Mortgage hike misery 😔

[Bexbiscuit]

Hello,

we met with our broker today to look at our options as our fixed rate is about to expire.

the cheapest we can get is 2k a month. 2 fucking K. I cried in the car on the way home.

this is an increase of about £710 per month. We will manage it but it’s going to change our lives significantly.

we both work on good jobs with a joint income of 100k but this increase, coupled with nursery fees, utility bills etc etc we are going to be very close to the wire

just how is this situation sustainable?

The thing that makes me smile is that people seem no longer interested in working their way through a property ladder. They want their 'forever' home as their first home. This idiocy has been exacerbated by the unfeasibly low interest rates. Chickens are now, as expected, coming home to roost.

I'm out of sympathy for anyone who insisted their first home must be a 4-bed detached rather than a small flat/tiny house as was the norm previously.

I also shake my head in despair watching those adverts for credit scores. It's all make-believe i.e. your credit score is xxx so you can afford a lifestyle that provides you with yyy.

Yeah, right so, that's fabulous. Fabulous that is until you actually need disposable income for entirely foreseeable issues. Issues like, say, mortgage/fuel hikes or to replace that boiler you were never able to save for due to servicing the debts you accrued to pretend your credit score was a true reflection of your 'wealth'.

Oh, and while I'm on a rant, it's not just Tories who are benefitting from increased rates on savings. Ordinary, would-rather-be-dead-than-a-Tory, people like me who have always (even during the 80s/90s) lived within their means are now benefiting too. We're benefiting because the financially illiteral/fiscally insane will continue to borrow (my) money even when being charged more and more to do so. Why? Because they continue to believe their credit score entitles them to a life far beyond their immediate means i.e. they don't have the funds to actually pay for anything until they get their hands on mine. 😏

@beachbitch I wouldn't disagree with that point.

The OP will be fine, she will just take a hit to her disposable income.

The thi that makes me smile is that people seem no longer interested in working their way through a property ladder. They want their 'forever' home as their first home. This idiocy has been exacerbated by the unfeasibly low interest rates. Chickens are now, as expected, coming home to roost.

more outdated nonsense. There's not really a property ladder any more for a number of factors. One of the biggest reasons people now have different requirements for their first home is their age.

I'm out of sympathy for anyone who insisted their first home must be a 4-bed detached rather than a small flat/tiny house as was the norm previously.

If I was a FTB now, I would skip the flat stage.

People need to stop looking at what they did 10,20,30 yrs ago & extrapolating that to now, the landscape has completely changed.

Think you over-egged it with the shit kitchen, OP.

Usualy to see increases like that its on interest only morgages, but no one in their right mind would take one of those while earning circa £100k.... would they

🙄😣

Usualy to see increases like that its on interest only morgages, but no one in their right mind would take one of those while earning circa £100k.... would they

They certainly might do but would probably have a ton of equity.

So the upshot is that you bought to the limit of your affordability when rates where good, live in a house bigger than you need and dont want to move.

Struggling to feel sympathy to be honest. Not being horrible but you have options. You can downsize, but you dont want to. You can extend the term, but dont want to.

At what point are you going to say "We thought we were on to a winner and we fucked up. Thats on us and now we have to figure out how to fix it" instead of saying "ITS THE GOVERNMENTS FAULT!!"?

For now
😆

But they could have just had an excellent fix of under 1%

Might have done, but unless its fixed for the term then sooner or later they will meet this very situation.
With lower equity as prices have reduced to more appropriate levels.
🙄

The OP will be fine

Full time childcare can be up to £2k a month (for a baby), and they have two children. Even the 3 year old is probably costing £1k a month.

They could easily have £2-2.5k per month childcare bill for two children, and with a £2k mortgage they would only leave them £1k per month for bills, petrol, food etc.

This.

Where is that tiny violin.....

Yeah

op ain’t coming back now that the 30 hours thing has landed Them in a pot of pickle

I started to flick through the thread,but kind of gave up - for various reasons!

OP - the main thing that struck me, from your very first post, was that you’d been in touch with your broker as your current fix is about to expire.

My question is - how far from expiry are you? Is it six months or one month?

I just want to make sure people know that, with their current lender, you can lock in a new deal six months before your current fix ends.

So, best course of action is to do that asap. It is VERY likely that your lender will allow you to cancel that deal and sort a new one if rates drop in the meantime before your new fix starts - do make sure you check this beforehand. By booking a new deal six months in advance, with your current lender, you have secured the “worst case scenario” option.

Once you’ve done the above, do a quick check every week. Both with your current lender and comparison sites. Use the same criteria (house value, balance outstanding etc) to get comparable results.

Ive had a mortgage for a while now - and have extended for various reasons. When it’s come to renewing my fix, I have used the comparison sites. Generally, there have been options where I could have shaved a fraction of a % off the rate by choosing another lender. But, this would also mean full financial checks and a valuation. Staying with your current lender avoids this and, for me, it’s not been worth it.

I think brokers are a good service as a FTB. Am not convinced of their value after that if you are intending to stay in the same property.

If you are looking to change lender/extend the term etc. Look at the terms re overpayments. Some lenders only allow you to overpay annually by 10% of the CURRENT mortgage balance. Others allow you to overpay annually by 10% of the ORIGINAL loan amount. I completely get that overpaying is not possible for everyone, but if you are able to then the latter option is way better.

To finish, my main message is, if you have a fix coming to and end in six months - book the best deal you can with your CURRENT lender. This is then your worst-case scenario sorted. If things improve, you should be able to change. If things get worse, then you’ve beaten that situation.

oh, and my last point is - I would be avoiding the less well-known or obscure lenders at this point. Am probably being over-cautious, but having seen the collapse of most of the utility companies, I prefer feeling a bit safer by being with a more well-known lender.

I am sorry OP, I think I would have cried too. That is a massive increase. It will be tough, but you will get through it.

Sorry OP, it's shit.

Common theme on this thread is people seem to have no idea how much childcare actually costs!

That is such a change. I feel for you.
If you can manage it, with many adjustments, hopefully it will be a short lived hardship.

You might need to unleash your inner pretend mode like that film Life Is Beautiful.
As much as possible shop at second hand shops and eat home grown food. Walk and not drive. Holiday by swapping houses with a friend. Really put your thinking cap on and resolve to find low cost ways of adjusting every part of your life.
Also resolve to continue enjoying many free beautiful moments and activities.
Can you form a support group with friends who face the same pressures? Maintain each other's strength by talking together and also giving each other positive tips.