To worry about first time mortgage? 😭

[housestress5]

Hi!

just wondering if someone can help or give some advice if possible

I’m at the early stages of looking to finally buy my first home. I’ve looked at how much I can realistically afford on a mortgage, but I’m just so confused because I’ve read different things online about how much you should allow. It said under 20% of your income should be on mortgage/council tax etc, but then I remember in school they said it should be 33% and then other websites online were saying around 20-50%. And at my bank appointment they said 10%!

I totally understand that you want to keep it as low as possible, but just wondering realistically if anyone has any advice about how much is too much to spend on a mortgage?

I’ve saved really hard and managed to get my deposit, it’s just the monthly payments I’m worried about and I think I’m just suddenly so nervous about the whole thing!

my monthly net take home pay (after tax, NI, student loan but excluding pension) will be 3200.

I’ve added up all my outgoings that I can’t stop (car finance, insurance, petrol, pet insurance etc etc..) and it’s about 900. Then food on top will be more.

realistically 25% of 3200 is 800 for the mortgage, but then there’s other payments on top (council tax, electricity, gas) etc and that’s probably going to be a couple of hundred on top. I thought my pay seemed to cover that quite well but I went for a mortgage appt at the bank where they basically forecasted all this and said I’m not giving myself enough money leftover and now I’m worried sick about not being able to afford it at all and losing my house if interest rates go up

sorry I know this is all a bit jumbled up, just wondered if anyone could offer any advice or tips? First time buying a house and moving out so just don’t want to mess up!😬

You need to think about your own budget and what you can afford
Our mortgage is about 25-30% and that feels like quite a significant chunk but if the interest rate went up we would still be able to afford it.
The bank saying 10% sounds bonkers. Can you try a mortgage advisor instead? They will likely have more sensible advice and an idea of norms and rates across the whole mortgage market.

Mine is 21% of our income which is very affordable. We have 4 young children and we are paying childcare which is like a second mortgage and we manage fine. As the previous poster said it's about your personal budget. We still manage a family holiday abroad every year and we are comfortable but we don't spend loads on socialising, eating out. It depends on your own lifestyle 😊

I would also second an independent mortgage advisor rather than the bank.