising house prices as a positive thing and people have consistently voted for this strategy. The reality is that the majority of first time buyers now have family money to support the purchase . Proportion of first-time buyers receiving family loans hits 11-year high | Financial Reporter

You are very young and already earning the 'average' (I'm nearly 50 and around about that figure) and on the housing ladder so to my mind, are already well ahead of the curve. We bought our first tiny, outdated flat that was a fixer upper when I was nearly 30. Unless you are buying in SE/London, I do think it is still affordable to be a home owner. Yes mortgage rates are crazy, but overpaying is essential if you can throw additional payments at it. I think what has shifted are expectations. Social media/influencers etc, all paint a picture that everyone wants a piece of. I'm not old, but old enough to be of the mindset that you save, you wait. Deferred gratification has many benefits to our sense of purpose and pleasure in life. Basically, you are doing exceptionally well in life, so take a moment to revel in what you have.

I imagine you put down a normal FTB deposit of 5/10%?

We bought our first house mid 20s in a not so nice area. We renovated it over last 7 years. We've now only just moved up, to a nice 3 bed semi (all beds large double rooms) in a nice area. We made 120k capital on our house in last 7 years. Once you have some decent capital behind you, it's easier to get a bigger mortgage.

The cost of moving was £20k for us, it's insane. It makes me not want to do it again for a very long time. We also have a child and one on the way. It's really hard and we are stretching ourselves. You just need to give it a few years on your first house to get some decent capital behind you. We are average earners too

I'm still 'only' in a 3 bed terrace house in my 50's (and one small bedroom - admittedly big enough to house a teen with a bunk bed). I consider myself very fortunate as although there is still a chunk of mortgage to go I am not in unsuitable/unstable rented....
We could I suppose have 'gone up the ladder' by moving out of the city/somewhere less desirable. The place we are in had no functioning kitchen when we bought it and we had buckets collected water when it rained for 10 years.....
In answer to your question, people can't afford to move. Most can't afford to buy, some can barely afford to rent..☝as everyone has been saying - I'm not quite sure how you have managed to miss this?

recently bought a 5 bed for £350k

"we don't live in a location with massively inflated house prices."

You don't say

I think people either get payrises and manage to save more, or they get 'help' in the form of inheritance or monetary gifts from family.

I don't think there is really a housing 'ladder' right now for most people, because houses are expensive, wages are not keeping pace with rising house prices, and as you've pointed out, the cost of maintaining a house let alone renovating to make significant improvements is quite a lot. And that's without factoring in other increased costs of living. Most people cannot afford to upsize (if they can even afford to buy at all), so the housing 'ladder' isn't there.

Those of us who have moved up have often benefited from price increases. I bought my first flat for £175k in 2004, sold it for £350k 13 years later, then bought at £425k. It hasn't appreciated at all in the last 7 years, but that step did mean that I had a very very solid deposit for the second. I'll be paying it off until I retire, but its better than renting. And its still only a very ordinary 2 bedroom council flat, but that's inner London for you.

Mid-twenties is relatively early now to be buying a house (and a family home at that, not a flat), getting married, and having kids. Many people do that in their 30s when they're earning more. Nothing wrong with your choices and great that you're able to do so, but it helps explain why you're more strapped than some.

Moving house is expensive and especially so if you look to do it every year, generally you would stay in the same house for a few years, building equity, and that then goes towards a bigger/more expensive house. And it depends on your stage of life, generally people would start at the bottom of the ladder and then with time & promotions wages increase, equity in your house increases and you then move onto a more expensive house. Mortgage rates being high still though does massively impact what is “affordable”, a 200k mortgage at 2% is a very different beast to a 200k mortgage at 5% in terms of monthly payments especially.

It does depend on your area as well, and what you do to the house you’re in. Our first home was a bit of a reno so was cheaper to buy, we then did a lot of the work on it ourselves (kept costs down) and so when we sold it we had increased the value of it quite abit and that then went towards our next house which was more expensive. If we’d just bought a house, lived in it for a few years and then sold it we wouldn’t have gotten much out of it other than what we put in.

Not being funny but we had a £850 per month mortgage for a house costing £230k in 2011 which was the very top of our budget. We earnt £22k/26k each at the time so whilst there is a housing crisis, many people have come before you and will come after you and we need to normalise the fact that buying a house is often a struggle in the first 5 years, so much so that we delayed having children so that we weren't overstretched.

It does get easier. I dont want to argue with you but its its unhelpful to people like you starting out if we don't challenge the narrative that buying your first home is easy because otherwise it becomes a nasty shock when the excitement of buying wears off and you realise you're at the tip of a very big and expensive commitment for 25/30 years. But it is usually a struggle for anyone who gets on the ladder early without family help or a significant deposit.

I remember my parents talking about high interest rates and working double jobs to do up an absolute wreck of a house to get onto the ladder. But like someone said, you are buying security and a place where you and your kids will always have a home. It's just going to be expensive and take some sacrifices. If you were renting, costs would be similar and with nothing to show for the money in 30 years. You should at least be able to retire. I know its hard, hang in there. 5 years and things will look better, 10 years and you'll be much more comfortable.

We bought our first house at 27 so similar to you.

It was only a 2 bed. We stayed in it for 8.5 years and gradually did it up. Had a child. Decided to stop at 1.

After the childcare years were over I upped my hours at work (had been PT while she was at nursery), DH had got a better paid job so we overpaid for a few years to get the mortgage amount down

We then realised mortgage repayments on a 3 bed would be similar to what we were paying then with the overpayment so that's when we moved.

Also am 40 now so mortgage rates were much lower.

Well we couldn’t afford to buy a house until we were early 30s and have been in it for 7 years now, and we have a much higher than average income so I’m not massively surprised that you can’t afford to move in your mid 20s after being in your house a year.

For the next few years, if you are paying nursery fees, you probably don't move.
After that, salarirs have increased, you've got some savings to pay upfront costs, childcare drops, and everything becomes much easier.
But you are aproaching the really expensive bit - newish mortgage and small kids.

We're a couple in our 30s with 3 kids (and one in the way) and have bought/sold twice since 2021. Initially selling a small terraced house I bought in my 20s to buy a 4 bed detached new build and more recently a 5 bed detached new build in a different town. These cost 215k and 350k respectively with the one we bought for 215k in 2021 selling for 275k this year. We are not "high earners" and in fact I don't work so half our income is benefits. We used equity built up to pay the deposit and some of the moving costs and savings for other little bits here and there. And we don't live in a location with massively inflated house prices.

You keep saying "it's wrong", by which I assume you mean it isn't fair. Of course it isn't, and that's the way it has been for many years.

For us, we've delayed having children until our careers have become more established and we earn more. That's allowed us to build more equity in advance of children and having to pay childcare.

Do I think it's "right" that I've had to make that choice? Do I think it's fair that I will have to consider carefully the economic impacts of whether we have a second child, despite earning significantly over the average wage, because we live in a more expensive part of the country and because we'll likely have two children in childcare at the same time? No, bit that's the economic reality of the country we live in right now.

Sorry, OP, but you are coming across as a bit green here. And I don't mean that to be insulting, but I think it's because you are relatively young.

The average age of a first-time buyer in England is mid 30s – the fact that you have managed it in your mid 20s (and a house to boot, even if that 3rd bedroom is a box room), including getting financial help to achieve the home you wanted, and can now afford to have a baby + childcare fees ... don't you think you should open your eyes a little to your privilege?

You're living in the world you're living in and you've received a hell of a leg up.

Many families will live in the house you have bought until they leave this world. You have a housing need - which you've been able to achieve by buying (not renting) - well done.

Anything more is not necessary. It's just a "nice to have".

So if at a later date you earn more between you you may look at moving to a bigger place or different area, but you don't have to. Same when you have paid your mortgage off - you may just sit and save money for other things (what we are doing) or use the fact you are mortgage free to take on another one and move up the ladder.

When we moved into our first small 3 bed home, our next door neighbour was a single mum. She's since found a partner, had another child, brought both children up, and her and her partner arre still there and now retired. Having paid off their mortgage.

I know I've use the term ladder but it's not really helpful because many people don't actually move many times in their lives - others move every 5 minutes. Personal choices based on personal circumstances.

Yes, I just think it’s wrong that it’s come to this in this country and that so many people are out of touch if they’re not actually in the situation of trying to move or trying to find a house in the first place. We both have respectable careers and still feel this way in a cheap town. I really don’t know how people who are unable to work or earn less than us are supposed to do it at all.

They don't do it at all

They rent a room or they sofa surf or they live with parents or they're homeless

There's a housing crisis which the government is aiming to sort out

I hope they succeed

I think that having a three bedroom house in your mid 20s is more than a lot of people would expect. Home ownership is expensive but it's an investment of time and money. Also, plenty of houses have box rooms that they use for spare clothes until a child comes along. 😁

Over the years hopefully your salaries will increase.

Generally I think people expect to build equity and get promoted.

So your salary increases, children grow up and out of expensive childcare, and you have more equity to move up the ladder.

I don't think many people are actively saving an extra £X per month to move.

You're at an expensive time of life. The fact you're even thinking of moving in your situation when you have no real need to do so is bonkers. Enjoy the home you've bought and aim to get some overpayments (£100 month can have a huge impact) onto your mortgage to being the term down.

Most people buy a small flat as a first purchase btw.

Three options:
a) move to a less desirable area
b) wait and accrue more equity, though this generally means everything else has risen in your area/surrounding roads (see option a)
c) take a larger mortgage, this is means tested so you will need to earn more to fit affordability criteria

Staircasing the market requires flexibility and the ability to take work on yourselves.

Three options:
a) move to a less desirable area
b) wait and accrue more equity, though this generally means everything else has risen in your area/surrounding roads (see option a)
c) take a larger mortgage, this is means tested so you will need to earn more to fit affordability criteria

Staircasing the market requires flexibility and the ability to take work on yourselves.

This