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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:
FootsATapping · 04/12/2022 17:36

We did long term planning and knew that our last house would be too small if we sized up our young children into teens and what space would they have. Plus 4 adults in that kitchen would have been tight. We thought about not just primary schools but what were the options for secondary schools too.

We moved to a house with a massive playroom so that all their toys, games, tv with gaming console as they got older etc could live in there and the lounge would never be cluttered with toys. We could leave lego builds out or half finished jigsaws and simply close the door on it. Bliss.

They are now late teens and the playroom is now a study for them, a place to do homework/uni work and watch their own streaming stuff. The house had the potential to grow with us as a family. Absolutely no regrets despite the cost. In the last house we would have been almost mortgage free now but on top of each other with no space and a teeny garden.

FairyLightAddict · 04/12/2022 17:42

Mortgage free.

CarefreeMe · 04/12/2022 17:43

It depends how much smaller the current house is.

It sounds like it’s a pretty big house anyway.

If possible, my ideal solution would be that I would spend a couple of years mortgage free and both drop our hours so we had free time to just enjoy being parents and taking up some extra hobbies.

Then in a couple of years when the DC are a bit older both go back to work FT and then get the bigger house which is a good investment.

Tayegete · 04/12/2022 17:44

Definitely mortgage free. We are working towards this now by significantly overpaying the mortgage. We extended into the loft to get a fourth bedroom. Kitchen is still small but not having a mortgage will change our life, enable us to retire early etc whilst having a bigger kitchen won’t.

Hbh17 · 04/12/2022 17:45

We opted for mortgage-free many years ago, and never regretted it. Still live in our first, small house but it also means there is less urgency in downsizing at retirement!

Twopeasinthesamepod · 04/12/2022 17:48

I must admit it’s very reassuring to be mortgage free, particularly when one considers the current financial climate. Where finances are concerned I think it’s always better to judge with your head and not your heart.

Justwanttobebythesea · 04/12/2022 17:49

We went for the bigger house last year and it's great, I feel so much happier. We now, amongst other benefits, have a playroom (although mine are older so it's more a tv / music practice / sleepover) room.

I got the claustrophobic feeling before and used to have to get out of my old house -I don't have this now we are no longer on top of each other.

BFPDec21 · 04/12/2022 17:51

Oh to be mortgage free! We just got screwed remortgaging two months after I gave birth so if I had a massive windfall which would pay it all off, that's the very first thing I'd want to do. The freed up money would change our life drastically.

Proudofitbabe · 04/12/2022 17:52

House. I love my house, it genuinely brings me more pleasure than anything else I could buy. We all come home to it every day and wake up here every morning, it's worth the financial burden.

ZenNudist · 04/12/2022 17:53

No good answer as its so personal.

I've been mortgage free since my mid 30s but as dc have grown we want a bigger house (we are large 4 bed semi but dh wants a loft conversion so we each have a separate office as well).

Thing is the bigger houses are not much more space, slightly bigger rooms but usually requires work and for one reason or another aren't quite as convenient as current house. Plus it's say £300k more mortgage. I'm a high earner and dh does OK plus has inheritance so we could afford it. I remain ambivalent.

I like the idea of being in a more impressive house but it's still a risk compared to our current life. I buy what I want. We take nice holidays. We eat out and have treats a lot.

Sashamia · 04/12/2022 17:53

Really depends on your sense of security and that's different for everyone. Lots of people move up the mortgage ladder to get more out out price appreciation which is not guaranteed but over time it does happen. Risks vs reward. And your risk appetite changes as you go through stages in your life when things look certain/ uncertain no longer look the same.

I would say at this stage hold off on committing to a large mortgage, use the funds to pay off current mortgage, have No2, take first one to school, and then see if secondary school options are good in the area, you still like the house when there are 4 of you. Then you can decide if a bigger house is needed and the equity is there in the current house. The economy and your income will be very different then. Keep your options open.

Dontsparethehorses · 04/12/2022 17:54

There was a time when I was adamant we would move into a bigger detached house however now we are perfectly happy and will be mortgage free around same time kids go to university which will be perfect. Being content with what you have is a definite gift

Ilovemycar77 · 04/12/2022 17:54

We could afford a property up to £1.5mill based on affordability

However, I love the fact we only have £60k and 2 years left to pay off our mortgage and in our mid 40s.

I don’t ever want to be bulked down with a big mortgage just because you can. Nobody knows what’s around the corner!

I would far rather have money to spare every month and save, plus go on holidays when we want than a crazy big house which would also cost a whole lot more to heat and run.

However, everybody’s needs are different, only you can decide what’s best.

nanodyne · 04/12/2022 17:55

Mortgage free until you don't have nursery fees to think about anymore - we have 6 figure combined income and live up north but nursery fees are still absolutely eye watering. It'd likely mean you could keep your level of disposable income the same, would be a bad idea to buy bigger just as the market starts to dip.

ZenNudist · 04/12/2022 17:58

Twopeasinthesamepod · 04/12/2022 17:48

I must admit it’s very reassuring to be mortgage free, particularly when one considers the current financial climate. Where finances are concerned I think it’s always better to judge with your head and not your heart.

Yeah reassuring that's the word. I feel very secure. I looked at a bigger house a few doors down recently. In terms of convenience it was same as our house so we seriously considered it. It would have been a money pit to heat and rennovate/ maintain. I kept thinking about how safe I feel in the house I own outright. If I move the new place would have to be really amazing to be worth the risk.

vinoandbrie · 04/12/2022 18:00

I’ve only read the OP, so haven’t read the consensus!

My first thought is, you’re too young to stop now. Get the detached house, climb the ladder, you are building wealth for your family by doing that.

I know the housing market is slated to fall, but this could work in your favour - your current home may be worth a little less, but if the home you’re aiming for falls by the same % then it’s to your benefit. And prices will come back in due course - by the time the children are grown / much older and you want to sell the detached, you will be realising a nice gain.

Good luck whatever you decide!

confusedlots · 04/12/2022 18:05

If I was on my own I'd definitely go mortgage free if I could, it would give me peace of mind. But with a family I would go for a bigger house, it's not nice being squeezed into a smaller house with children, and I'd have someone to share the financial responsibility with e.g. if one of us lost our job

RitaFires · 04/12/2022 18:06

Being mortgage free is a wonderful feeling and gives you great security. The only situation where I'd choose a bigger house instead is when there's an obvious big benefit to doing so like going from on street parking to a big drive that fits multiple cars or a lot more rooms, where it's solving a clear problem in your current property. Moving for a bigger garden can be worth it but it really depends on you and your lifestyle, if you never use the garden day to day then it doesn't really matter how big it is.

Cornelious · 04/12/2022 18:09

We chose mortgage free in our late 30's. It's an amazing feeling. We make sure that we've used the equivalent money to put into a LISA and increase pension contributions otherwise I'd have spent it! However we love our house and never want to move again. If you don't love your house and think you'll move at some stage (5,10 years etc) then I'd bite the bullet and get what you want now.

TheChosenTwo · 04/12/2022 18:11

Bigger house for me. My house is plenty big enough but the bedrooms aren’t particularly spacious, I’d like more room.
we bought it as a 3 semi and have smashed it to bits and rebuilt it, now a 5 bed with a large rear extension. We’ve sacrificed some garden space obviously to do the extension and are a bit overlooked by a couple of other houses.
while I love my house, we are talking about moving somewhere with more land and bigger rooms.
that would be my choice. Our mortgage is what I would describe as ‘sizeable’ but we overpay it by quite a bit and it’s just one of those things that’s paid and afforded. I suppose it’s just not our reality to comprehend a time where such a sum DOESN’T come out of the bills account but we can easily imagine having more space!

FuckoffeeBeforeCoffee · 04/12/2022 18:11

We are luckily in this position and we are going with paying off the mortgage.

I do look at other houses but I think the security is a much better idea.

Seasider2017 · 04/12/2022 18:12

Bigger house, more cleaning
unless you have a cleaner

changeme4this · 04/12/2022 18:21

Mortgage free, DC have flown the nest for most part, we just want to do some renovations to what we have..

I agree with a poster up thread who mentioned the economic climate and I’m not in the uk, It’s world wide and it’s going to take a long time to pull out of.

Talking with a neighbour the other day all got a bit depressing when he mentioned how much the world bank had loaned during covid and that needing to be repaid. I’ve been meaning to read up on it further, but it hit the nail on the head how we were viewing business for next year…

stress test any future borrowings at a higher rate than what your bank is currently doing to loan applications. Then you will know what your comfort level is, and if you are happy to go ahead with your new purchase or not..

gannett · 04/12/2022 18:25

Depends what you actually need.

I'd choose mortgage-free because it's just DP and I, and when we bought this place we knew it was the perfect size for us. I don't need or want any more.

If we'd bought a two-bedroom box like a lot of couples taking their first steps on to the property ladder (and like a lot of the places we viewed), I'd definitely go for a bigger place as we'd definitely be too on top of each other.

There's a big difference between "extra space you really need" and "extra space you think you should need" though. Bigger isn't always better.

GhostCastle · 04/12/2022 18:27

We are on track to finish paying our mortgage this year. We have overpaid a lot with the view to becoming mortgage free. I thought it would be good to pay it off early. Then we don’t have to worry as much about job security. Unfortunately, I’ve got itchy feet. We have been in our house for 16 years. I would love some extra space. I also don’t want to stay in the same location until I’m really old. I know it doesn’t make sense to move house at the moment. We live in a reasonably sized 4 bed detached house. I’d love an en-suite now our boys are older, some more space downstairs and a bigger bathroom. Our bathroom is about the size of an en-suite. It’s so small. I hate our narrow hallway. We don’t need extra space, but I’d like a bit more. It’s not rational. Why do I need more space in our hallway? It’s a desire. It’s on my wish list. Hopefully I will get over it soon.