Getting a 300k mortgage at 50...

[BarkingUpTheWrongRoseBush]

We’re mortgage free in a nice terraced house. A lovely detached with period features, off road parking, sun room and a much longed for garden has come up round the corner.

We can afford the mortgage over 10 years. But it means no option of retiring before 60 whereas now I could go part time or finish and take pension at 55.

Dh lost his job last year and was unemployed for a year...no mortgage meant that was less stressful.

Are we mad to even be thinking about it?

You can easily afford that mortgage on that income. Go for it.

Thought about buying a cottage somewhere but I’m not sure how much we’d use it....could buy a house to let out as investment. I think what we’d get the most out of is a light house with a garden to potter in.

Why this new one appeals is that it’s not huge upstairs but is extended downstairs. Which is perfect for us. So I’m thinking won’t get that huge house with only us in it feeling that a poster upthread was talking about.

I know gardens are hard work,but I honestly love gardening.

£300k mortgage at 50 with an after tax income of £7.5k a month and £100k savings?

Sounds more like a brag to me. We're in our late 30's, us and most of our friends have a mortgage around that (3 bed semis in average south area) we all have NO savings and HALF your income. Sounds to me like you should be absolutely fine.
Why so much "In case" money???

I'd echo pp an allotment and a large garden is very time consuming especially if not combined. Will you really want a big house and garden to maintain when you're in your 80s? If you lose out on the early retirement I'd feel I was flogging my guts out for a house/garden I rarely got to enjoy properly and by the time I retired it might all be on the verge of being too much for me to appreciate it anyway.

Sounds more like a brag to me

Why would an anonymous poster brag on a forum where noone knows who anyone is? It's not like at the school gates, down the pub or at a dinner party.

@Deadpoetic, you just sound resentful. Everyone's circumstances are different. Very few of our friends have a mortgage that large and most do have savings. Not that we discuss it very much, it's no one else's business.

There's no point 'bragging' (if you're so inclined) if no one knows who you are. That would be a little pointless.

No I wouldn't do it. The freedom and choices being mortgage free give you are priceless.

I also agree that a big house and garden as you get older can be a pain in terms of maintaince costs and time. Enjoy your spare income-travel and have fun!

Or using an anonymous forum because I appreciate I’m in s lucky position and don5 want to pee off friends talking about it.

I’d give up the allotment And would grow veg, have fruit trees and ornamental at home. Be able to potter out first thing or after work without getting the car out. . It’s not a huge garden I’m looking for.

And yes, if in my 80s it was too much I’d get a gardener or downsize. But that’s 30 years away.....

It wasn't meant to sound resentful, it's all our choice, if anything it sounds more supportive I thought! Easily manageable from the perspective of us and what we have and do.

Your right it's no one else's business what anyone does or have but here you/we discussing it anyway.

@Deadpoetic, it's different discussing it on an anonymous forum than in real life though isn't it. A friend might tell me they have savings but certainly not how much, not would I dream of asking. Same as they might say 'we've got 10 years left on the mortgage' in general conversation without saying how much mortgage is IYSWIM.

To be fair I hate talking about money with 'real' people, I always find it embarrassing because my parents were from a generation where discussing finances was considered a total no no.

That's interesting really. Our friends and I are all quite open about all our situations and finances, that's what friends are for right? Or maybe a financial adviser would be a better idea?

deadpoetic - no, i dont think thats what friends are for, we have long friendships of 30+ years standing, I could hazard a fairly accurate guess at their earnings and finance based on jobs etc but we are a very wide ranging lot career and job wise, size of families and what we all see as prioities for our families, i do certainly know however that we all behave as financial equals so as never to rub in that some are richer than others

I guess it's a generation or regional thing.l perhaps. We all help each other with mortgages and remortgages right down to utility payments. Especially gas and electric... Were always on about that! How much we earn or what we have never gets in the way of our friendships tho? We've all known each other since primary school also. Anyway we seem to of gone off topic..

To the OP, you could easily afford the mortgage to get the house you want. I wouldn't keep that "in case" money tho. You would be better off putting it into the house and getting a cheaper LTV mortgage and keep the capital repayment down. Keep some back in case the boiler breaks by all means. We move house a lot, we buy them cheap, we do them up and sell for profit. Every one I would love in though just in case it doesn't make sense to sell at that time.

Oh just do it. Life's too short to put it on hold for a pipedreqm that may never happen,

Buy your new house and love every moment of living there.