Where to live on 3m

[ItsPissingDownAgain]

First world question: where would you live in london on a 3m budget. Low income otherwise (!), kids in state primary, we like diversity, zones 1/2, parks, ease of travel (ideally bike but if not then public transport)

[Octane]

It definitely is weird. Why would a couple with a joint income of 35k but 3 million in the bank spend it all on a house when they really, REALLY don't need to? Imagine how investing half or even just a third of that money could boost their income and make day-to-day life easier and more enjoyable.

It's definitely a weird thread.

[lalafafa]

You couldn’t Maintain a house of that value on what you earn. I’ve just had mine re painted for 9k, common part areas, living room and kitchen. A cleaner costs me £600 a month. I wouldn’t want to clean mine. You need to downsize.

[RavingAnnie]

You should be really thinking about investing a lot of that to 1. start getting a passive income - this might mean you can stop work now or in the future and/or protects you in the event of redundancy/ill health etc etc 2. invest in pensions.

Putting it all in house while your incomes are so low is crazy.

[GoneCrazy]

I think you’re bonkers! That money could be invested & do you the world of good! You need to speak to a financial planner no chance I would be throwing all that into one house!

[Corcory]

As has been said by many this sure is a weird thread. The disparity between your earnings and the price of property you think you want to live in has not only got potential running costs problems but also the insane idea that you will make loads of friends in a multi cultural diverse part of London! Who on earth do you think your neighbours will be who also own all these £3m houses? sure won't be this diverse, multi cultural types why also earn £35k like you!

[Jonnywishbone]

You are utterly mad. On the income levels you have suggested you could feasibly work and live anywhere so should feel no attachment to the role or the UK. Literally you could almost earn that anywhere.

Why not rent your house out for circa £100k a year and live abroad and enjoy the lifestyle? You can put the surplus back into the house and bring your children up in a better environment than London.

Children get expensive as they got older, even if you don't want to get better paid jobs, they will cost more irrespective of which schools you are thinking about.

I am totally staggered by your current life choices.

[Inkpaperstars]

The comments above are all so true

But you could still upgrade a bit and you still might like Blackheath.

[nestlestealswater]

I don't understand why anyone would do this! Why not spend £2m on a house (I'm sure you will be able to get a smasher for that price) and then keep A MILLION POUNDS to invest/splurge a bit? It's what you would earn in your current jobs if you worked for thirty years! A life changing sum! Rather than live very frugally in a slightly nicer house?

[amc8583]

Is this even a thread? You need financial advice not mumsnet!

[DianaT1969]

Have you been at the inexpensive gin OP?
There isn't an idiot in the world who would deliberately spend £3 million on a house and live on £35k. There is no sense in that. What do you mean, you spend most of your time in it? You don't think you could be comfortable in a £2.5 million home?

[LawnFever]

OP for the love of god, just explain how/why you have £3m to spend on a house and yet no concept of the costs of running that house, and why all that money needs to be spent on a house at all rather than keeping a chunk back??

[Jonnywishbone]

Agree with others about your insanity about running costs too... On the incomes you have you would run the house into the ground due to lack of maintenance.

[littlepattilou]

[LegendDairy]

Buy 100k house in Grimsby and then retire.

[Babyiwantabump]

This is bonkers

[MeowPurrGrr]

Strangely enough I fell across a YouTube video today on a walking tour of housing mews in central London (Paddington) and next to Hyde park. They’re gorgeous and ranged from 1.5-4mil! I went off into a little day dream of owning one and painting it pink and having blue and yellow pot plants outside the door! Look them up, they wouldn’t look out of place in a little Yorkshire village!

[Sevensilverrings]

This is nice, don’t know about road though...
www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/57787731?search_identifier=64875fe562b77254592d41d8419575e0

[DeRigueurMortis]

@LawnFever

OP for the love of god, just explain how/why you have £3m to spend on a house and yet no concept of the costs of running that house, and why all that money needs to be spent on a house at all rather than keeping a chunk back??

Inherited money/lottery win?

It's perfectly possible.

That said there's no way I'd spend all of it on a house.

Granted, investment opportunities are thin right now, but I'd want some money liquid in case of emergencies and I'd also be wary of upkeep costs (though for what you get size wise in London that might be less of a concern).

Spending a significant chunk of the money on a home is a good idea if it "buys" access to good state schools and a home for life in a nice area (with no mortgage).

I'd probably look to spend 2.5m and invest the rest as best as possible.

[LegendDairy]

How could you afford the council tax on a 3mil house on low income?

[DishingOutDone]

Previous posters who are taking this seriously, do you not think this is ridiculous? The OP has £3 million. She can live wherever she fucking likes.

[LondonStone]

In OP’s defence, the house I linked to is on the same street as many blocks of flats and and I taught at a local primary which was incredibly diverse. Children of celebrities/millionaires/parents with knighthoods rubbed alongside the proper local Islington kids whose families have lived there for generations and definitely aren’t posh and feel very priced out by these million pounds houses. We had lots of children in council housing. We had lots of Somali and Turkish children, many of them speaking little English, especially at first. Our FSM numbers were higher than national average and I in one cohort of 52 children we once had 20+ different languages spoken.

[bonfireheart]

OP is living a double life, poor by day, millionaire by night.

[ElizaLaLa]

@ItsPissingDownAgain

Thanks for the ideas. We really don't want to leave London, and especially not for Surrey.

We're both key workers so probably could live anywhere in the uk, but we like it here. Combined income is around 35k. We live fairly frugally, no car, camping holidays. DH doesn't believe in private schools and neither of us like the idea of faith schools.

We could stay where we are but I have an unresolvable problem with the house. Feels weird to just move somewhere equivalent nearby and that we should at least trade up a bit? Don't think running costs would be particularly huge; were mostly talking about a terrace with a small garden.

I guess I want somewhere quite mixed so we could have a nice place but have friends from all walks? I don't want to stick out really.

Crouch end. Near enough to wood green so you can feel like you involve yourselves with the riffraff but far enough away so you don't actually need to 🙄

[Usernamenotavailabletryanother]

Bethnal Green/Victoria Park
De Beauvoir
Tufnell Park
Wapping

I love a crazy thread

[bonfireheart]

What about the house Harry & Meghan did up and then left?