to give up my council house and buy a house?

[dirtyface]

here is our situation, i am 33 and dh is 42. am (mostly) a SAHM to 2 dcs relying on tax credits and a very small income from a (very) part time job :o

DH earns about 28k, which is an ok salary where we are are (in the midlands). we are in a 3 bed council house which i was lucky enough to get a few years ago, as was a single mum at the time. my house is my bit of security, i love it, i love the area even though its a bit rough lol and i know if the worst happened the kids and i would still have it.

i always assumed buying was out of reach due to mad house prices in the last few years. but did a bit of research and looks like we could buy a decentish house for about 80 - 90k. nothing great, just a small 3 bed. we have a couple of grand in savings already and could easily save a few more by really cutting back and would poss get help from my Dparents as they are very keen for me to buy a house.

however, i worry if we bought a place, if dh and i split up i would be left a single parent again in private rented. as this is exactly what happened to his exW. as, like me, she didnt work, she was a SAHM, and he paid the mortgage etc and got the mortgage based on his salary. i would never get the security of a council place again.

DH is opposed to buying as he owned before we met and says its not all that. he had money problems and at one point was depressed and almost suicidal due to the pressure of trying to keep a roof over his familys head when interest rates went up :( and i never want him to feel that again. he feels there is more security in renting ie if he lost his job we could just sign on and get HB to pay the rent, whereas we could lose everything if we owned a house and he lost his job (or worse). in fact money stresses were one of the (admittedly many) things that caused him and exW to split.

i also worry that with DH's age we may not be offered a mortgage anyway. as he would be 67 by the time its paid off. plus both of us have had debts / bad credit in the past (although they have mostly been cleared or are being cleared now)

however, buying has always been a big ambition of mine, and one of my biggest life regrets is that i did not buy in the late 90's / early 00's when i had the chance and when prices were very affordable. and i think its a now or never thing tbh. unless we have a lottery win :o

something i would also add is that we are TTC for #3. so if that happens it will effect our finances (obviously)

phew! sorry its long but would appreciate some advice please :) x

congratulations!

I think housing wise, you are in a good position, not a bad one! If the govenment does change the policies, then you can afford to move out, a lot of people would be screwed, you wouldn't be. That's great.

I would also suggest if you are thinking of moving, do it before the baby comes or then leave it a year or so, because moving with a baby is a lot of hassle!

If you buy, the upsides are that eventually, you've paid off the debt and have a house with no housing costs. If you bought when you were 35 with a 25 year mortgage, you'd be hitting 60 and suddenly not having any housing costs, if you could pay it off earlier, you'd have a good few years of earning while having no rent to pay - great for saving for retirement, and if you move out to something smaller when the DCs have grown up, the difference in value of properties is yours. If you stay where you are, you will always need to pay rent and you won't have anything to show for it in the end.

Congratulations!

I would buy the one you are in if you have rtb, even if you have to wait a year. This gov have made the discounts much bigger again (up to 60% off) and you won't need a deposit. I doubt they will scrap rtb as they are the ones behind encouraging it-rtb rates have shot up in the last year due to the discount ceilings Labour put on being removed. Don't feel guilty. People often say they should be for those in dire straights etc but if you only allow people who don't work etc to have a council house, you take away all incentives to better yourself. People could work less hours etc or take a pay cut rather than loose their home. People that can't be bothered to work would get priority than someone who works. So the view is simplistic.

1/3 of the population used to live in council. You have no need to feel guilt because the gov sold too many off and couldn't/wouldn't invest in new housing. The new rtb involves councils/HAs being able to invest the money towards new housing. Also there may be an option to buy part of your council/HA home.

Congrats on your news!

I read your thread thinking you have a home you love, you have a period of potential uncertainty and extra costs with TTC. 3 children cost a lot. Probably best to sit tight for a few years, save what you can and see where you are. If your house at the minute is just so much more than bricks and mortar RTB sounds like it would really be worthwhile for you all.

I used to do a bit of work with HAs and had quite a few conversations about RTB. The ones I worked with were very pro. The money realised allowed them to provide new homes and without RTB they (probably rightly believed) the the majority of tenants would be there for life and so there stock was tied up if that makes sense. Admittedly there have been a good few changes since then.

aww thank you all so much :)

am very happy but shellshocked and a bit scared as had a mc a few months ago. so we have got everything crossed that this one sticks.

as for the house, am beginning to think that RTB might be the best option. as i really do love this house and area,(can u tell haha) and if we take rtb at least it will be affordable plus sounds like we may not need a deposit. i just wish they would keep their promise to build more houses, as god knows what it will be like when the children of today are ready to leave home. it scares me to death.

the mad thing is i see new housing developments going up all the time (where i live anyway) but they are all bloody executive homes that start at about 200k. we need AFFORDABLE homes

Congratulations, OP.