Average bills for 3 bed semi

[Greyhorses]

Hi everyone,

I have posted a thread on a very similar topic before but would like to know (if it's not too cheeky) how much the average bills are for a 3 bed semi in your area and what this is broken down into?

So far we are struggling to decide if we can afford to move out or not yet as we have never lived out before so don't know much much things cost!!

We have an income of £2400 which sounds reasonable, but we already are spending £250 on car, £150 on loan, £120 on insurances( basic cover due to hit by an uninsured driver), £200 on petrol, £50 on mobiles and £70 on pets which dosent leave much left for a mortgage (£700 cheapest estimate we have had on a 130k semi) and then bills does it?
Is this even doable on those figures or will a mortgage company laugh at us on affordability.

Maybe we will have to rent forever!?

Mine is £100 for gas/elec (no tumble dryer or dishwasher, was higher with those), £30 water. £100ish council tax but check your local council's website to find out how much yours is. Internet and sky £60 inc phone line.

Everything should be similar to what you pay while renting, so just swap rent for mortgage and decide if you can afford it?

Thank you rock chick, we aren't renting at the moment as we are staying with parents while saving, however circumstances have changed and we need to move pretty soon hence the worry! We hope to be in our new house by next September but are unsure if it's possible due to outgoings!

Budget for repairs too. Should be doable, go & see a mortgage broker for some figures.

According to your calculation you could be saving 570 if you ditch you car. Would that be an option?

I wish I we could ditch the car! However I have a 60mile/day commute and this car gets good mpg and is newish (2010) so dosent cost much in repairs. I also couldn't go for a small car as we need to fit the dogs/work equipment in!

The cost of insurance is cars x2 as OHs car is paid for so he only pays insurance, so approx £60 per car. I have had an accident and his was stolen- hence premium!!

The loan figure is one personal loan with a low interest rate. We could in theory pay this off however we would have no deposit left at all!! It is for around 5k, we also have student loan incorporated into this which is £30.

We have 2x large dogs (plus my dads collie we often have) and two cats so they cost quite a bit unfortunately!

So what are the actual car costs and could you benefit by moving?

Mortgage 413, Council Tax 119, gas/elec 73, Sky (TV phone broadband) 43, TV Lic 12, build/contents ins 39...

Have you drawn up a proper budget forecasting 2/3 years worth of finances...if not would def recommend you do (I've one in Wxcel if you want a copy to get you started, PM me email address).

You really need to cut those expenses, you can't afford to move out.

your car insurance is HUGE. Try a broker as if it was a no-fault accident you should be able to get this down.

lose the mobiles too - go to pay as you go simple phones, forget mobile internet.

here are some of my costs that may help, you aren't paying these at the moment:
council tax £150
electricity £30 (and we are VERY low users)
oil/wood approx £70 (assume most heating the same)
house insurance £20
car insurance £20
car tax £25
broadband/phone £25
TV licence £12
water £15 (septic tank so no drainage costs hence cheap)

£850

I disagree that you can't afford to move with those bills. £850 on current expenses, £300 or so average on other bills according to people's posts, £700 mortgage. Totals £1850, leaves you with £550 per month for shopping, saving and living. That's plenty as long as you're sensible with your money!

Owning a home does not come without costs. You need to set aside at least £500 a year for repairs and replacing appliances, furniture and carpets is another thing you have to budget for. Home insurance is probably around £50 a month, so £600 a year or so. The larger the property the more expensive it is too heat so bear that in mind too.

The annual cost of food alone for one dog is £400. Perhaps you could get them to do some work and earn their keep. Your pets alone are setting you back probably £1500 a year.

I think it's a case of rent or rehome, it's you or the dogs.

If you do buy, think about what would happen if there was a house price crash - would your property retain its value or would everyone be competing to sell.

How about your local pet shop for a huge bag of working dog kibble. I got through a bag every 6 weeks for £19 (1 dog)

I have a second hand Iphone 4 & pay £6.60 a month with 3mobile & get unlimited internet, calls & texts.

I pay my b.t line rental yearly to save about £30.

Llamadrama I want your phone contract!

Its only because someone rich gave me the handset & Im tied in with 3mobile for a year.

We won't get rid of any of the pets- one is 11 years old and won't last long and the other GSD has massive issues and I wouldn't risk him with strangers :-) The cats are also staying- we hand reared them from 2 days old and they are family.

The insurance for the cars is high- we are still young and also because my OH has only just got his own policy this year hence his high premium and then his car was stolen and we had to claim!! Mine needs investigating though and I will definatley look into a broker, thanks.

I need to look into the cars, my HP is for 3 more years and I am in negative equity so can't get rid or I will loose money so I'm not sure if I can reduce this. Luckily one car is paid for.

Mobiles is a good one- mine is on a 2 year contract with 02, I'm not sure I can reduce this early? OHs is a rolling monthly contract.

I forgot tv liscence and home insurance, will add those to my budget. Thank you!!

Forgot to say we are up north so a little cheaper than London expense wise. OH is soon to qualify as a teacher so hopefully his pay will increase per year so we should be better off in 5 years from now!!

if your partner has been a named driver on someone else's insurance that can also be worth a discount.

for next time - never buy or HP a new car. Save up and spend about £3k on something a few years old.

I guess it depends where you are in the country. I am in West Yorkshire where living expenses are a bit more reasonable than other places down south.

Gas / Electric: £140
Water: £44.50
Council: £85.00 (Band B)
Virgin Media £93 (obviously not essential but I choose not to cut down on this right now)
TV Licence: £12.13
Mortgage: £469
Life insurance: £21.69 (for the mortgage cover if either of us shuffles off this mortal coil before the mortgage is up)
House insurance; £18.31 (definitely shop around for this)

so, all of that plus your £840 that you are currently paying out and a £700 mortgage takes it to around £1950 but that includes food and petrol so I'd say it was doable if you and your partner are prepared to sacrifice some of life's luxuries like holidays every year, frequent nights out etc etc...

And, you say you're currently living with respective parents so I assume you have no children? How would you manage with only one wage coming in?

Scrimping and saving is okay if you've actually got some spare cash, and a purpose to save up for, but it's farking awful when it's got to be a way of life because there is nothing spare.

I agree with claret to consider a mortgage that you can manage on one income (or one plus one part-time). You are lucky that DH is going to be a teacher as that will help with holiday childcare costs.

One of the reasons the housing market grew so much was because more women worked on better incomes, meaning double income mortgages (they used to call them DINKIES - dual income no kids). These people could afford bigger mortgages and priced out families with one earner.

In this respect renting is better because if your income is reduced you get housing benefit.

I think if you put £1100 per month in a savings account the mortgage companies would find it hard to argue that you couldn't afford ito buy and run a house. Try it for a few months and see how you manage?

passedgo many landlord's don"t accept tenant's who are in receipt of HB.

Council tax £131
Gas/electric £65
Water £40
Phone/broadband £30
House insurance £12
Tv licence £145 a year

Think that's it. Good luck, i think your finances look good just remember that rates will rise in a few years so your mortgage costs coukd go up

Gas / Electric: £94
Water: £46
Council tax : £160.00
Sky (Broandband, Landline, basic TV package) £20
House insurance : £14.60
Life insurance: £101 (big mortgage and issues with H's health)
Car insurance : £102 (2 cars, 1 accident)

No-one has mentioned maintenance costs which are also quite important. We are in a 1930s semi and there are always things that need doing. Unless you buy a new house, you need to consider expenses that will crop up over the years - replacing the boiler, fixing a leak etc. Especially if you're going to be losing income if you have children later, you need to take this into consideration.

Gas/Electric: £100pm (Gat G oldest boiler still working I'd guess)
Water: £39
Council Tax: £160

The biggest cost would be maintenance, replacement of white goods, leaks, carpets, decorating, re-mortgaging fees, etc etc. I rent so don't pay any of that and save/invest the money instead.