If you paid £1m+ for your house...

[propertydetective]

How old were you and how?
If just from savings/earnings, what sort of level were you at financially?

Sorry to be nosey. DH and I live in a three bed semi, we've been here a year and it's worth £550k. We don't have children yet but have dogs and realise that it's pretty annoying not having the space we desire and would prefer detached to not piss off our neighbours.

In our area a 4 bed detached can range from £850k-£1m+, we live by the coast in a commuter town so the closer you get to the sea, of course the prices rise. I found a house we would love to buy in the future just to figure out prices, that was listed for £950k. The houses are never on for more than a week before SSTC so they always seem to go for the asking price or thereabouts.

And my AIBU, is it just stupid to potentially have such a big mortgage? I'm 26 now and we have achieved everything with 0 financial help and we are really proud. But likewise, we will seriously need promotions/luck to get the money together.

We can currently get a mortgage for around £500k meaning we either need major promotions or to win some money. I like to dream though...

I think most people know that others work hard for less money. Doesn’t mean people earn more shouldn’t use there money how they wish.

@lborgia

It’s a good job we never know anyone irl on here. If I knew the people who justify their high salaries by saying “we worked bloody hard” I would line them up and shoot them.

It’s got sod all to do with it. Nurses work bloody hard, 10 hour supermarket shifts are bloody hard. Being home alone with a child with profound special needs is bloody hard.

Jammy, and made-the-most-of-our-good-fortune would be more accurate I should think.

No hard work, effective work, an eye to the future and a willingness to make sacrifices and move, when necessary to reach your goals.

Other do undoubtedly work hard. Many could achieve more but choose not to. Nothing but mindset to stop nurses qualifying and continuing to gain experience and postgraduate qualifications so that they can gain promotion. Plenty of nurses with doctorates or MBA's on perfectly reasonable salaries.
Usually nothing to stop supermarket workers gaining additional qualifications and promotion and ending up in very well paid roles.

It is hard if you have a child with complex needs, but unlike on MN, most children do not have special needs.

Jammy and good fortune rather belittles the amount of work that people put in to achieve higher paid positions.

@LemonRoses you are correct. I made choices years ago that meant people thought I was nuts. I had a high income but lived on a low income.
I never ever gave us more than 25k to live a year despite earning much more this was so I could pay of mortgage quicker and now I’m in the position where I can expand and live life.
But desire my higher than some income I lived a lot less luxury life than many of my peers at the time in less well paid jobs.

@Troublewaters2021 Us too. We went for the longer term gains

Nothing but mindset to stop nurses qualifying and continuing to gain experience and postgraduate qualifications so that they can gain promotion. Plenty of nurses with doctorates or MBA's on perfectly reasonable salaries. Usually nothing to stop supermarket workers gaining additional qualifications and promotion and ending up in very well paid roles

Then there wouldn’t be enough “well paid roles” to go round - or anybody doing the real work at the coalface. It’s very lucky for society that some people have what high achievers consider low aspirations or there would be nobody stacking shelves or nursing sick patients.

First house I purchased at 24 was a flat in a then very unfashionable part of East London. It was a terrible flat, with terrible neighbours and I lost money on it. Three moves on I moved into my current house which I paid 1.2m for and is now worth c 2m. I trained initially as an accountant (whilst I was in the terrible flat), worked my way up after qualifying and took a part time MBA. Hard work but I would not have it any other way.

Other point I would make is that I have been prepared to move roles and location quite often. So over since owning my first house I have lived in two countries and four UK cities. Flexibility to move I think is quite important, and for me having a DH and family who would move with me.

Im 34, and could buy a £1m now if I wanted, upgrading my current house.

Dont earn a high income. But have saved 50% of my earnings for the last 10 years /overpaid mortgages. Got married to someone who earns average wage, but also saves well.

I have friends who earn over double what I do, but have a lower net worth; because they keep holidaying, eating out and buying fancy cars. (And yes, those Starbucks lattes do add up millenials)

Hmme on the hard work/salary note.... It's not just about hard work is it. I work/have worked hard and have particular qualifications and skills. My mates who earn big bucks also worked hard. The difference is the area they chose to work in. So they all went into accountancy, management consultancy, IT consultancy and finance (think bank of England/oversight type roles). I have a responsible demanding role, they too have responsible demanding roles but frankly the work sounds boring and the corporate environment irritating as fuck not aligned with my values.
So you need the aptitude to enter those careers (we are talking people who were straight A's at A-level, top flight uni's etc) and the willingness to focus on working in careers that earn big bucks. I just couldn't get excited about the work that they do so am content with our 3 bed terrace. On the other hand l love my job and am now at the point where I can chat to my kids of an evening whereas their corporate paymasters all make sure they are working long hours still.
OP if you want the massive detached house pivot to one of the above careers and hire a nanny/don't have kids

It's interesting because I'm in my mid thirties, in a professional job, with all my friends also being educated and in well paid mid-level careers. All of us only ended up buying in our late 20s/early 30s in the SE and most of because we had inheritance. We're all in properties around the £400 - £500,000 mark and absolutely no one owns multiple properties.

Million pound properties are a long way off. I'd say it's harder to make money from property now (some people here mention flats doubling in price, that's just not going to happen) so equity becomes harder to gain to put towards future properties.

I always find the idea of 'hard work' in this context crazy, the vast majority of us work hard!

@Elbels

It's interesting because I'm in my mid thirties, in a professional job, with all my friends also being educated and in well paid mid-level careers. All of us only ended up buying in our late 20s/early 30s in the SE and most of because we had inheritance. We're all in properties around the £400 - £500,000 mark and absolutely no one owns multiple properties.

Million pound properties are a long way off. I'd say it's harder to make money from property now (some people here mention flats doubling in price, that's just not going to happen) so equity becomes harder to gain to put towards future properties.

I always find the idea of 'hard work' in this context crazy, the vast majority of us work hard!

I know so many in my old school who used to c**k about in lessons, bunk off, drink/smoke and be thugs.

Guess who are still in minimum wage jobs now and/or doing cash in hand work?

(I got straight A's. But my first job after Uni was also £5/hr. But instead of resigning myself to that role, I kept working, kept applying,and kept pushing myself)

@FedNlanders

We are struggling to get a 180k mortgage between 2 of us. How do people do it?

By coming on MN and telling porkies, thats how most of them do it 🤣

@Whammyyammy

I find people are at their most honest online, lol.

I think there's a difference between those dossing around.

I also got all As, first class degree but started my career in the third sector. I made strategic decisions to move into the private sector a few years in and am now considered one of the top performers in my extended team.

However, I absolutely have no worked harder than my SiL who is a nurse, or a friend of mine who is a teacher. We've just chosen different paths.

I'm late 50's live in a 3 bed semi worth 290000 mortgage paid off in my 40's. NHS worker over 30 years I'm happy enough have savings and my pension to come to.
Would love to move house but my plans are to travel and see as much of this world before I pop my clogs

A house is a house. Yes it must be amazing to live in a big beautiful house and I absolutely have no problems with those with the means to achieve the million pound house.

After the last year though I have come to the conclusion there is more to life than possessions. Life is for living I want to experience the world and all it has to offer.

Whilst sitting in a million pound house must be lovely it wouldn't be up there on my list of priorities.

First house was 115k many years ago. Then pay the mortgage, save, sell and bought something else.
Career is in technology. Also started with a basic job and got better jobs over time.
My parents were working-class so no money gifts.
Purchased a new build for 2.1m late last year. I'm late 50s.
I'm not even sure why at this point. I live alone.

lborgia
That’s the commment of the year! 👏👏👏totally agree with you on that one.

Bluntness100
Omg that’s really opened my eyes. Who the fuck would pay 1.5 m for that? In my world, 1.5 would be a 7 bedroom detached house with Anex with all the trimmings

£1m where I live would just buy you an ex-council terrace. Or a Victorian 2/3 bed terrace possibly, Hardly the high life. And I don’t even live in the most expensive part of London.

Both 34. It was a combination of the proceeds of the sale of our first house (which was 1/3 funded by a gift from my very wealthy parents) and by a chunk of the money we got from the sale of our tech startup.

We did it "by ourselves" but it's easy to do things "by yourself" when you have zero debts and a supportive family urging us to take risks because they'd catch us if we fell.

We are in our late 50s and got on the property ladder when we were 33/35. We live in a 3 bed terrace and despite having a good, consistent joint income, have never been ablw to afford the move up to a 4 bed, let alone detatched. You are being quite ambitious at your age I would say.

@Alsohuman

Nothing but mindset to stop nurses qualifying and continuing to gain experience and postgraduate qualifications so that they can gain promotion. Plenty of nurses with doctorates or MBA's on perfectly reasonable salaries. Usually nothing to stop supermarket workers gaining additional qualifications and promotion and ending up in very well paid roles

Then there wouldn’t be enough “well paid roles” to go round - or anybody doing the real work at the coalface. It’s very lucky for society that some people have what high achievers consider low aspirations or there would be nobody stacking shelves or nursing sick patients.

I don’t disagree - although most very senior nurses and doctors I know work incredibly hard and much longer hours to band 5s. That isn’t being dismissive of their contributions but just acknowledging that it is a choice. There are opportunities if people want higher salaries for bigger houses. Not everyone does, and that’s fine too.

Just please don’t underestimate the cost of bills and maintenance

most very senior nurses and doctors I know work incredibly hard and much longer hours to band 5s

Working hard isn’t about long hours, it’s how those hours are spent. I worked in the NHS for years; the lower the band on the frontline, the more demanding the work. Nobody works harder than junior docs. And most people wouldn’t last five minutes as a care assistant in a residential home.

@Alsohuman

most very senior nurses and doctors I know work incredibly hard and much longer hours to band 5s

Working hard isn’t about long hours, it’s how those hours are spent. I worked in the NHS for years; the lower the band on the frontline, the more demanding the work. Nobody works harder than junior docs. And most people wouldn’t last five minutes as a care assistant in a residential home.

I’m not sure I’d necessarily agree. It entirely depends on the individual. There are hard working care assistants and some you wouldn’t let look after a hamster. Same with junior doctors; some hard working and some less so.

Either way, it’s irrelevant. The point being made was that it’s a choice as to whether to remain content in a lower paid job of to focus on gaining a better paid one.