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Original poster

How can my child live in London without renting???

63 replies

rosiembudd · 30/10/2019 16:06

My son has been looking to buy a property in London for months now. I've done all I can to help, research, advice, money at times... but it doesn't seem achievable. He doesn't want to rent anymore. I want to see my son succeed in the career he wants but it doesn't look like he'll be able to get there. What's stopping your children from living in London?

OP posts:

SnuggyBuggy · 30/10/2019 16:11

That most people only have so many spare kidneys they could sell on the black market

AfterSomeAdvice1234 · 30/10/2019 16:34

Can his career progress outside of London at all?

LIZS · 30/10/2019 16:35

Or he buys in outer London and commutes

user1480880826 · 30/10/2019 16:36

Can he buy further out and commute?

There’s really nothing you can do about the housing market unfortunately. Although house prices are falling in central London they would need to fall a very long way to make them affordable for most people.

Original poster

rosiembudd · 30/10/2019 16:37

@AfterSomeAdvice1234 he could do - it's just one of his goals to live and work in London with his dream company. I can't help but feel he'd be disappointed to end up settling...

OP posts:

Finfintytint · 30/10/2019 16:37

If he wants to buy he’ll have to accept that it will be outside London and a long commute.

EmpressLesbianInChair · 30/10/2019 16:38

Has he looked into shared ownership?

Finfintytint · 30/10/2019 16:42

Houseboatat on the Thames but he’d have to keep re-mooring??

asomodai · 30/10/2019 16:46

The three cheapest areas I found to live when looking myself was Dagenham, Erith and Thamesmead. Have a look there.

aweedropofsancerre · 30/10/2019 16:47

How much is he looking to spend?

SirVixofVixHall · 30/10/2019 16:47

I know two people who have bought lovely places through shared ownership, who otherwise would never have been able to buy.

AfterSomeAdvice1234 · 30/10/2019 16:48

It's a valid dream - everyone should live in London once! Unfortunately living in London and buying in London are sadly no longer compatible for most people. Maybe he should aim to leave London in 5 years and buy somewhere where he can move across the career ladder?

Or, love the idea of a houseboat! Lots of my friends have done this but it's extremely hard work, and unlikely to generate a profit once sold (which is an obvious benefit to buying property).

ffswhatnext · 30/10/2019 16:51

Hard work and frugal living.
My youngest dd and partner have just bought somewhere together in London, zone 6.
Since 14 she has earned money and rarely goes out. Makes her own lunches etc. When she lived alone she went down the cheap houseshare/lodger option.
Her partner did similar.
And when they moved in together they went cheap.
The only help has been looking for places when she’s moved, helped moved and now given them some stuff from home. Same with his they have helped out in other non direct financial ways.

It can be done by thinking do I need or want. The essentials have to stay. The wants well I could save over 4k a year by giving up something, but I enjoy it. There’s probably a lot of things people can give up but prefer not to.

You can also have a successful career in London without owning anything there. Others chose to live out and commute in. Others work two jobs to be able to do it. Depends really on how much sacrifice you are willing to put in.

Africa2go · 30/10/2019 16:51

I think lots of places in the UK are not possible to buy as an individual, including London. Can he buy with a girlfriend / partner / friend?

ShirleyPhallus · 30/10/2019 16:56

What’s his salary?

Drabarni · 30/10/2019 17:01

I think he should be doing all the research for himself. If he can't afford it he'll have to think of other ideas.
It's his life, if you continue to smother him, he'll never work it out for himself.
Obviously if only 18 he will need a bit of support, but should still be doing the leg work himself.

Bellringer · 30/10/2019 17:04

Look up help to buy. Deposit is biggerst problem, just hard saving and going without. Sharing with a friend makes sense, or having a lodger.

JoJoSM2 · 30/10/2019 18:12

If it’s his dream job and dream company than presumably it pays half decent money?

I reckon that in a professional job and with careful money management, it is easy to get onto the property ladder in London.

The people who complain are often those that aspire to living in expensive and pretty central areas. Obviously, if someone is in a lower paid job or has children, then it gets very difficult/impossible.

sunshinesupermum · 30/10/2019 18:19

I can't help but feel he'd be disappointed to end up settling...
This is the reality I'm afraid. I'm a Londoner btw. Many people 'settle' for working in London but having to travel in to the city.

Meanwhile why are you doing his research etc? How old is he?

maxelly · 30/10/2019 18:23

You don't say how old your son is OP but presumably relatively young? Why would he be 'settling' and disappointed forever if he has to rent for a while or buys a place not as central as he'd like? Dreams aren't always achieved all at once and if he's already got his ideal job at ideal company then he's doing pretty well . I'd advise him to be patient, rent as cheaply as possible/house share for now OR if he can afford it buy a cheap place on a commuter line, save save save, work hard and get a promotion or two and he'll get the 'dream' eventually. It will help a lot if he buys as part of a couple too further down the line. Contrary to how it can seem when friends etc are showing off, most young people even in very good jobs cannot afford to buy a nice flat (or even a not nice flat) in zone 1-2 London without massive parental support, the maths just doesn't add up. There's no shame in that- zone 4+ is a more realistic aspiration and is still 'London', but if he wants the buzz of central for a while longer (and who would blame him) then renting is fine too...

Pinkflipflop85 · 30/10/2019 18:26

@asomodai there's a very good reason Erith and Thamesmead are the cheapest!

CuckooCuckooClock · 30/10/2019 18:29

Life’s all about trade-offs.
Live in London and rent or move further out and buy (over 200 miles out in my case!).

Walnutwhipster · 30/10/2019 18:30

You don't say how much he earns, career, how much deposit he has, anything really. It could be doable now or never. How can anyone tell?

mumwon · 30/10/2019 18:32

www.sharetobuy.com/shared-ownership-london/
you/he will need to log in to look =I suggest looking at "second hand/preowned" shared ownership -you can get better deals. You do pay rent as well but close single family member who has done this pays less than when he was in shared house! & lives in "nice" area (think coffee shops et al) close to overground - the flat is not in a tall block & has one bedroom -for a single person at the start of their career in London - unless you earn mega - its probably the only way - the website shows how much you need to earn & the ground rent etc which you have to factor in

BlouseAndSkirt · 30/10/2019 18:32

Get in the property ladder by buying elsewhere and renting it out to cover mortgage etc?

And continue renting in London.

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