AIBU telling DB to carefully consider his first house purchase

[madnessIsay]

DB & SIL are finally in a position to buy, great news. They are looking at 2 bed new build apartments or 2 bed ground maisonettes in south London. Budget of 580-600k which is approx 30% of their income. They are looking at TTC in 3 years & I have pointed out to them that whilst what they are looking at gives them good transport links, high street etc they need to look at school catchments & think about where any children may sleep. They think they will sell in 3-4 years so it won’t be a problem. I suggested that they should perhaps buy a 3 bed or small house further out so they can stay put if needs be or if not buy elsewhere & rent it out & continue renting here. Am I raining on their parade?

You sound very involved!

I’d say piss off and mind your own to be honest.

ha ha, that told me, they did actually ask me what I thought as we are close. We all live near to each other & our parents so spend probably too much time together!

You need to mind your own business!

Yes you are raining on their parade. They are adults and can make whatever life choices they see fit. Back off.

Thing is, you know all the stuff that will become vitally important when you have a 2 year old - schools, nurseries, nearby parks, bedroom space... they don't know any of that shizzle yet.

I think we can only do our lives a stage at a time. If they're getting their heads round mortgages and moving, they can't at the same time consider kids and their needs.

You know- they don't, yet. I'd just be quietly supportive. And maybe seek out a friend with children 5 years older than yours, and say "What should I be thinking about now?"

Don’t they share a room themselves? Why would a two-bed not be big enough?

You remind me of my mum tbh. She’ll make up any old shit under the guise of “advice” just so she can piss on other people’s chips.

Thanks Spiderdemon it’s just coming from a place of concern as I personally think the property market is a bit dodge at the moment, but will keep my mouth shut. I have 2 dcs & luckily the primary school is on the next road but I had a fair few nursery friends who lived 700+ metres away & didn’t get their first or second choice so I’m aware of how mental the whole school process is.

A 2 bed is fine I’m just concerned they will struggle to sell so soon after buying.

They may only have one child. They may not have children at all.

We bought a 3-bed, assuming we would fill it with children. It never happened so I filled it with clothes and shoes ha ha.

I'd leave them to it OP. Even if you're right, they won't appreciate it at the moment. Also, who's to say the local schools might be "outstanding" now, but in five years, they may have turned to shit. It does happen.

True DontCallMeCharlotte life doesn’t always go to plan. tbf I’m naturally quite cautious so projecting my fears perhaps.

You have given your advice. It is now up to them to weigh up all of it and reach their own decision. Otherwise you enter hectoring and browbeating territory if you keep offering up your view trying to convince them you are right.

You're way too involved, and actually your advice is completely wrong. TTC in three years - that's a long way in the future. They should buy two bed as far into London as they can afford, then if they need to sell when they want a second child or their first child is starting school, by that time the price of their London property will have risen loads. You make far more profit off a London property than one further out. Then they can use that profit to buy a bigger house further out if they want to.

You should never buy a property further out if you can afford one further in, especially if it's your first-time buy and you're looking to make some profit and move up the ladder. Your advice is completely terrible.

This hypothetical child probably won’t be going to school for another 9 years or so, and that’s if they have a child at all.

Madness to be banging on about London schools right now tbh.

I think you did the right thing, better to buy bigger now if they can afford it then have to move house for more space in a few years.
I think you have good advice.

Thing is, you know all the stuff that will become important when you have a 2 year old - schools, nurseries, nearby parks, bedroom space .. they don't know any of that

I am child free and this is blatantly obvious because it isn't rocket science. I would not assume they are not aware that people with children need to think about schools etc.

I completely disagree with Smallplant prices in many parts of SW London have stagnated over the last 3/4 years. We are not talking about the central London market as obviously 600k won’t get you far there. My advice to buy in zone 4 or 5 was because that way they could get a bigger property near schools so had the option of staying if needs be.

They asked me opinion, I gave it (I looked at moving in the summer but decided against it as it would have been a short term move) & won’t say anymore.

Their plan sounds fine to me. Get on the property ladder now; move in a few years for more space and schools.

Sounds sensible to me. They'll make their own decision, of course, but you'd be remiss as a caring family member not to remind them to consider these things, given that they did ask for your input. Whether you believe they ultimately make the right decision or not, that's the bit where you bite your tongue

I'm sure they can work out for themselves what they want/need. Have you got nothing else to worry about?

The only thing you should get them to consider is the cost of stamp duty for this and their next purchase because buying every few years just doesn't make financial sense in London every year

Buying for £600k means a £20k stamp duty bill
If they sell after 2 years, that's nearly £1k a month in stamp duty so is as much dead money as renting

But other than that, butt out!

tenbob yes that’s my concern. Potential interest rate rises & stamp duty may mean they actually sell for a loss but admittedly that’s why I stayed put & am doing the loft so it may be my projection.

madnessIsay it's not rocket science... Yes London house prices are stagnating at the moment, but properties in zone 1/2/3 are more valuable will have a bigger % rise than in those in zone 4/5/6 over a period of a few years. You don't really think they'll make a bigger profit on something further out? :S

Plus removing the element of where the property is, your advice is still bad. The best thing for first time buyers is to move up the ladder quickly. Start with a flat, sell it two or three years later, move onto something bigger. It's the standard advice for getting on and up the ladder. Buying a house on the outskirts of London and then just staying there is bad advice. Also letting their house out and renting somewhere else is not good advice either. Being a landlord is so much less profitable these days, there's lots of new regulations and hidden costs, many landlords are selling up.

If you care about them, advise them to speak to a mortgage advisor about their choices, so they can get some proper advice from someone who knows what they're talking about. I'd be very annoyed if my sibling was offering me unwanted advice like you are.

Their plan sounds very sensible and almost exactly what we’ve done. It isn’t unreasonable to expect to have 2 small DC in a 2 bed is it? There’s loads of childcare springing up around the nice new builds too in south London so I don’t know why you think that would be a problem.

You mean the mortgage will be 30% of their income? Rather than the actual purchase price is 30% of their income?
They asked your advice, you gave it and it's up to them to decide what to do now. I don't think there is anything else you can do.