Buying a small apartment with DC, are we nuts?

[Somethingsgotthagive]

First Time Buyers in outer London with a DC. Finally in a position to have a down payment for a mortgage after years of saving and childcare fees almost behind us. We are currently tied to London and both commute frequently for work which means we need to stay put in current area due to easy commute and lots of amenities for DC.
We have a maximum budget of £530K (which would only get you a nice flat or maisonette here) but given the current high interest rates and job market uncertainty, I am now wondering if it’d be more wise to keep the cost lower and aim for a less expensive property, around the £480K mark - this would mean a smaller 2 bed flat, most likely 600 sq feet or so. Are we mad to consider that?

Please refrain from saying things like “I could buy a castle where I live in Wales with that budget”. I am in the London suburbs and have ZERO interest in moving to different parts of the country so need to work with what I have available to me.

How old is your child?

How much deposit do you have?

How much emergency fund do you have?

Loads of people around the world live in flats and are happy.

@Lola2024 We are both from Europe and used to apartment living, however the British obsession with houses makes me worried about people judgement (mainly for DC).
We have 10% deposit plus extra to cover main house purchasing expenses like stamp duty, solicitor and moving fees etc. After all of that, we’d be left with £2K-£3K and will need to quickly rebuild savings. If we go for the cheaper option, obv we’d have a bit more as stamp duty will also be lower.
DC is 4

I wouldn’t worry about people’s ‘judgement’.

will you have more DC? If you’re sticking at one I would probably go for the lower cost option.

Good luck 😊

I think you should get this moved to Property/DIY where similar quandaries are frequently posted. You can tag @mnhq to ask them, or report your own post, select “other” and ask there.

@KievLoverTwo that board seems to be full of people who cannot conceive the idea of living in a flat

Perhaps you got unlucky with what you read. There are lots of folks very familiar with London compromises over there.

I think don't go for the full £530K and leave yourself that stretched, but I wouldn't go all the way back to £480K to keep yourself a savings buffer that large - given the costs and hassle in buying, it's good to stretch yourself to some extent.

What about £510K, for example? Get yourself a few more sqf? Interested in other people's opinion, I've only bought once so am no expert.

Personally I would stretch as far as you can towards a property you'd be happy staying in forever.

Each move you do costs ££££ in fees and stamp duty. If you think you'll outgrow the £480k option in the next 10 years then don't buy it; spend more and cut out a move.

however the British obsession with houses makes me worried about people judgement

There's often good reason for that. Flats in England are often poor quality with limited soundproofing and high service charges. They're nothing like the purpose built apartment blocks relatives live in (Spain & Denmark). I'd happily live in an apartment over there, less so in the UK.

My adult DD, her DH, and one DC age nearly five live in London in a flat on the third floor and have done since before DC was born.
They're very happy, and I occasionally stay with them despite how small it is (2 bedrooms, smallish rooms throughout, small balcony). It's lovely and DC is a happy child. Not saying a house and garden wouldn't be better in an ideal world but it is what it is. They have friends with DC living in flats too. It's completely doable.

Many in the UK avoid buying flats because of the archaic feudal leasehold system that the useless Tories were meant to be sorting out.
No control of service charge increases, short leases, lease renewal , ground rents and possible issues with cladding etc make flats very unattractive in many people's eyes.

We lived in a flat for ages. We were heavily pushed towards a "Starter home" and MIL seemed constantly embarrassed that we lived in a flat and not a house, but it was great for us.

We renewed our lease once, to a 100 year lease. Our service charges were controlled by a committee of the flat owners, of which we were one, and never went up. Ground rent was a literal pittance. Cladding wasn't an issue as it wasn't a high-rise. The only downside for us was that we had one small bedroom and couldn't fit us and a DC in it.

The British obsession with house ownership will have to die, it'll become increasingly impossible for younger people to be able to buy. Prices and restricted availability of homes pretty much guarantees that.

Go with what you can afford, and works for you all. Everybody has opinions, but nobody will be offering to pay your mortgage.

You are wrestling over 50k which is barely anything in London…..

Just go on Rightmove and put your bracket as 470 - 520 and have a look?

We have flat but not in London. I'm from EU and grow up in a flat. Doesn't bother me so much but .. I have twin girls now age 14 and they are ashamed that they live in the flat. They won't invite a friend over and won't even mention to a friend where we live. I think when they were around age of 10 they started recognising a difference. We would afford a house in more poor areas but husband won't move. I do live in pretty historic town in affluent area with very good schools etc. with walking distance everywhere.
I am managing easily only decluttering is important a specially when kids younger also space management is important. My kids share a small bedroom they have only 2 single beds large 3 doors wardrobe and a desk.
The flat is not so small has bathroom and ensuite. Compare to my friend new build in this area is no much difference, they have small garden and extra space in the kitchen for a table and they have paid over 30% more. Their bedrooms and living room are smaller than ours.

I want to add that we have only 2 neighbours and garden in the back that we use and even do gardening. The flat is outside of set of blocks and very private that is a bonus.
Maybe that's why we not bothered.

@Paternlink I am so sorry about this, I am kind of mad at society for this as living in a loving and safe home shouldn’t be a source of shame. How do you deal with that?

@Quitelikeit I am looking at up to £550K but current rates mean that even a difference in 20-30K can really be significant in terms of monthly payments. Wouldn’t have been an issue with old low rates

I can't do a lot.
I think lots is to do with friends they have. They do good at school and most of their friend are living in posh big houses but parents are British and successful I am poor emigrant came here with nothing and working hard. It is hard to climb a ladder. Maybe they will understand when they grow up.
We have nice holidays and comfortable life but for teenegers is hard to understand.

I sounds fine but 600 square feet is quite small for a two bedroom place. My son’s flat is one bedroom with a small kitchen decent size lounge and ok size bedroom and is 560 square feet.

I would be inclined to buy an affordable place within budget instead of at the max end of my budget. Gives you the opportunity to rebuild your savings up and potentially the opportunity to build equity in your home, too, or overpay the mortgage if you can every now and again. So much more flexible!

Home ownership is expensive with maintenance and unexpected costs that do happen like boiler needing replacing, window repair etc etc.

We lived in a 2 bed flat with 2 dc for 10 years. We were very happy there, although a big part of our lifestyle was getting out every day in central London and I don't know if you'd do that as much from outer London (we were in zone 2). Personally I'd go for the higher end of the budget and go as central as you can afford, being stuck in the suburbs can be depressing with a young kid.

DC soon learn to recognise genuine friends from those that judge.

2 to 3 k in an emergency fund is a bit short for a home owner.

Nobody in London will judge you for living in a flat.

@Gabbsters we are in the London suburbs so a good mix of apartment and houses over here tbh

Where do you need to commute to?