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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Another 'Which house would you buy?'

24 replies

SquashedToes · 27/04/2018 12:32

realistically I only have another 10 years working life which is affecting my decision!

house 1: nice waterside location, nice village of well kept houses, 15 min drive to school, DC can walk to shop/cafe and cycle to beach, good size house, and has potential to extend/landscape. would need a mortgage to buy, which I could pay off in a few years, but would then need to save for any improvements.

house 2: busy housing estate, very popular estate with 3 good schools in walking distance (one which DC attend), not much else in walking distance, smaller house,could buy without a mortgage and should have enough left over for a deposit on an investment apartment.

what would you do in my position?

OP posts:

DairyisClosed · 27/04/2018 12:37

House 1.defibitelg

penguinsandpanda · 27/04/2018 12:40

House 1

Haberpop · 27/04/2018 12:42

It would have to be house 1 for me (I am about your age and I wouldn't want the hassle of an investment property)

Rufustheconstantreindeer · 27/04/2018 12:42

House 1

beachcomber243 · 27/04/2018 12:45

House 1. It sounds lovely in many ways.
I wouldn't put money into a rental over making my home ideal for me/family and making it the priority in my book.

Letting can be a real hassle, dealing with letting agent, tenants, council, utilities, regulations, costs, empty periods, the right insurances, tax returns etc.etc and that's before any problems/maintenance issues arise.

Original poster

SquashedToes · 27/04/2018 13:06

yes my heart says house 1, my head says house 2. I probably should have mentioned I don't have a great pension so I was thinking if I eliminated my mortgage I could put most of my earnings towards pension, plus have the rental.

If I bought house 1 I may have to sell it when i retire (depending how a business venture does).

OP posts:

FairyCustard · 27/04/2018 13:07

House 1!

moreismore · 27/04/2018 13:07

House 1 definitely. You can’t plan 100% for the future so you also need to consider where you would rather live for the next 10 years, not just what makes most financial sense for in 10 yrs time if that makes sense

Haberpop · 27/04/2018 13:29

Could you rent out rooms when you retire instead of selling?

Furano · 27/04/2018 13:31

House 1 no contest! That is a much nicer place to be retired in.

Spicylolly · 27/04/2018 14:14

Defo 1!

LadyLapsang · 27/04/2018 14:26

House 1 sounds lovely, but how confident you will manage financially?

beachcomber243 · 27/04/2018 15:06

If you have your own home even if there is a mortgage on it, when you retire you could do an equity release plan if you have major upkeep costs. Just a thought.

ajandjjmum · 27/04/2018 15:07

House 1 - but if you do decide to go for House 2, could you let me know please! Houses in a waterside location are hard to find!

greendale17 · 27/04/2018 15:10

House 1

Sonotcivil · 27/04/2018 15:10

House 1. As kids grow up they need something to do.
If you can pay off the mortgage in a few years then no worries

namechangedtoday15 · 27/04/2018 15:31

The only thing that jumps out at me is 15 min drive to school for House 1, whereas DC would be able to walk from House 2.

So you're proposing to do the school run by car (your post sounds as though you're single so it'll always fall to you?) which sounds like at least an hour in the car for the next X number of years? That would be a deal breaker for me.

OldGuard · 27/04/2018 15:33

How old are the children and how many ?

TheBlueDot · 27/04/2018 19:10

House 2 seems the more practical option. DC walk to school and you have money to invest in another property for pension.

CountFosco · 27/04/2018 20:13

I'm not sure investing in a rental is a good idea. The law in Scotland is changing to make being a private landlord harder, England is likely to follow suit.

pinkdelight · 27/04/2018 22:09

When you say waterside does that entail any flood risk? Also, if the estate is popular and walking distance to three schools, how can it not be near anything else? Surely there must be shops, parks etc for all those people? Assuming there is I'm gonna go against the flow here and say House 2 because mortgage free is awesome as is kids walking themselves to school. That all seems to herald a better quality of life allowing you more time and money for yourself and for the next phase of your life, rather than more hassle and expense and never getting around to providing for your retirement. It's a head argument sure, but it's much better for the soul too.

Original poster

SquashedToes · 27/04/2018 22:38

DC are 13 and 15, we currently live in the same area as house 1, so whilst I am used to the driving around and can manage, I can see I would get more time back in house 2! After school activities are pretty much split between the 2 areas. DD will be driving in 2-3 years which will help.

Flood risk is there but property is a good 2m above water level and there is a lot of flood plain before us. No history of flooding.

House 2 does have a couple of (not as nice) shops/cafe too, but right over the other side and across a main road, so it is still doable, but I just don't think it would be very appealing.

10 years back I would definitely have taken the chance and gone for house 1, but house 2 is appealing. Interesting comments on the investment property, as we are coastal I had thought about either long term let or air bnb.

If I went with property 1 I could probably holiday let it for the busy seasons, but I don't think there is much market for letting by the room in this area.

OP posts:

Donotbequotingmeinbold · 27/04/2018 22:46

House 2.

15 minutes drive to school and 15 drive back again for drop off and the same for pick up is a lot. If your DC live 15 minutes drive away from school will they be miles away from all their friends?

I would find no mortgage appealing too. Even if you can comfortably afford a mortgage there is always the worry of redundancy or sickness or life getting in the way of you always being able to pay it. Not having a mortgage to worry about would be great.

Qwebec · 28/04/2018 00:35

Ten years away from your retirement house 2 seems to me the obvious choice.

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