to never buy a home?

[rosesareredvioletsarepurple]

Some new flats are going on sale soon near (ish) where we live that are eligible for the help to buy scheme. They start at £350,000 for a one bedroom. Even with help to buy that's £18,000 for the deposit and then about ten grand for stamp duty (I think I've got that right?)

I'm in my early 30s and would like children so it seems silly to get a one bed when a two bed would be more suitable long term. But maybe I'm being spoilt thinking we need two bedrooms.

Either way, £30,000 is still not going to happen. Even if we can scrimp and save for years, we couldn't save if we had children (I've looked and nursery fees here are £1200+ per month)

All my friends are on the ladder but not one has done it alone. They've all been given or have inherited money. Even those who think they've done it alone have in reality lived rent and bill free for years saving them thousands per year. Never been an option for us.

My parents think we're wrong for renting but don't understand how difficult it is (my parents bought a four bed detached home in a lovely area in their 20s and did it entirely alone).

AIBU to never own a home and to feel a bit sad about it?

We rent too and I'm happy with that. Our flat - 1 bed - is valued at £300k, and it would take us years to be able to save us the deposit for even that. I'm almost 40, so instead we are saving money and ploughing a lot into pensions.

We don't live in London, but we both do is really niche, so if we were looking for other jobs we'd have to move to London, and its certainly not going to be any better there. The people saying to 'just move' are being really unrealistic IMO.

As it stands we have a gorgeous, well maintained flat in an area that we love. We got it unfiurnished so its decorated and furnished to our taste. Our landlord is really helpful. We don't have family to help us with deposits and have a our first child on the way, so there's no point in stressing about it.

In the past year our building has had roof repairs, hallway repairs and new windows, which would have cost us over £3k if we owned. As it stands we paid nothing, and our rent has been stable for the past 3 years. We've also had the boiler replaced, and they offered to put us up in a hotel while it was being done. The bath flooded the downstairs neighbour, and again the plumber was covered by the landlord. Seems like a decent deal to me.

Renting may be commonplace in Germany, but renting in Germany (and the Benelux countries) comes with lifelong security - that's the big difference.

I have no problem with renting per se. My problem is with the total lack of security, constant invasions of privacy, and generally being treated like an infant (having to ask permission for EVERYTHING!) because I did not inherit wealth sufficient to allow me to buy my own home.

Fix that, and you'd cure the British "obsession" with home ownership.

Semin - I expect help to buy is pushing up prices of new builds

Yanbu, it's really hard. My DP and I could only afford the deposit on our one bedroom flat because he worked abroad for a year and saved a big tax free salary. Then our first DD came along a bit ahead of schedule so we managed in the flat (it was fine for 9 months). We managed to buy a bigger house (a do-er upper) but I completely sympathise. Our parents were not in a position to help us out financially, and we live in an expensive part of the country where we both have jobs so hard to move out to a cheaper area.
Is there an option for working abroad for either of you before you have children? It may not fit your jobs, but if it does it really helped us to get the money we needed to put down as a deposit, and now we have the future security that we need. We may even go again when our children are a little bit older to pay off a chunk of this mortgage. Good luck, but don't give up because it is worth owning your own home for the future.

well, there's plenty of rental properties out there so no need to give money to slumlords. But oh look, the place is cheap...

you get what you pay for.

to answer the original question - if you've a way of paying rent once work stops then why not keep renting? you can move when you want and someone else pays to maintain the building.

Is this op for real? Help to buy is on any property new or old up to £600k.

And for those that extol the virtues of renting can I point out you are paying your landlords mortgage and any updates he does on the property. Landlords don't rent to you because they are a charity or to make a loss.

Anniegoestotown, why wouldn't it be? What do you not understand about some of the responses where people say that they can't pull together the kind of deposit required?

That's quite a new thing Anniegoestotown - not so long ago help to buy wasn't available on all properties - perhaps the OP is not aware of this. Otherwise, how is this not for real? It's really hard for young people to get together the monumental deposits required without family help or inheritance.

£350,000 for a one bed?!?!
We have just bought a 3 bed terrace in a naice village for £125,000 (needed a lot of redecorating admittedly) in Leicestershire.

Move! If buying is one of your goals, Move!

I don't understand this cry of Move, move! What if people can't just move?! Its a really naive position to adopt.

Help to buy on new build - you stump up 5% deposit. Gov gives you loan on 20% deposit. You get mortgage for 75%

Help to buy guarantee scheme - Gov guarantees part of your mortgage if you only have a 5% deposit. You do not get a loan for any part of the deposit.

Hope that helps Annie

When I say cheap special subject out rent on a 1 bed flat is £1100 a month which is 'reasonable' for the area.

Oh and there is a distinct lack of good quality affordable rent homes in London

But hey I guess I shouldn't expect much with only paying £1100 a month for a small one bed

OP - I completely agree about how renting shouldn't be a dirty word or seen as a stopgap. The European model is very different though and i think it would take a huge cultural shift to get there. That said, I'm sure i read somewhere that our obsession with home ownership is quite new? As in, last hundred years or so?

DH and i were one of the lucky group who were able to save and buy our own house without assistance. We live in Berks and our two bed is about £300k. We could have had a bigger place for that in the same village but prioritised character over space.

I say this all as my commute to the West End is faster than some of my colleagues living in zones 5&6. If you are set on buying, have you given thought to looking further out but still working where you do? I hear the Chiltern line into Marylebone is reliable and it sounds like that might work for both of you?

I thought Help to Buy was now available on any home? Or is that a different scheme?

Ah, sorry. Answered up thread. Thanks!

Princess and others: lots of info at www.helptobuy.org.uk on both the equity loan scheme and mortgage guarantee scheme.

yes, lastnight, Chiltern into Marylebone is a good suggestion, or maybe even the Metropolitan line which goes pretty far into Bucks too. Or what about Southend and surrounds or Herts for trains into Liverpool Street.

Where you currently are in Wembley can't be v convernient for your partner's work?

Thanks for the suggestions.

DP takes a bus to a tube into the city.

Thanks for that Coconutty! Really helpful. Hasn't thought of it.

I will quit my job, move 200 miles and immediately start claiming benefits. Sorted!