To think we CAN live on the mortgage

i live in a fairly affluent area in Manchester, my mortgage is just under £700 a month for a sizeable 3 bed semi with a garden to the front and rear.

Still cost that today or did you buy some time ago?

Whilst i understand your predicament I’ve never understood living in a particular area just to get your child into a school (although like I say because of your predicament I understand it, but some people do it for the status. There is one in my area, and it’s so sought after that even living in as 1 mile radius doesn’t guarantee a place). My son is also high functioning and has an ehcp, but there is a low birth rate in his cohort so we were doubly lucky. We moved into our property 3 years before our son was born. Tbh I didn’t even consider schools when I purchased it.

I would hope one might have a modicum of intelligence to have a well paid job.

Otherwise just reinforcing my view that as a society we value BS jobs filled with halfwits far more than anything that is actually meaningful or useful!

My brother is a GP, terrible with finances. Really not uncommon.

Do your budgetting properly.

What is the council tax and insurance on such an expensive home?

Do you need two new Range Rivers on your drive, or an 8 yo Skoda Fabia?

Do you go ski-ing in Whistler , and summer in St Barthelemy?

Is this figure before or after pension contributions?

Apply basic common sense about job security etc, cost of the insurances you would need to protect such a decision (life insurance / critical illness etc)

You can work all this out, we can’t.

And harsh though it is you have asked for the flaming because without basic budgeting and planning ability, AND asking questions without giving the necessary info for an answer does make people living on normal salaries wonder how on earth people manage to gain this kind of income.

Yes. But I’m not starting threads that are impossible to answer in without the key details solely so people can be in the loop about my financials.
But I do accept the irony of my comment 😅

How can anyone answer this? It depends on what sort of lifestyle you want to live?

Have you asked your husband for help with the numbers?

Not really, my husband takes home about £7000 after tax monthly (earns roughly £140k in a construction job) and I earn £3k a month in my pretty standard job.

to answer OP, it’s obviously affordable for you but not something I’d feel comfortable with. Perhaps because my husbands job is not the most secure line of work, and my wage alone wouldn’t cover a mortgage that high if he was out of work. Think about how secure both your jobs would be in unstable conditions.

Depends wether the house is livable as is doesn't it ?

If this is a reno project where you going to "just" replace the bathrooms/kitchen or a fully knock down-rebuild I'd back out if your also paying for nursery & savings money

No. Because the person who I was responding to was obviously going to reframe it as people being jealous.
But, sure, I suppose my comment could be read that way. Perhaps I should start a thread about my income.

Target all fixed costs as 60% income if in a position to do so, (car payments, insurance etc. also to be included in fixed). 5% savings, 10% investing (funds etc.), 25% guilt free fun spend. Look up Ramit Sethi with that level of income.

Have you checked your benefits entitlement?

It really depends whether the sun is net or gross. Any answer is irrelevancy without knowing that (and if Gross, how it's divided between you)

How are you able to earn that level of income but not be capable of using your own brain to decide on financial decisions?

Yes I often wonder this about posters. They are apparently on huge salaries but appear how do I put it politely, a bit dim.

lol, stealth boast much? Oh come on op!

These type of threads drive me mad when posters don't state NET or GROSS income.

If it's net then it's a non-issue, plenty spare.

If it's gross - and earned by one person - it could mean going into debt each month.

We get "earn", "make", "bring home", "income", all sorts of colloquialisms, and I've seen every one of them used interchangeably as net/gross, and yet we're supposed to guess what the poster means.

Why can't people just be clear?

Not naive no and as you’ve pointed out, we can afford it. Doesn’t mean I have to be comfortable with it though!

Well you could, but I wouldn't. That's a crazy amount of mortgage. I wouldn't want to spend that much on a house unless I'd won the lottery and could buy it outright. But then I don't really have that house of lifetime fantasy. Feels like too much pressure on bricks and mortar to make you happy.

@JaneEyre40
How many DC do you have?
Are you going to have more DC?
Are you planning to send DC to private school for primary and secondary?
Which region do you live in?

If you have multiple DC and plan on private education all the way through, then the answer may well be 'no'

If you thought it was normal for your mortgage rate to stay around 1% you must be very naive.

Or why they are relying on mumsnet for financial advice.

Of course you do. You have £5k per month left over to eat, heat your home, run your car / commute, and enjoy yourselves. That’s far more than most people. If times turn tough you’ll have several cut backs you can make before life becomes unaffordable.
That said, I’d maintain high savings levels and ensure you have life insurance and critical illness cover. Your position could rapidly change due to redundancy / disablement / ill health / death.

Is the income after tax?
If so, why are you questioning this - what are you unsure about?

It is high to be fair! We earn a bit more and have similar savings and our mortgage of £2.3k keeps me up at night! I worry what if one of us loses our jobs (I earn more and my job is difficult to replace) or what if interest rates go crazy. I'd recommend a very long fix where possible, we fixed for 10 years a few years ago and will fix for 5 or 10 next time. But if your jobs are more easily replaceable then I'm sure it'll be fine! I dream of downsizing to a 2 bed in the future! 😁

Home Counties. You’re looking at £800k for a 2 bed terrace - deposit of £120000 gives you repayments of approx £3600. We have a 4 bed semi and are paying £5700 in mortgage repayments.