To ask how you managed to buy a house?

[ditziness]

We pay close to a grand rent a month. It's of our friend's mortgages are cheaper. As a consequence it's very difficult to save. But save we must to tryand get a deposit. So we have to continue to rent

Stuck in a vicious circle.

How the hell did you manage to buy a house?

Any financial, deposit raising, mortgage getting advice welcome

[OhTheConfusion]

I bought a small 2 bed terrace house for £70,000 in 2002. My parents gave me the 10% deposit and £3000 to decorate, furnish etc (so £10,000 gift). £63,000 loan over 20yrs. My mortgage re-payments were under £330 a month which I overpaid as often as I could.

I met DH in 2006 and he was in a shared flat renting (for £400 a month) but had some savings. DH moved in with me and put the £400 into the mortgage too, this really reduced it. When we sold in 2008 we took away just over £60,000 between house price increases and overpayments.

This was ploughed into the next house and we are still out £800 + a month but we now live in a much bigger house.

[Angelico]

OP your rent does sound very high. A lot of people on here seem to have bought in cheaper areas. Is that an option? A move to a less expensive part of the country?

[mum4041]

We bought quite late in life (I was 30, my dh 35) so reasonable salaries and there were 100% mortgages available at the time.

[ditziness]

1 k is standard where we live ( central area in nice city)for 3 bedroom . Realising that we need to downsize to two bedroom and live in a shittier area. :-( bit gutted .

[ditziness]

2 bedroom in our area will be £6-800. Two bedroom in less nice area £500. We had chosen to pay higher rent in order for kids to go to nicer school and us to have more space, and not worry about buying a house.

But all that's changed after being forced to move so often. Just want somewhere I can control and not have to be forced out every year or so. You can't make a home in rented places

[Angelico]

Yes ditzi - not trying to sound cruel but you do need to compromise to buy. My first house was in north Belfast - a quiet street which was a quarter of a mile from an area that makes the national news from time to time... If you want to buy you need to be saving like mad but if you can get a deposit together it is a great time to buy!

[Smellslikecatspee]

Honestly; we were fucking lucky. First an only time.

We bought when a flat when the builders were offering silly silly deals.
All our friends thought we were nuts. Even then when our mortgage was lower than their rent, we were tied down. . .

The kicker is once you get on the ladder it gets easier.

It's shit, we are about the only ones in our social circle with 2exception that aren't either in rented or in massive -ve equity.
My DS&BIL owe about £50,000 more than their place is worth.

It's shit

[Angelico]

Exactly - so £6000 saved in a year by moving. The alternative is to be long term renters.

[tutu100]

We were only able to buy our house because of a key worker scheme a local housing authority have. It means they own 30% of our house and we have a mortgage for the other 70%. It was great and the only way we were going to get onto the property ladder, but it means DP can not change job unless we are in a position to buy them out. Also we can not move out of the area that the scheme covers.

We do live in the cheapest area in our town as well. We were very limited in our choices because of our budget.

[Noqontrol]

Bought 12 yrs ago in a place where houses where dead cheap. We were lucky as two years later it was sold for twice the price. And used that money as a deposit to buy a house down south, when the prices were still fairly low. I don't know how people starting out these days would buy one, it would seem like an impossible dream. I despair for my kids when they are older and want to buy. Its very very difficult these days.

[ditziness]

We've been forced to move by unscrupulous landlord. Desperately don't want to move into another rented place, been such a struggle moving. Staying with family while trying to figure out what to do.

It's a choice between somewhere nice with enough space for us in a nice place and risk has to move again at someone elses whim/ put up with crap landlords and letting agencies/ not be able to put up a shelf or paint a wall/ rent forever or live somewhere small in a crap area and save for our children's early childhoods in order that they'll get bedrooms, gardens, decent schools in a few years?

[marriedinwhite]

In 1982. First flat £32k. I had 3k in savings (was 22), my dad gave me £6k for the deposit. I had a 23k mortgage which was almost three times my earnings. It was just as the property market was coming out of the doldrums and I just caught it, with a little help, before London prices spiralled up until 1989. When interest rates were high I can remember paying £285 pcm on that tiny mortgage - when I was earning about £450 pcm. So glad I did it. If I hadn't had a bit of help I would have had to have bought a bit further our or in a cheaper part of London.

My dad's view was why pay a landlord 140pcm for a room in a shared house and have nothing to show for it. It was pretty tough though and felt like a huge responsibility for the first few years. Was also at a time when it was quite unusual still for a single girl in her early 20s to buy a property alone.

[ditziness]

Advice?

[marriedinwhite]

Could you live with your parents while you save? Could you move back in separately, and save if you can't as a couple?

The market is in the doldrums for a while yet I thnk. Can you get your noses to the grindstone at work and climb the slippery pole a bit. Extra weekend/evening job(s)? Forget holidays and expensive clothes.

[marriedinwhite]

Rent a studio while you save?

[Angelico]

Is it possible to stay with family and save like mad? If you are serious about buying your only real alternative is to move somewhere cheaper to pocket the cash or do some extra hours / shifts at work :( I couldn't have bought my first house without doing OT as it was counted towards my mortgage application.

[Bintang]

How old are your children, and which gender(s)?

[ditziness]

I feel so stupid for using my twenties and thirties partying and spending. I never thought of the future, just lived. Didn't think I could have children and didn't marry till I was 37.

Now I have these two little children to protect and no home for them.

Idiot!

[squeakytoy]

You have to start off small, be prepared to give up a lot of luxuries, and work your bollocks off basically.

[squeakytoy]

You are not an idiot though. They have a roof over their heads dont they?

[CherylWillBounceBack]

Live frugally and wait. There are only really two ways to resolve the mess housing costs in this country are in. One us massive wage inflation. Thus will allow the nominal price of houses to remain the same, but become relatively more affordable. the cost of this is that savers who have not been involved in the credit orgy will see their money devalued. also pensioners without inflation linked annuities will be stuffed. Also watch food and fuel prices skyrocket....


option 2 is a collapse in property prices. This is IMHO the right thing to happen as the only people who will lose are those who bought on silly mortgages at peak prices, and those who have released and wasted the illusory equity. however, this is a politically disastrous situation because the country still has a mentality that high shelter costs are good. They aren't. either way you will get a house eventually, but there will be a lot of pain for some .

[ditziness]

To be honest we don't have a lot of luxuries anyway. There's not much to economise on apart from rent. Staying with family long term would drive us all insane I think. There's a hard choice coming up I know, and short term pain for long term gain. Either that or a lucky strike/ miracle. Tis life. :-(
Bintang, not sure that's relevant.

[Feckbox]

worked seven days a week for 15 years before having my children

[TodaysAGoodDay]

Divorce settlement . Sorry, not very helpful

[CherylWillBounceBack]

have patience. it seems rubbish just now, but I am a firm believer that unsustainable situations will resolve themselves - the government (all parties) and financial manipulators cannot game the system indefinitely.