To think that house buying is the norm in my world?

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NC’d for this, I was reading an article this morning about how ppl are finding it hard to get on the property ladder these days and I realized that literally every single one of my friends and family have been buying houses with relative ease for the past 10 years (I’m in my early 30’s!) so from what I can see it’s the norm to buy (and build houses) at around 24-26!! I wouldn’t say my friend have particularly high powered jobs either, most are nurses, teachers and have apprenticeships. A few even work in retail!!

That's nothing OP.
AIBU to think that buying superyachts is the norm for my world? OK, one friend had to get help from grandparents and a couple of friends did have to Summer on their parent's yachts for a while, but they got there in the end!

Flicks hair back 👸
Peasants. 🧐

In London, a very average 3 bed in a not very desirable area will set you back at least £600k so YABU. Want to buy a 3+ bedroom or in a nice area and you are looking at £800k +. The north is very cheap in comparison.

Depends where you are and what kinds of jobs you have. In 1984 the midwife coming to my house could not believe we owned our little terraced house out here in outer London zone 5 as people could not afford to buy much even then and we had come from the North where house prices were about a third or a quarter even then of London prices.

My 3 adult childre have all bought in their 20s in Londno (although one of those was out in Chesham at end of the tube line so not really London in his case). Mmy daughters picked the same career path I had - London law - which even 30 years ago was well paid but we all know that puts us in a very different position from those on lwo incomes in the London area, although perhaps not further North. in the place near Sunderland my mother is from houses cost about £50k

People laugh at me for the postcode I bought a house in. 🤷 Same people rent in a city centre and other expensive parts and moan about not being able to afford to buy because "I could never live in xx postcodes". It's actually lovely, safe, very low crime, quiet area only 15 min from the city centre and with all amenities needed within 8 min walk, but is under not so good postcode.

I am in North and bought just on my wages. Can't get my head around the prices down south!

I don’t think you live in an expensive city if you bought a flat for 100k four years go.

I live in a town a few miles from Oxford and a one bedroom flat in a bad part of town is around 160/170k. Prices appear to be dropping in our area though now.

@PicsInRed yeah but ppl don’t complain about not being able to by a super yacht and the article was about houses

I’m in my mid 30s and I live in Surrey. I am from London originally. None of my friends owns. None of my family (sisters, cousins) own. Neither do my parents. The only people who own their house, that I know, are much older relatives and my FIL.

I will never own a property, it is a complete pipe dream for me.

We bought our house when I was 22 and DP 24. That was nearly 4 years ago.

We both had graduate jobs.

We both lived with parents after graduation while we saved a deposit.

We live in the North West.

We bought a mid terrace house.

So yes we bought young but the factors of our situation were in our favour.

When I first graduated uni I applied for a lot of jobs in London but didnt get any. If I'd have got one and moved to the south east I'd still be no where near buying.

Most of the houses bought by friends varied from 160 to 250ish. Our first home was £230. So not cheap.

An ex council semi, still in a nice enough area, would be perhaps £130,000.

The same thing is around £450,000 where I live.

Part of the skewed topography is because we are rammed in like sardines down South! There are just lots of us here.
Those of us working in the state sector take home the same pay as those in cheaper parts of the country. Even those in better paying jobs in the City have expensive congested time guzzling commutes in return. It’s a different way of living and requires not only more money but more concessions to lifestyle to pay for a house. There are just less houses to buy and the cheaper ones get snapped up by landlords.

Sometimes I think we need two mumsnet boards. One for people in London and the home counties, and one for us northerners.

House prices (and the weather) are so different, and some posters just don't seem to get it. I am from London and still have family there so I know that there is a much higher percentage of people living in rented accommodation in London as buying a property is so far beyond their reach.

Conversely, most people I know own their own property where I live because housing is so much more affordable, even taking lower wages into account.

All I need now is for people to stop talking about "this heat" because it is warm where I live, not hot

Buying a house at a young age is the best way forward, instead of paying rent, having your own roof over your head is very secure. It was always my dream and now as an older person I have been mortgage free for over 15 years, which makes me more financially comfortable.

Most of DH’s school friends in the South West bought houses early on. Only a few had degrees. My friends almost all went through further education and took another 10 years or so to buy in London and SE.

It’s massively geographical but a lot of my friends moved around the country for education/work. Then might have gone abroad for 6-12 months. They ‘settled’ later in life.

I live in the East Midlands but grew up West Midlands. I had to move out of my parents home at 21 as I wasn't getting on with my step dad. I was a 'mature' student and I lived on my own in a rented flat, worked 3 part time jobs to pay the rent and afford to live as well as being a full time student (student loan only covered my rent). After I graduated I lived on £7 a week after bills and rent paid. I had a bad credit rating as I was never able to build my rating up + got a bit of debt. I did a degree in a subject that was pretty useless (art based) that has never got me a real career in this chosen field. I'm mid 30's now and work in the nhs as a band 3. I've never been able to save enough money for a deposit because I've had to be able to afford to live. My parents haven't been in a position to help with a substantial deposit. I've never been able to live at home in order to save up. Its not the norm in my social circle to own a house. It's probably a pretty even 50/50 split.
It's quite normal for people in Europe to never own their own home and they never seem to be judged for it which doesn't seem to be the case for the uk.
My husband has lived in this house for over 10 years and we have a really great relationship with our landlady. If something goes wrong with the house she is more than willing to help sort it out. I know that isn't always the case and we are lucky to have a good one. Currently we have no incentive to buy a property within the next 5 years. I've struggled the majority of my adult life to not be homeless so haven't been able to buy a house. I'm now in a position where, as a couple, we are comfortable & financially well off but see there are many benefits to renting property at present. We are now saving for a deposit and still live within our means, but we won't be sacrificing living our lives for it.

Most people I know who bought either had help off family, an inheritance or were on above average income.

In our area you can get houses really (£40-60,000) cheap, but you're going to have to do a lot of work on them.

you need to open your eyes op, consider the rest of the country

There's a word in your post that is relevant. ''We''.

It still takes a couple both saving hard for the bones of a decade to put down a deposit on a very very ordinary house. That is the reality.

Your post implies that your circle have various advantages.. But this is the way of the world.

I agree OP. We bought a house 2 years ago on average salaries, not in the north and with no help from family.
It is definitely doable, we didn't even have to give much up but we haven't been on holiday for a while though. Gets a bit annoying people whining about it but they still go out every Saturday night and spunk £100.
I'm not boasting, I'm just saying if you want to buy a house and you plan it out, you can do it.

educate yourself op

Did they live at home to save the deposit? Or did they get a redundancy payment, inheritance or gift from parents?

laughing at curioussamphire because it's so true! I fully understand why people might not want to move to the North/Wales/Midlands if their job and families are based in the South East but this absolute disbelief that houses in actually very nice areas, even capital cities (Cardiff/Belfast rather than Edinburgh!) can be very affordable to a lot of the population makes me laugh. I mean, all you have to do is go on rightmove and do a five second search.

The same with the insistence that everybody who has bought a house did so due to a large deposit from their family - there's no understanding that most people outside of the South East won't have thousands of pounds to give their children for deposits because their own houses won't have gone up anywhere near as much as people who did buy at the right time in the right areas. There are houses in the South Wales valleys that are worth maybe £15k more than they were twenty years ago, if that - you simply don't have the stories like the poster above whose house has tripled in value over the same time period making £££££

I'm in my late twenties and nearly all my friends/workmates of the same age in my area (close to both the sea and several cities) own their home, and lots have done so for at least the past five years despite being on very normal salaries.

If a house is only £120,000 then it is actually completely doable to save a 5% deposit yourself without any family help by not having a holiday for a year or two/cutting down on takeaways and avocados and all the other handy tips those articles mocking millennials suggest - of course if you need a twenty grand deposit then minor cutbacks won't go so far.

It's quite normal for people in Europe to never own their own home and they never seem to be judged for it which doesn't seem to be the case for the uk.

www.statista.com/statistics/246355/home-ownership-rate-in-europe/

i agree with sleepyquest.

I’ve noticed people tend to prioritise weddings too. I know a few people who had big fancy weddings but don’t own a house.

I can understand not owning however in places like London.
I wouldn’t even want to buy a house there though. Money pit!