Owning a home

[Tobe123]

Ok so I don't want to end up feeling deflated after this post but here goes, pretty simple really. I am 30, married with kids both work but standard wages and we do have debt. Is there anyone that brought a home later on in life? I feel like I am running out of time to pay off all debts £10k (not lavish holidays and handbags debt) and save for a deposit. I wish this country wasn't obsessed with buying and then I wouldn't feel as pressured or like I am just a renting fool as it is dead money! Having young kids it is hard to save and when we do try something crops up and holds us back!

So is there still hope?

Thanks

My parents bought their first house after I had left home. It was much easier for them to buy a home that suited a couple rather than a family and they were happy to move away from an area we had lived in for a long time and start afresh, just the two of them. It's never too late, OP, but you may have to move and start a whole new life to afford to buy a place.

We bought at 37/38. I had a minor amount of debt to pay off and then save up. I love owning my own house. Your kids won't be small forever. You will prob be working at least 30 more years plenty of time to pay off a mortgage. Depends on area and house price too I guess....

I know a first time buyer who is in his late 40s. It's not too late!

We bought our first house at 32. Took us that long to save a decent deposit and decide where we actually wanted to live!

It can be done but eliminating debt and ensuring to pay the best prices possible are key - I can't believe what friends on really low incomes pay for things like phones (they are debt essentially) I've been helping my employee financially plan because he's in a state and it left me aghast (the only reason I'm in my position is because of sensible financial decisions not a silver spoon) we bought first house together at 31 btw.

Do a spreadsheet, get everything budgeted for, check you are on the best deals, work out realistic goals and then once you get a 10-15% deposit look at buying but don't fixate on a date, if you are 40 it's still over 25 years to retirement

Thankyou everyone!! Good to know! Sorry I know you are all not my financial adviser but do you have to clear all debt before even being looked at for a house? As this is the impression I am under. Also if I were to buy a house later on and still have 25 years to pay off my mortgage wouldn't this mean that the payments will be sky high as they are divided over less years to pay?

Yes I have lowered phone contracts, got rid of Sky, swapped broadband to get it cheaper, shop at Aldi etc (we don't spend noway near enough on food as we should do for a family of 4) so hopefully these efforts will pay off, for example though and I'm not moaning we will have some money to put away and then we have to pay for dental treatment etc so that takes us back down slightly just small things like that, that takes extra money.

It's tricky also because yes if we want a house then we need to knuckle down and cut costs- we can't have it all and then I am torn thinking the children are only small once and I want to give them memories and what if they don't get another holiday during their childhood because we are so busy trying to save and would they prefer holidays or to inherit a house which they wouldn't even know about until they are really old! I have got my priorities sorted by the way, just thinking out loud!

Thanks again

I bought later, late 30's I think 30's is normal ish now for people to buy. It hard to rent and save

Spanglyprincess1 ah that's really good to hear! It's really hard to rent and save definitely! I hear of people's mortgages and I'm like wow my rent is hundreds more than that! But they made better financial choices so good for them

I'm 45 and I'm just about to buy my first home.

Live in a really expensive area.

I bought early but the trade off is just as you say, no holidays for the children. Scaled back adventures, birthday and Christmas compared to their friends. It's worth it for the stability and security.

For what it's worth, I wouldn't really be concerned about not owning until 42 if you want a 25 year mortgage to take you to retirement.

Ahh well done BackT!!

I bought my first property with my fiancé last year when I was 38 & he was 43! We’re in London so it’s expensive.
We didn’t have debt other than maybe £500 odd on a credit card, but I believe any debt repayments would be taken into account when the lender works out how much you can borrow. So it’s not exactly a case of you “can’t” have any debt. The lender will just want to know that you earn enough to pay the mortgage as well as any debts.

I bought young,but then divorced and was out of the housing market for years. Have just bought at 45, 25 year mortgage that we’ll chip away at to bring down the term. I also work for a mortgage company, and so long as you can afford repayments, and to keep paying off your debts you’d be considered for a mortgage now. Look at government help to buy where you only need a 5% deposit on a new build. It’s a great scheme.

Thanks OneRingToRuleThemAll!

Thankyou for your responses! I feel reassured now, I was concerned that I would have it hanging over me of the pressure to save, get to an older age and then it be too late so question why did I spend all the previous years worrying and then it not be achievable anyway! 2ndAugust Brilliant thanks I will take a look, I do get worried trying to save for a house and pay off all the debt at the same time so I'm glad debt has not ruled me out completely!

What is your joint income, what is your expenditure excluding rent? What area are you looking in?