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Original poster

Did you panic when house buying about mortgage amount...

43 replies

Greyhorses · 08/12/2013 21:02

We are starting to get the ball rolling with mortgage figures and speaking to an advisor.

We take home 2500pcm roughly and have been advised that we are looking at about 800pcm on a repayment mortgage on the cheapest style of houses in our area (small terraced/semi) Houses here are expensive and moving isn't an option!

Did anyone else panic at the sheer amount of mortgage you are paying out? It does not seem to leave a lot after mortgage is paid? I am worried we will get in and regret our decision or get ourselves into a mess!!

:-)

OP posts:

specialsubject · 08/12/2013 21:04

not necessarily panic, but you are wise to think hard.

do a budget with realistic figures. Check your savings and insurance - lose a job and the mortgage doesn't stop. Check the fix - rates can only go up.

bundaberg · 08/12/2013 21:06

that's about the same ratio of mortgage to pay that we have and it's absolutely fine!

it's normal to worry about it though I think, it's a big commitment to make!

muchadoaboutsomething · 08/12/2013 21:07

Yes. Bought 3 houses, each time completely panicked, even though could still afford it if rates rose a lot. Last time was also pre crash so had 2 mortgages for a while. Dh always did the numbers, it has always been fine and we've gone back to saving within a few months. I think it's just the thought of how much with me, rather than the thought of what else I'd do with the money. But I save by habit so telephone number bills frighten me. Best thing I've ever done though all3 times.

claretandamberforever · 08/12/2013 21:10

I'm sorry but that figure would frighten me to death; nearly a third of our income on a mortgage. There won't be a lot of disposable income left over. What is the interest rate, bearing in mind over the next few years they will be bound to increase?

Ours is £467 on joint salary of £2650

Lucylouby · 08/12/2013 21:13

My DH worries about this far more than I do, but he is the major earner in our family, so the majority of the earning responsibility is on his shoulders. We bring in about £500 month less than you and our mortgage payments are only about £100 less than yours. We manage. We have some savings and try to overpay if we can to try to cushion us should we hit a rough patch at all.

Write down all your outgoings, including holidays, Christmas expenditure and other thing that are seasonal over the year and see how much you can afford for a mortgage each month.

MrsTittleMouse · 08/12/2013 21:18

What sort of mortgage would that be? A long term fixed rate, and I think it would be fine. A short term discounted rate, and I think that you could be struggling when interest rates go up.

Neverhere · 08/12/2013 21:19

How much do you pay in rent? We are actually better if with a mortgage than in rented!

NoArmaniNoPunani · 08/12/2013 21:22

Our mortgage is 15% of our joint salary so doesn't worry us. We would like to pay it off early though.

LynetteScavo · 08/12/2013 21:28

The figures mentioned in the OP are easily doable, even with 3DC.

MotherIsTheBestBet · 08/12/2013 23:00

Same ratio here - roughly a third of our take home pay.

Things are a bit tight but by no means desperate. I could feel terrified if I thought hard enough about it, but we didn't have a lot of choice. I don't imagine there are many first time buyers in the South of England who are paying much less than this ratio nowadays other than the super rich. Housing is just very very expensive now.

LilMissSunshine9 · 08/12/2013 23:11

I take home £2200pcm and my mortgage is £800pcm. Infact I make overpayments of £100 each month on top - actually thinking of increasing my overpayments to £200pcm. I am not worried and it doesn't concern me but then again I don't spend much money and am quite frugal.

LunaticFringe · 08/12/2013 23:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Greyhorses · 09/12/2013 08:43

Thank you everyone, I feel much better now! I haven't had any real debt up to now except car loan when I was living at home (10k) and nothing of this amount!

Luckily OH is a teacher so is expected a pay rise this year and hopefully the year after. He is in his NQT year at the moment.

We have not finalised a mortgage yet however are looking at 4-5 year fixed rates at about 5%. We only have a 5% deposit hence the higher interest, however putting 10% doesn't reduce the monthly payment much, approx £50, so it may not be worth the months of waiting where we are.

The maximum the bank would have lent us was roughly 140k I think however we have chosen to look at 125k maximum to avoid stamp duty. It's a shame most of the houses we love seem to be sitting at £135k though!!!

I have tried to draw up a spreadsheet however having never paid bills before I have no real idea where to start!

Thanks again

OP posts:

NoArmaniNoPunani · 09/12/2013 09:03

You can easily put in an offer of 125k on a house that's on for 135k

struggling100 · 09/12/2013 09:56

I totally panicked the first time I bought a house. It felt very FINAL, and when I signed the final documents I almost expected to hear bells tolling and dies irae kind of music playing! You get used to it really quickly. :)

HairyPorter · 09/12/2013 09:58

How are you affording a roof over your head at the moment? We worked out a figure that we were comfortable with base on a mortgage that would be less than our current rent.

specialsubject · 09/12/2013 10:36

rough ideas for bills;

council tax (big one) - ask your council
fuel: average is supposed to be £1400 a year
house insurance: again big variations, try for £400 a year on the safe side (you can do much better in many places)
water: £250 a year on a meter, can be more or less depending on where. Here in Severn Trent land it is cheaper NOT to have a meter.
broadband/landline: £30 a month
TV licence: £12 a month

then add food, car costs/transport costs, clothing, kids costs and 'fun budget'.

HaveToWearHeels · 09/12/2013 16:33

Shit my pants every time, never been a problem though. I think it is a natural emotion

FoxMulder · 09/12/2013 16:39

I thought the stamp duty threshold for first time buyers was higher?

HaveToWearHeels · 09/12/2013 16:56

Fox under 125k no stamp, 125k-250k is 1%, 250-500k is 3%, I think over 500k is 5%

LunaticFringe · 09/12/2013 19:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

HaveToWearHeels · 09/12/2013 19:16

Sorry thought it was 5%, still shocking though.

Nojustalurker · 09/12/2013 19:18

Take care with your assumption your husband's pay will increase as moving up the pay scale is nolonger automatic.

Have you worked out a detailed monthly budget. Money saving expert has a very helpful tool.

You will need to account for increases to petrol and ultilties and even think about the impact of maternity leave and child are costs.

LunaticFringe · 09/12/2013 19:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LEDPenguin · 09/12/2013 19:28

It sounds pretty awesome to me but then we're paying almost £600 rent on £1270 take home... Gotta love private rentals.

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