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Original poster

Selling house due to financial situation

11 replies

MrsMcJnr · 18/09/2006 10:46

Hello, I have not posted on this thread before and I guess I am not really posting for advice but more to voice how I am feeling and hopefully to talk to people who have been through this and can help me by telling me how they felt.

I realise that we are in a much better postion than a lot of people and I am thankful for our position in many ways but I still feel so sad today and need to share.

DH and I bought a house 2 years ago. We had a flat but it did not sell and therefore, we lost a lot of money through bridging and racked up a lot of debt trying to keep everything afloat. We rented the flat out but the income only pays half of the mortgage and we are struggling. We recently got married and want to start a family. That sounds insane when we have money issues but I am nearly 33 and we do not want to wait any longer.

We talked long and hard about things at the weekend and agreed that as we do not intend to live in Britain forever (we hope to move to Spain in the not too distant future, my family are there) the best thing we can do is downsize and try and pay off as much debt as we can before we have a family and move away. That means we need to sell the house we both adore and move back to the flat so we can pay off some debt and live more within our means. It hurts like hell because we love the house but I know that it is just a house at the end of the day.

If we planned to stay in the UK, we would be prepared to fight all we could for the house but as that would effectively kill our dreams of moving, we need to bite the bullet. I guess we still see Spain as a pipe dream and therefore we feel that all that we are doing by selling up is losing our beautiful house rather than mobilising our future.

Thanks for listening - I just feel so emotional about it all that even though I am trying to be practical, I feel so sad.

OP posts:

AngelaChill · 18/09/2006 11:46

At least you have a plan B, you'll be fine, it's all the other forced sellers that it'll be on the market in the spring that will be in trouble after the interest rate rises.
I'd get the estate agents round asap see if you can be out for Christmas.
Good luck
x

mumblechum · 18/09/2006 12:40

Oh dear, I am sorry you're in this situation. I know how you can get emotionally attached to a house, but as I think you know in your heart, selling is the right thing to do at the moment. Imagine the stress you'd be putting yourselves under if you carried on paying 2 mortgages then you had to lose your income for a while due to pregnancy. Think of this as a temporary blip, and do a spreadsheet of your finances once the house has sold so you can see that you are gradually working towards your shared goal of a home in Spain (or if that doesn't work out, at least to a nice house without money worries). Good luck.

Original poster

MrsMcJnr · 18/09/2006 13:40

Thank you both for being so kind. Your words have made me feel better. We sold our car last month and seeing where the money went on a spread sheet did make us feel better. Thank you. I also had not thought about the market being swamped in the Spring due to interest rates so thank you for that too. Another thought that has sprung out of what you have said is that if we do have a baby, I may be able to take more time off than I could now because at the mo, we could not handle any time without both of us being on full pay. An estate agent is coming round this evening so we can get the ball rolling.

OP posts:

heavenis · 18/09/2006 13:46

By down sizing and moving back to the flat you came from, you are a step closer to making your pipe dream come true.
If you want something badly enough you'll always find the strength to get there.
Good luck.

SpaceCadet · 18/09/2006 13:47

its a horrible situation to be in, ive been tnhere, i sold the house id lived in for 8 years back in may after only just having remortgaged it and having new kitchen, conservatory etc, dh left me and suddenly i had a mountain of debts, so much as it broke my heart, i sold the house and moved to north wales where my family is and got a cheaperhouse, which was actuallyt larger than my previous house, but with a tiny garden, i was devastated and cried for a month when i moved in, but now the house feels like mine and i know i wont be here for ever.
it could be a small sacrifice for you at the end of the day, if it rids you of the burden of the 2 mortgages and means you can hopefully fulfill your dream of moving to spain.
good luck!

Original poster

MrsMcJnr · 18/09/2006 15:27

Thank you both for your support and goodwill. SpaceCadet, thank you for sharing your story. It is really good for me to remember that I have many blessings to count and you have been so brave in what must have been an awful, awful time for you. I am so glad to hear that your new house now feels like home and that you are positive about the future. Time is a wonderful healer I know.

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SpaceCadet · 18/09/2006 16:15

Twiglett · 18/09/2006 16:17

sounds totally practical to me .. and at least you won't get hit by tax if you sell the house then move to the flat and sell it

remember always a house is just bricks and mortar .. a home is where your heart is

did I just say that? bleurgh .. sorry

Original poster

MrsMcJnr · 19/09/2006 11:37

That's true Twiglett, thanks Both DH and I shook the whole time the estate agent was round last night as if we were cold but it was just emotion We know we are doing the right thing though.

Has anyone had any experience of house contents sales? As we are going to a much smaller place, we have quite a lot of furniture to sell and we think we'd be better having some kind of sale day at the house rather than trying to sell it all on e-Bay or similar?

Thank you all for all your positive thoughts and sentiments, they have made me feel a lot stronger than I did over the weekend.

OP posts:

CountessDracula · 19/09/2006 11:43

Just to check - you do have an interest only mortgage on the flat? It is unusual for rent to only cover half the mortgage unless of course you have a repayment mortgage...

Original poster

MrsMcJnr · 19/09/2006 11:56

Hi CountessDracula - we had to raise against the flat for the deposit for the house and so there are actually 2 mortgages for the flat, a C&I BTL for 60% and then a further C&I secured loan on our house for the extra 15%. It was all the bank would accept at the time. We changed the house mortgage from C&I to I only to give us a bit more cash to play with each month (I say play but I mean to eat with!) but not ideal.

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