Be happier or prioritise getting on the ladder?

[FedUp135]

This is so hard because there’s no right answer! My mum is telling me to leave it and save; my siblings are telling me to live life for the present and do what makes me happy.

My boyfriend and I (29) currently pay £1,100 for a tiny one-bed flat, and we’ve just viewed an amazing house for £1,595. It’s a massive upgrade.. two proper bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garden, loads of space, storage, etc. We absolutely loved it.

We can afford the higher rent, but obviously it would mean saving much less.

We were set on staying in the flat and buying, but atm we only have around £6k saved between, so we’re not exactly close to buying yet.

It would also give us space to think about starting a family… but we may not afford it! 😂

I’m wondering whether we should bite the bullet, rent somewhere we actually love for the next few years and accept that buying will be pushed back, or stay in our current tiny flat and prioritise getting a deposit together.

Basically: quality of life now vs getting on the property ladder sooner.

What would you do?

(I can’t explain how small our flat is. It’s essentially just a 3 room studio. And we have a cat!)

How much longer will it take to save a deposit if you move and how much deposit do you need to save to buy?

We only have £6k saved atm so we’re not exactly close :( we’re probably saving £400 a month

I would stay in the flat. Especially if your budget would not stretch to a property as nice as the rental or it will feel like a backward step when you do buy

Your mum is right. You don't need the extra space. Stay put and save. That's how it's always been done.

How many years would it delay buying by?

Are you in jobs where wage rises are likely to outstrip inflation?

The increase in rent is £6k pa....

If you are only saving 400 pm how.can you afford a £500 pm rent increase.

Note insurance and utilities will be a lot higher in a house vs a 1 bed flat

Im team Mum

But if you are only saving £400 per month how would you have an extra £495 per month for rent? If you do have an extra £495 per month and save it instead of spending it on rent, that will be another £6K you can save in the next year.

We rented a two bedroom place for a while as a couple, and apart from family visiting once a year, the second bedroom was just a dumping ground for laundry! Total waste of money. I understand about wanting more space to have a baby, but if it you a few months to conceive, then 9 months of pregnancy, then the baby sleeps in your room for the first six months as per NHS guidelines, you are a year and a half away from needing the second bedroom for a baby. The difference in rent would be nearly £10K in that time.

This basically…

I’d stay in your current house. Many, many moons ago we rented a really grotty flat that was incredibly cheap ( no heating, hot water from a gas geyser), but in a very good safe area. It allowed us to save and buy or own home after a couple of years. Yes I know times have changed, but for £400 a month you save you are getting interest on top of that.

How much is 5% of the value of a property in the area you would want to buy?

Say it's 300k for a 2 bed house in your area you need 15k plus legal fees etc. if you're in an area where it's double that then I'd rent because you're almost in your 30s and want children.

You will never save a deposit if you go for a place with even higher rent.

Get on the ladder asap, your mortgage will be lower than your rent and your property will/should go up in value

We bought our first house in 2011 for £148k we sold it for £270 eighteen months ago and now live in a town that we only ever dreamed of living in

Buy before you have a child too

2 adults, no kids, you really don't need all that space. Save some money.

5% deposit for a decent house in our area is probably £17k!

I'd stay in the flat in that case. If you really push on 2 salaries that is doable.

How will you afford the childcare costs and the rent?

Then buy a cheaper property or one you can do up and sell for a higher amount.

I brought an ex council house - did the kitchen bathroom and garden sold it for twice the price.

Did it again and again - were nearly mortgage free

How long has it taken you to save the 6K? How long to get to 17K? If you’re 10 years away then buying may not be realistic. If you’ve saved this in one year and are just two more away then defiantly don’t rent a more expensive property. 17K would be quite a cheap deposit I would think.

Stay in the flat and put the extra £500 that you’d be paying in rent for the house into savings. Along with your current monthly saving of £400, you’d have over £10,000 saved in a year, in two years, you’d have the deposit to buy a house.

If you rent the bigger place you’re not going to save, realistically whereas if you save the additional rent you’ll be close to your deposit in a year or two. If you’re serious about buying I’d cut absolutely every discretionary spend for the next year, and save like bad - I bet you’ve got things you could stop spending on.

In terms of happier, you may be happier in a bigger property now but you’ll be in rented accommodation for much, much longer especially when children come along with all the cost that entails. Short term pain for long term gain wins for me.

You won't save at all if your rent goes up to £1595, if you're currently paying £1100 & saving £400.

Don't forget your bills and council tax will rise in a bigger place.

Surely you literally cannot afford it if the increase in rent is more than you are currently saving. Or info is missing here. Clearly put more effort into saving and you'll buy within 3 years just based on saving £6k pa on not increasing your rent!!

I’d play the long game and keep saving

Save £500 a month & you can do that in only two years or less!

I’d stay in the flat 100%. If you’re not managing to save much now then it would be even harder to save up a deposit to buy while paying even higher rent, and add a baby to the mix and it suddenly starts to feel impossible.

Stay where you are, save every spare penny you can even for the next say 1-2 years and then look to buy.

Bricks and mortar is the best investment. Stay and save.