Mortgages...what's the deal there then?

[WhyAyeButterPie]

I've seen a local shared ownership scheme, but we would need to get a mortgage of around £50,000 to £70,000 to afford our 50%.

We have no savings and a household income of around £16,000 pa, plus tax credits etc (but I don't think you can rely on them in this day and age)

Is this even worth looking into?

I just want a house where we won't be evicted for mending the heating :(

oh no are you being evicted??

No, but I'm really worried about it :( The letting agent is constantly making little references to it whenever we stand up for ourselves and ask for things like, you know, a non-hazardous gas supply or cooking facilities.

We really love this house, and it is in the perfect location for us (within 2 minutes walk of the ILs house where DH grew up, surrounded by people who have known the family for decades, near brill schools and public transport, etc) but I hate that the landlord can just chuck us out for no reason with only two months notice.

Even the shelter website doesn't recommend paying for the gas to be mended ourselves :(

Is that not illegal? Is the gas supply CORGI tested?

Yep- the carbon monoxide alarm went off last night (the front room fire has already been condemmed and disconnected, and the oven was broken for three months when we moved in) so I called the number on the alarm and an emergency gasman came out and condemmed the oven, as well as shutting off all gas to the house.

Letting agent took my message last night, promised to get back to me asap and now isn't answering the phone. They have refused to mend the front room fire on the grounds that we have central heating so don't need it, and they gragged their heels last time the oven was broken as well.

We were considering paying ourselves and taking the money from the rent, but even the shelter website says that, with our tenancy, the landlord doesn't actually need an excuse to evict us anyway. Just two months notice.

Should add that the oven is a pretend aga, so it will cost a fortune to mend. Not our fault though- it was here when we got here and apparently has never been right.

Are there no alternative renting options? Housing Association? Private (but less grasping) landlord? It may be the ideal location but if the living conditions are dangerous and the short notice of eviction giving you sleepless nights then wouldn't it make sense to move out?

Lenders will normally lend 3.5 times your income so you may well be able to get a mortgage for £50,000. I'm not sure how the lack of deposit would work with shared ownership though. Normally you'd need 10% deposit, but might be worth enquiring as to whether you'd need this as the HA would own the otehr half.

Housing Association is the dream, obviously- lovely secure tenancy, big organisation with lots of trained staff, you are even allowed to decorate your home! I think it is everyone elses dream too though. Waiting list of at least two years at the moment, and it will only get longer under the new government. :(

We're looking into renting somewhere else, but it will cost thousands to move, and then the new landlord might turn out to be worse.

We're really not bothered about actually owning our house at all- we just want to be secure in our own home.