How much room is too much room?

[Roastiemctoasty]

We’re in the process of selling our 3 bed semi- been here for 4 years, nothing wrong with it for DH and I (no DC just yet) but feel like we need some more space and while we have a good joint income now is the time to move. We’re looking at 4/5 beds in a similar area and our friends think we our nuts as it’s just us! DH is looking for a forever home whilst I’m looking for a 5 year and move...

I guess two points to this thread.

1. How far should you stretch yourselves
2. when did you get your forever home?

Got it in 1992. It was our third house. We went from a 1 bed cottage in a very rural area, to a 5 bed end terraced Edwardian town-house in a decent area of the local city, to a 4 bed late Georgian house in a small village, which is bigger than the 5 bed Edwardian place.

we stretched ourselves to buy it, and the end of the mortgage is now in sight. The house is now rented out as we are abroad, but we will be moving back to it at the tail end of 2019, and I cannot wait to be home.

The idea of a forever house wasn't a feature. It was what was affordable to start with, followed by what was in catchment area of the right schools for kids! This is a massive thing you may be wanting to consider at some stage. Its only now the kids are 16 & 18 that we're looking to move out of the shoebox to a house we actually like thats big enough for us all!

I don’t know if our current house is our forever home but I’d like it to be. 4 bed just over 100 years old and a bit run down in places, my DH sees it as a five/ten year place but I hated house hunting and never want to do it again!

Also I grew up in the house I was born in and want the same for my DC.

I have a very large 3 bed - just me! I hadn't set out for a house like this, just circumstances meant it was available when I needed it, and in my price range. However I now want to move as I want a bigger kitchen...people think I'm mad!

We stretched but not so much I wouldn't be able to give up work when babies came. That was 1992. It was our family home until 2013 a large turn of the century four storey semi (just - enough space between pairs for a cat). We didn't stop loving it the area just got busier and busier and more international. Eventually as the dc unplugged from school we decided we needed more space around us and may have sold on top of the London bubble having redeveloped it

We only managed to buy it because the builders who renovated it were in deep trouble in 92 and much of ghe area close to jt was being redeveloped. Friends thiught we were mad.

The actual cost of moving is expensive, legal fees, stamp duty etc. I'd try and get your forever home now. Or sit still and save as much as you can while you have a lower mortgage and get your forever home in a few years.

Remember to allow for times when you won't be earning and times when childcare will eat into your income. Assuming you have kids.

We were mid 30's when we moved into our forever home. But I guess it depends on circumstances and the house prices in the area you want to live.

We have a 3 bed semi. It’s going to do us till death. We moved here 13 years ago when DCs were very small.
We have a smallish garden but good room sizes. No off road parking or garage and parking is awful and getting worse BUT I love my neighbours and the community feel of our road and that is worth billions!

House prices and mortgage ratios aside be mindful of running costs, our council tax and utilities doubles with our last move, we're left with about £300 higher bills before even factoring in mortgage, depends how important to you "fun money" is each month.

I would use the next few years to save. If you go for a house that stretches you, now, them how would you cope if circumstances change, one of you becomes less able to earn? Unless you secured a low mortgage rate for a long term, which you generally need a good deposit for, rather than being in stretch yourselves territory, then could you take the hit of increased interest rates when the term is up?

Stay put for a while and put away the money you would be spending on a bigger house.

We've just moved into our forever home. The kids are in secondary school.

The concept of a forever home is not one I had heard of before Kirsty and Phil started banging on about it. We live in a four bedroom house bigger than we 'need', but we love it and we wanted it when we viewed when everything else was just okay or ruled out for some reason. Interest rates are low, you're both earning so why not? The other plus side of a bigger place is entertaining space and visitors having rooms to stay in comfortably.

We are at the other end of this journey OP, downsizing from five beds, four receptions plus dining kitchen and utility, three bathrooms, acre garden.

We have come to resent the time we have to spend on the place in the last year or two, we would rather be time rich. Cleaning, gardening, maintenance etc., all takes ages. Running costs are massive too.

New house is smaller all round, 1500 sq ft from memory rather than 2500 sq ft. Small garden.

I don’t believe in the forever house concept. Our new house is right for now, for secondary school years, but we will definitely move again in six or seven years time, we are in our fifties.

I'm not moving again. Moved less than a year ago and have moved 31 times in my life.

This is my forever home. A huge flat in London which has masses of storage to keep my stuff.

31 times- OUCH!

We both have fairly good salaries and stable jobs we hope and while rates are low I am keen to get out there! We’ve made a reasonable amount of money on this one and will have a nice deposit.

Area is good enough for us, good primary schools and grammar schools and access to public transport.

We’ve worked out our budget which should allow us to still pay mortgage/bills and have a little bit of a life if one of us was too lose our job or if our circumstances change re DC- but no, hadn’t thought about Childcare!!

Do any of you follow the 1/3 salary rule?

By working on the basis you could live on one wage you've covered childcare with the logic the second wage covers it. No need for childcare costs if one of you isn't working.

Not sure what the 1/3rd salary rule is?

We see the house we are in which was the first we bought as our home until probably retirement. 3 bed terrace house but it is just the two of us and no plans for kids.

Mortgage will be gone in 8 years at which point I'll be 45.

We thought about moving to something bigger with a garden but we would have to increase our mortgage but 3 times it's current amount and we like the amount of disposable income we have to enjoy life.

I'm not sure it's worth getting too hung up on the idea of a forever home. Circumstances, needs and wants can change so much over time, I personally wouldn't want to be so over invested emotionally in a property that I would struggle to leave if necessary.

We bought a 6 bed house just DH and me! 2 kids later we are thinking of extending (for more ground floor space not more bedrooms!)

I’ve been reading that salary should be divided by thirds. 1/3 towards bills/mortgage etc, 1/3 savings and 1/3 to enjoy life with....

Re childcare though we would def. go back to working but that expense right now is not something I should get hung up on.

Others your right, circumstances change, might have won the lottery last night

Yes we bought 6 beds too hoping to fill it with at least three or four children but sadly only managed two.

The downstairs space resonates. Separate downstaurs spaces become increasingly essential as they grow up.

Our"forever" home is half the size of the one that elanor is moving out of. More space than our last house but we now have an awful lot more in walking distance and a bus to somewhere or other pretty much every minute. We've also downsized our garden because the boys don't need the space and we don't need the maintenance.

What you dream of in your 20s and 30s isn't necessarily what you turn out to want in your 40s and 50s.

And yes, we ended up prioritising downstairs space. 3 big enough bedrooms. We viewed some 4 beds, but living space was lacking, even compared with the 2 bed we left.

I think that the whole concept of a forever home is pointless; you spend more money than you can afford, put pressure on yourselves to love it and then life happens and you end up divorcing or relocating for work and have to leave this home that was supposed to be a sign of your perfect life.

It's better to have a home that is right for what you need now and make do. I have a small house, yes more space would be nice but the mortgage has long gone and we have time and money to do what we enjoy and no pressure to keep up with the Joneses.

It’s the living space here that’s making me want to move. We have a great kitchen/diner but a small living room- I also really want another loo!

I agree with brizzle. I prefer to have a nice enough house and live a lot.

I could never know that something will be 'forever'. We live where we do for secondary schools which are fantastic and it happens to be lovely, but I could see us moving somewhere else post secondary years as I think that both DH and I would like to be somewhere with better transport links in future years.

We have moved a few times and there are so many beautiful places to live, we don't actually feel particularly connected to anywhere I don't think. As long as we can visit our family easily enough almost anywhere would do.

I don't buy into the idea of forever either.
First house was the best we could get on our budget
This house is the one where we grow our family.
Next house will be when kids are late teens and we can go more rural (at the moment I want our son to be able to walk to friends houses, when kids can drive we no longer need to be in the centre of everything!)