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AIBU?

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Original poster

AIBU-Sick of the narrative that young people can’t buy homes?

439 replies

Henryhoover12 · 12/01/2022 17:04

I had a heated discussion with some friends who said it’s “impossible for young people to get on the property ladder these days”.If they do their parents either lent them the money, gifted them the money or they lived at home rent free to save up. It’s not just my friends a lot of people of this age go on about it.

As a young person myself I’m bloody sick of this narrative, anything can be done if your willing to make sacrifices and prioritise for your goals which most young people aren’t. I purchased my own 4 bedroom home at 22 (few months ago) WITHOUT any help from family and whilst paying rent on a flat WITHOUT help from my family to pay for.

I called out all my friends who are blaming how it’s going on their ability to stop online shopping for new outfits every event, going out for cocktails, getting hair/nails/tan done weekly, Taking flashy cars out on finance, etc. that if they stopped then they to could buy but I got told I was being extremely unreasonable and that it’s impossible, well is it or do they not just like to hear the truth.

OP posts:
Original poster
Henryhoover12 · 12/01/2022 17:17

Just few things:

  • I was the first in my family to go to uni so never had parents who had contacts to get me into jobs (unlike my friends and their luck in that) I worked really hard on my education and got myself in my position.
-never had a inheritance nor will I ever get one. I’ve just always had part time job when studying -I purchased in wales which is cheaper then other places but all my friends live here so we’re talking about the context of buying in wales being impossible which is not.
OP posts:
AlDanvers · 12/01/2022 17:17

Its not universally true that young people can nor afford to buy a house. Bit it is the case in a lot of the country.

The the town I live in, houses are still very cheap. A small 3 bed terrace is around 120k. It is achievable for alot of young people. Not all but plenty of them.

But then it's quite easy to understand the house would be worth a lot more in the south east and put of their reach.

EileenGC · 12/01/2022 17:18

@thanksamillion

If you're only 22 and have done 3 years at uni how did you save enough for a deposit? I'm assuming you've worked alongside your studies which is admirable but not realistic for everyone.
Even I, who started uni at 16, couldn’t have saved for a deposit by 22. And I was admirably working two or three part time jobs throughout my degree. Why? Because I was working to pay for rent and food. I’m starting to doubt OP’s story seriously now…
MedusasBadHairDay · 12/01/2022 17:18

@TulipsGarden

So you went to uni and then travelled, but you're still only 22 and have bought a house? In the year since you left uni?

Mmmhmmm, sure.

But.. but.. she worked really hard in that year 😂
doadeer · 12/01/2022 17:19

Lol a 4 bed house round me is 1.2 million - I'm guessing you didn't save 120k for a deposit by 22?

WarrickDavisAsPlates · 12/01/2022 17:19

@Henryhoover12

Honestly I had no help from my parents, they were never in a position to help me and so I was always raised with the mindset that if I want something I work for it. I agree it’s so much more difficult then before but if it’s all we ever know is it? we have only ever known house prices to be this much and so I always knew I had to work hard to get that and so I did.

Also I did make sacrifices but I never didn’t enjoy being young, I was at uni for three years and then I travelled for a bit. So it’s not like I stayed at home watching life go by to afford it

So how did you afford it?

Im assuming you graduated uni at 21? Went travelling for... a few months? Got a job which you must have worked for over 6 months ro have the relevant paperwork to get a mortgage.

Moved into a rented flat and still saved enough for a deposit on a £200 grand house (I'm guessing the price based on the cheapest 4 beds in can find on rightmove)

So you must be in a High paying job, so surely you can see that if would be more difficult for someone on half your wage or less?

Ariela · 12/01/2022 17:20

@Doggoo

Where do you live? I’d guess not in London or the south east.
My DD1 at 22 could afford a small flat (but doesn't want a flat) in a not so desirable area of a local big town. She has the deposit but is trying for a better paid job to save more to afford a better property.(South East)
carolsforxmas · 12/01/2022 17:20

You are right in that some people could buy if they made sacrifices and saved. However, there are just as many people who won't be able to such as people buying alone on one average or low salary, or people with outgoings that cannot be reduced.

It is definitely more difficult. When I started working I could have bought the house I rent now on my single, graduate salary due to high borrowing multiples and 100% mortgages. Now I would need a huge deposit, which would take years to save even with sacrifices and would still need the same borrowing multiple, even with years of career progression.

lastqueenofscotland · 12/01/2022 17:21

Cheap location bingo!

MargaretThursday · 12/01/2022 17:21

So you've done 3 years at uni, (aged 18-21yo normally) and travelled for a bit (a year?) and are only 22 but saved enough for a 4 bedroom house.

And while we're dreaming I'd like someone to take me on a holiday somewhere warm with a pool and I'd like to be a size 8 without having to diet and eat as much chocolate as I like.

Anyone else?

Usernamenotavailabletryanother · 12/01/2022 17:21

That’s nice. You sound happy.

TimBoothseyes · 12/01/2022 17:21

Of course you did dear. Hmm

EileenGC · 12/01/2022 17:21

so we’re talking about the context of buying in wales being impossible which is not

That’s a bit of a drip feed, don’t you think? And it’s not probably in a large city either.

Generally no, young people can’t buy a house. You were probably very lucky to be able to save whilst studying, 99% of students can’t do that (not for lack of trying!). You are lucky to have a job that can be done from wherever you live. Congratulations on your house - don’t rub it in other people’s faces.

Those of us who are 22 and not home owners have sacrificed and worked just as hard as you, if not more.

WindyState · 12/01/2022 17:22

It's an absolute fact that house prices are now completely out the reach of most young people.

So take your smug little grin and sod off, frankly.

Getyourarseofffthequattro · 12/01/2022 17:22

@drpet49

** As a young person myself I’m bloody sick of this narrative, anything can be done if your willing to make sacrifices and prioritise for your goals which most young people aren’t. I purchased my own 4 bedroom home at 22 (few months ago) WITHOUT any help from family and whilst paying rent on a flat WITHOUT help from my family to pay for.**

22 years old and purchased a 4 bedroom house with no help from family and you been renting.

Right.

My first house was a 4 bed, I was 19 but it was in a total shit hole and nearly ten years ago. It can be done in super cheap areas. There was two wages going towards it though. Our desposit was tiny.

It is undoubtedly harder now.

Elliebelli · 12/01/2022 17:22

Where I live in London 1 bed flats cost £1500/month to rent, about 450k to buy and as for a 4 bed house, you’re looking at at least 1.5 million. So without my help/ given a inheritance, I have no idea how my kids would be able to buy a place.

OP, you clearly come from/ live in a much cheaper part of the country, so yes find getting on the property ladder independently an achievable thing.

Original poster
Henryhoover12 · 12/01/2022 17:22

I’ve worked since I was 16 through my A-Levels and all through uni, even then people moaned they couldn’t do both it was impossible but it wasn’t you just had to put the work in. The only difference at all between my friends and I who are pretty much in the exact position is that they splash about £400 a month on pretty little thing their Audi A1 cost them about £300 on finance and god knows how much they spend on going out drinking. So yes I do think that if they stopped spending that money on trying to look cool and Trent they can buy a house

OP posts:
sweetieqie · 12/01/2022 17:23

Uh huh

oviraptor21 · 12/01/2022 17:23

I'd assume OP gets a pretty decent wage (presumably not courtesy of family connections as PP suggested) and/or they live in a relatively cheap area of the UK.
So yes it can be done but it's by no means easy.
But for a small starter studio flat for a graduate starting on average graduate pay and not needing to live to centrally it should be possible - with tight money management.
For non-graduates and/or those in lower income jobs it won't be possible. However, I'm not sure that's particularly an issue. More of an issue is the lack of affordable social housing and private rental properties.

Ozanj · 12/01/2022 17:23

How feasible this is depends on your location and salary and how quickly you can save a deposit though. For example my cousin recently bought a 4 bed house in rural wales for roughly 200k on a 25k salary. He only borrowed 100k as he lived at home from 16-25 and saved most of his salary.

Another cousin has just turned 25 and earns nearly a 100k and he’s struggling to even find a flat he can afford let alone a three bed house - but he’s a london based consult and due to his work and other personal commitments needs to be between zones 1-2. So he rents and is saving for when he can leave London.

Neither situation makes one of my cousins more superior than the other: there is no moral value in scrimping and saving to buy a house when you’re young. And actually it’s probably better to wait until you’re a bit older and have more saved as a deposit so you are less vulnerable to mortgage interest fluctuations.

Fatgalslim · 12/01/2022 17:24

Well I'm calling bollocks because there's no way you saved enough for a deposit after uni for 3 years AND travelling AND paying rent and bills AND the fact you're only 22.

If it is true please, tell us how you managed to save for the deposit on a 4 bedroom house after working for probably a year, maybe 2

LumosSolem · 12/01/2022 17:24

@Henryhoover12

Just few things:
  • I was the first in my family to go to uni so never had parents who had contacts to get me into jobs (unlike my friends and their luck in that) I worked really hard on my education and got myself in my position.
-never had a inheritance nor will I ever get one. I’ve just always had part time job when studying -I purchased in wales which is cheaper then other places but all my friends live here so we’re talking about the context of buying in wales being impossible which is not.
Depending on whereabouts in wales, you are talking incredibly cheap compared to the unremarkable M4 corridor town in England where I live.

I know of someone who bought a 2 bed house in the valleys, about 90 mins drive from me, for about 70-80k. Would have been 3 times the price where I live.

So it's easy to come and gloat about home ownership when you live in a far cheaper area of the country.

It's a really unpleasant thread to be honest that fails to acknowledge the many aspects that have changed over the past generation, that is making it far harder for many younger people to own their own homes today. Insane property prices, depressed wages and incredibly high costs of living being some of those factors.

Why as a younger person would you not want to acknowledge how difficult it has become (I know it's never been easy btw) for your peers, through no fault of their own?

Bambam2019 · 12/01/2022 17:24

You’ve still not really told us what sacrifices you made, what you have up, how you got the deposit, how much the deposit was and the price of the house. Of course we aren’t really entitled to know that information, but if you’re going to tell everyone that they can do something, then tell us how.
Where I live, a 4 bed is anywhere between 500-600K…..so you’d need at least a 50K deposit and I’m really keen to know how you saved that in a year (well less than a year, since you went travelling, and I’m assuming you saved for that as well, so must have been earning a lot at a part time job whilst at university….)

Dottybackorcid · 12/01/2022 17:24

OP stop drip feeding, HOW much is the house you bought? Let us see how feedable your claim is for others.

Burnt0utMum · 12/01/2022 17:24

Please explain how this is possible. Even in a cheap part of the country you'd have to be on a significant salary to save that quickly.