To think we CAN live on the mortgage

[JaneEyre40]

Advice please -

Couple - Earn £10,500 a month
Mortgage - 3,700 a month
Nursery - 1,000 a month

Considering all other possible outgoings, do you think we can afford this and not feel pressured each month. What am I not considering? We've done the spreadsheet but I'm still unsure.

We will have about £65,000 in savings at the beginning of this venture.

Thanks in advance. House of a lifetime.

I think it's fine if you are not fussed about holidays/keeping up with the jones (endless renos/pricey cars) and you plan for no more children. Nursery costs going will be replaced by activity costs though so bare that in mind. Also bigger house = higher upkeep costs as others have said.

CT is generally cheaper in London I am led to believe. Ours is 290/month band F Z4 for those wondering about your CT cost.

I'm just so surprised so many posters fell for it.

She started it earlier today when another 'trending' thread was about 'We just don't have enough money'.

Invented figures, tongue in cheek replies from her....

It was all a JOKE.

SOME posters 'got it'' because they suggested taking in ironing which is what the other poster was doing (to make ends meet.)

@Pigtailsandall
Kingston-upon-Thames is in London. It’s also the name of the London Borough which it is part of.
It may not have a London postcode but it is in London. There are quite large areas of without London postcodes but are in London. Eg Harrow, Enfield, Beckenham, Richmond, Romford, Croydon etc. London doesn’t end once you get beyond zone 3.

Only if we are aware of the other thread, surely?

I suggested taking in ironing but I hadn’t even seen the other thread!

Quite.

But it has been trending for 2 days and has around almost 700 posts.

You must be psychic!

Sorry fearful saints. That was meant for op and I couldn't work out how to delete ..doh. my apologies

Sorry, I should have said that's the single 25% discounted rate. Full rate Band E is £3040. Band H full rate is £4976.

Its a fair chunk of your take home pay, and if one of you lost your job, its unaffordable on one income. Of course rates could drop, but they could also go up. I personally wouldn’t do it.

Hmm it's a push OP.
6k after mortgage and nursery. Think you're cutting it fine.

Maybe sign up to do some online surveys. Should be just about doable then

Kingston IS London though. The London Borough of Kingston upon Thames, to give it its full title. Has often been noted for having the highest council tax rate in London. I haven't checked whether that is still the case.

Yes, because they are more vulnerable and it is easier for us to comprehend their dilemma. With people who earn so much it is more difficult to relate to. It is difficult to understand why, with what seems to most of us like a lot of disposable income, they have to ask the question. Many people will never see a £10,000 lump sum in their whole lives.

I’d like to say I’m really shocked by the responses and vitriol towards OP, but I’m not as we see the same any time someone earning above average asks any financial questions.

• People earning <£100k salaries through PAYE won’t have financial advisors
• Earning these sums of money doesn’t make you a financial expert - asking on a forum like this is no different to anyone of any other income level doing it. She’s not Jeff Bezos.
• £3,700 a month is the mortgage on a three bed terrace outside of the inner zones now. The kind of thing which might cost £300k anywhere else.
• About 15% of all workers now earn >£50k, so the two salaries mentioned aren’t unusual - particularly in the South East
• The cost of living in the South East and particularly London is very high. That it’s cheaper where you live doesn’t really matter in context of the OP’s question
• It is very strange to be chippy and aggressive towards someone for earning more than you.

I know lots of people in the same predicament.

A couple earning minimum wage would earn £10k in three months, excluding any child benefit etc.

So it’s a nice income, but not wild.

Look at me everyone! I’m loaded. Follow me on insta 🙄🤦‍♀️

No hyphens.

£101 from 1 April 2025, up from £95. That's in Kingston upon Thames.

I'm mid-forties and mortgage free. Been lucky with property values and other stuff. We live in a large, lovely house, but never went all out for the dream house and I'm glad as we have the benefit of mortgage free. Assuming you're younger I would forget a dream house and concentrate on paying off mortgage/saving for retirement and retire earlier.
Houses cost in maintenance, upgrades etc and generally the market pays back when selling but not guaranteed.

Sure, London has grown to engulf these peripheral towns in zone 6 that ought really to be in the home counties,but I guess the whole point is that the population density starts to wither down after London postcodes and so council tax becomes more expensive.

Gosh, what unbelievably unhelpful and rude posts you’ve gathered here! £10k net per month between 2 working people is normal!

• income protection
• safety net of 12 months of bills/living expenses in case of job loss
• solid emergency fund for boiler/water damage/car issues
• enjoy the life you’ve clearly worked hard for

Must be lovely for so many people here to be able to be on such high horses for living on a low income. Congratulations to you all for being such jealous and small minded sheep!

I recommend you look at YNAB. It's an app that helps you plan for managing the ups and downs. It helped me think about the full costs of long term household maintenance of my house inc replacing white goods & windows, the car, computers etc, and other areas of expenditure. I find it much more helpful than running my own spreadsheet, as it's helped me think about applying money to jobs, and cash flow, instead of just plain cash in and out. It's also a tool for agreeing priorities with your best beloved. Good luck.

Who said I'm intelligent?

Baby is asleep, decided to catch up. Why do people think this is fake?

A - not an extortionate amount of money.
B - it's not that interesting.

Whenever I hear of people being mortgage free I can't comprehend it (I'm very stupid as posters have pointed out 😂). Perhaps it's because of the London house prices. I can't imagine paying it off so young.