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Original poster

What is a sensible amount to spend on mortgage per month?

42 replies

Nw22 · 21/02/2022 18:38

I’m hoping for some advice about how much people feel comfortable spending on their mortgage a month. We are hoping to move house and have a baby in the next year or two but I have no idea how much a baby will cost to work out how much is ok to spend on a mortgage. Our income after tax is about 5700/5800 after tax pensions etc. if it wasn’t for childcare I’d think 25% would be ok but we will need full time childcare.
Thanks

OP posts:
swirlsy · 21/02/2022 18:39

30% is the norm U believe.

swirlsy · 21/02/2022 18:39

I

swirlsy · 21/02/2022 18:40

The childcare yrs are always tight

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General money
Chewbecca · 21/02/2022 18:43

What’s more important than the % is the amount of ££ you have leftover to cover remaining bills.

If you clear £10k pm, 50% leaves enough to pay the bills.

Original poster
Nw22 · 21/02/2022 18:49

@swirlsy I don’t think we could afford childcare with a mortgage that big

OP posts:
swirlsy · 21/02/2022 19:35

how much is your childcare?

SGChome20 · 21/02/2022 19:47

Look at is as a percentage of income. Consider if either of you would go part time (doesn't sound like you would) and what your other outgoings/lifestyle is like.

Our mortgage is about 25% of total income but we don't have car payments to make and don't really spend much on clothes/socialising/hobbies etc as we're pretty simple creatures.

Ketchupman · 21/02/2022 19:50

Ours is about 34% so on the high side but we're in the first few years and it's our second property. We are also out of the childcare years and both earn similar amounts, so if one of us was out of work then we could cover the basics on one salary (albeit for a short time).

Mummyme87 · 21/02/2022 19:55

We take home around £6200 a month and our mortgage is just under £1580 (we dropped it from 20years to 18years so pay a little extra. Childcare is the lowest it’s been so far £600-700 a month, and will drop again in September. Although trying for #3 so will go up again on the next few years.

Original poster
Nw22 · 21/02/2022 20:05

@swirlsy from what I can see online it will be around 1000 a month

OP posts:
findingsomeone · 21/02/2022 20:10

Currently ours is 23%, but I just got a new job. A few years ago it was 34%. Still felt OK, but now we have a toddler and nursery fees. Before my new job things felt tight.

swirlsy · 21/02/2022 20:13

You need to work out if whatever's leftover is enough

findingsomeone · 21/02/2022 20:15

Also consider your income after baby? I went back four days. No way I wanted to do five. But that's a 20% drop in income right there.

mindutopia · 21/02/2022 20:26

Full time childcare likely to be £800-1100 per month. Figure out how much you’d have left over after childcare and other expenses.

I imagine we make about that amount (Dh is self employed so it’s a bit more vague and variable). Our mortgage is £1600. But we only bought after the expensive nursery years were over (when youngest was 3 and we had funded hours). Would have been more tricky paying fully for nursery.

Libertybear80 · 21/02/2022 20:28

We bring home about £5k a month and out mortgage is £1k so 20%. That feels like a load of money as it is!

Original poster
Nw22 · 21/02/2022 20:35

@Libertybear80 we currently pay about 850 but it’s not somewhere I would want to have a baby. The road is too busy and you can’t walk to many things

OP posts:
Libertybear80 · 21/02/2022 20:38

You need to factor in mortgage interest rate rises. They are going up.

WingingIt09 · 21/02/2022 20:40

Our mortgage is currently 18% of our income, however we are looking to move to a bigger home in the next year or two and our new mortgage payment is likely to be 25-30% of our income on our current salaries (although DH hopefully up for promotion in 2023/2024 so if he gets that it should help!) I only work 3 days a week, and we only have to have paid childcare for 2 of those so current budgeting suggests that will give us the flexibility to take on the bigger mortgage, things will be tight but manageable until childcare costs decrease (DD2 not starting school until 2024, and we're hoping for baby #3 in the next year/18 months)

milkysmum · 21/02/2022 22:22

My income is £2,300 per month. Mortgage is £430 per month so it's about 19% of my income. ( single parent, two children ).

Redlorryyellowlorryblue · 22/02/2022 06:30

Are you based in London? A full time nursery place can be up to £1900.

labyrinthlaziness · 22/02/2022 06:35

@swirlsy

You need to work out if whatever's leftover is enough
This basically.

You also need to be objective - if you are bringing home £5-6k net, and your mortgage is only £1k you are doing better than the vast majority.

I think a lot of people expect to have everything. The reality is the childcare years are tough.

As for not somewhere I would want to have a baby. The road is too busy and you can’t walk to many things - don't have a baby then. Most people make compromises.

Original poster
Nw22 · 22/02/2022 07:01

@labyrinthlaziness if we can’t afford to move and pay childcare we won’t have a baby.

OP posts:
ClaryFairchild · 22/02/2022 07:03

Work out the childcare costs and a bit extra for additional expenses re child and running larger house, and the mortgage you think you could pay, then subtract the mortgage you already pay and bank the rest. If you can live on that, for a minimum of six months then you are probably ok.

labyrinthlaziness · 22/02/2022 07:06

[quote Nw22]@labyrinthlaziness if we can’t afford to move and pay childcare we won’t have a baby.[/quote]
Most people economise but that's fair enough.

Just don't be bitter about it - you're in the higher household income bracket so it really would be your choice.

I had my lovely children in a small house in a shitty area and have subsequently moved once we had more cash. I wouldn't have missed having kids just due to the house not being perfect.

BuanoKubiamVej · 22/02/2022 07:12

As you don't have children yet, start saving £400/m into a savings account for childcare costs now and just pretend your income is 10% lower than it is, and set your lifestyle expectations on that basis. All living costs are elastic you can always manage on a bit less or find some way to spend a bit more, and your income is plenty to be comfortable on.

Banks will lend you enough that you could spend 40% of your income on mortgage but it's not a good idea to go that high. I wouldn't go higher than 25% of your post tax take-home, and the closer to 20% the better if you can get something adequate at that price.