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Original poster

Would you rather be mortgage free or bigger house

124 replies

Bells3032 · 04/12/2022 16:04

Just a hypothetical for now but it may be due to the sale of a family business that in a few years we could have our mortgage paid off for us.

Our house is a very nice 4 bed semi, with an excellent school near us that we are pretty much guarented entry and can walk within 5 mins too. So it won't be for a few years til I can get our child into the school.

However there are a few things id like in a new home eg different kitchen, seperate playroom and a bigger bedroom as well as a bigger garden as ours is quite small and just a bit more space in general. There's no option to extend. I'd also like detached.

The area with most of the bigger houses is about a 20 min walk or 5 min drive from thr school but also v close to my family who I see a lot.

We have a good joint salary (6 figures between us). We have a one year old and looking to start ttc no 2 soon. Once we've had no 2 I'm likely to want to go part time but we can still afford life at thst salary even with our mortgage.

So would you pay off your mortgage and just enjoy life a bit more eg expensive holidays and days out or would you upgrade your house? Money won't be overally tight but we would need to budget.

We live in London too so a bigger house is likely to increase in value more than a current house.

Any thoughts? What would you do.

Tldr: would uou prefer a mortgage free life in a nice but not your dream house or a nicer house but have to budget?

OP posts:
Animallover87 · 04/12/2022 16:08

I think the sense of freedom of being mortgage free will be hard to beat. We need to buy a bigger house as we have DC1 on the way but if we didn't have to I wouldn't!

littlepeas · 04/12/2022 16:08

I'm in a similar position and we're choosing to be mortgage free . I strongly favour security in the current climate - our house isn't perfect, but it is our home - we are happy here and it suits our needs. We did add a small extension a year ago, which has improved our kitchen a lot - is there anything like that you can do?

ArrrrrghStopLickingTheDog · 04/12/2022 16:09

Personally I'd get a larger house, you can never have too much space when children are older and getting on your tits

Notimeforaname · 04/12/2022 16:09

Mortgage free.

Notimeforaname · 04/12/2022 16:09

It's a needs vs want thing

Minikievs · 04/12/2022 16:11

I was mortgage free and gave it up for a bigger house. Two kids and me in a house that was too small for us was watching more anxiety inducing than paying a mortgage. I found living in a house that was too small really, really stressful

Loafbeginsat60 · 04/12/2022 16:13

I would rather be mortgage free - and we are at the moment but just about to embark on building a big house with a big mortgage no doubt.

I'm trying to convince dh to scale it right back so that we don't end up with a massive mortgage and a big house for me to clean endlessly!!

Twiglets1 · 04/12/2022 16:13

I’ve always gone for a bigger better house when I’ve had more money (had 2 inheritances). Not saying that’s right but it does mean we’ve made more money on property going up in value.
It’s a very personal choice though.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 04/12/2022 16:14

Bigger house- being mortgage free wouldn’t change my life, disposable income is quickly eaten up. I also see how hard it is for my aunt to pay for her care as she never moved up the property ladder and so couldn’t really down size to release money in old age.

Cozytoesandtoast00 · 04/12/2022 16:15

I'm wrestling with this right now.
If we stay where we are (4bed semi) we could be mortgage free in a few years. Also we have lots of spare money. But I would love a larger period property.

JaceLancs · 04/12/2022 16:16

With the age if your DC bigger house - you will have later years mortgage free

Legallypinkish · 04/12/2022 16:17

We paid our mortgage off in our late 30’s. It’s been great being mortgage free. We did consider buying a bigger property but really our house was/Is perfect for our needs. Seeing our friends worrying now over interest rates etc I’m glad we did it.

Thelnebriati · 04/12/2022 16:17

I'd go mortgage free and save, but I'm cautious.

7Worfs · 04/12/2022 16:17

I’d stay put for a few years while the children are little and the economy is in tatters. You don’t need extra space currently and bigger house = more expenses.
Get a bigger house when you actually need it, e.g. 2 children close to end of primary. Next house can be closer to good grammars etc

userxx · 04/12/2022 16:17

Bigger house. I'm very nearly mortgage free, it doesn't excite me, I just crave more space!

Teadrinkingmumofone · 04/12/2022 16:18

Mortgage free, without a doubt.

MooseAndSquirrelLoveFlannel · 04/12/2022 16:18

In current times I would choose mortgage free, because I hate this financial uncertainty..

Were it not for a COL crisis, I would chose bigger house.

WednesdayFridayAddams · 04/12/2022 16:18

Mortgage free.

We have moved to a bigger house, it’s not huge but health has changed suddenly and this house now feels to big.
The old ‘you fill the space you have’ is also very true. We seem to have acquired more and more stuff that we really don’t need.

BringbackSpringsteen · 04/12/2022 16:19

Given that you already have a 4 bed semi with a garden, no, I wouldn't go for a bigger house for the sake of the things you mention. In London that's a fortune in stamp duty alone.

If you were in a 3 bed terrace and were looking at a 4 bed detached, that's a big enough upgrade to be lifestyle changing.

I would look at getting someone to advise you on laying out your current house better for your needs - the right kind of interior designer

BaileySharp · 04/12/2022 16:19

Your house sounds quite big already? Can't one of the 4 bedrooms be the playroom?

beachsandseaicecream · 04/12/2022 16:19

We're not near to being mortgage free but have opted to stay in a smaller much more affordable house rather than upsize. We'd rather have the disposable income.

LeFeu · 04/12/2022 16:20

We have a very similar situation, we’re in a 4 bed terrace, very close to schools and friends and amenities, things we’d like in a bigger house but have chosen to stay here and aim to be mortgage free in our 40s. I’d rather have the freedom to travel and be able to help our kids out financially when they are young adults than be shackled to a massive mortgage for another 30 years.

CoffeeBoy · 04/12/2022 16:21

Mortgage free, that’s what we did. Stayed in a biggish three bed semi and have never paid more than £200 a month mortgage and will be mortgage free next year in my mid 40s. Having the disposable income to do stuff has been amazing, nice holidays, buy dd a car, nice gym membership, etc.

ScroogeMcDuckling · 04/12/2022 16:22

It’s nice having disposable income, and not worrying when something needs repair/replacement.

its also nice to have a house that you are totally in love with.

Save up and get the dream house

Singleandproud · 04/12/2022 16:23

I decided to go mortgage free, I don't love where I live and was tempted to move a few years ago but ploughed the money back into my flat with new central heating, kitchen and bathroom etc. Being on my own means a don't have a giant weight on my shoulders and even with the cost of living crisis we are comfortable. It also means if I decide to stay here when Dd is grown I'll be able to scale back days at work and go part time if I wanted.

However our family is not growing and it's just 2 of us. The bigger the house the bigger the bills and the more stuff you buy to fill it. If you went bigger could you afford it alone if something happened to your partner and vice versa whether relationship breakdown, death, illness or disability?