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First time buyer - HTB - one or two bed?

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Frenchydj
Frenchydj Posts: 1 Newbie
in House buying, renting & selling
Hi, I wonder if anyone could help with any advice.

I am a first time buyer looking to buy on a new estate as close to london as I can afford as I don't want to live too far away.

I have established that although HTB is what I need to help me to be able to get a mortgage, the less I have to borrow in the equity loan the better. I am hoping to shrink this to 15/20% rather than the full 40% on a one bed flat.

My main questions are though - should I stretch myself and go for a two bed flat?
It will mean a 30% HTB loan and roughly extra £50 per month mortgage cost.
Will it be hard to sell a one bed flat?
Do two bed flats make more money when the market increases?
Is the bigger the property the better if I'm going to hopefully sell it in 2-3 years?

Thanks

Comments

  • SquirrelRM
    SquirrelRM Posts: 41 Forumite
    Options
    I wasn't aware that you could choose how much of the equity loan you took on but could be completely wrong.
    Personally I would go for the larger property as moving is such an expensive thing to do. Of course it depends on your work situation and other variables.
  • BeckyAP
    BeckyAP Posts: 50 Forumite
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    If you can manage the repayments for the two bed then go for it.
    In the SE we were looking between a two bed and three bed house. Given we knew that we were going to be staying in the area and starting a family down the line, the 3 bed was going to be more suitable.
    It future proofs you to a point but also gives you the ability to downsize if you do begin to struggle!
  • aneary
    aneary Posts: 921 Forumite
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    You have the option to rent out a bedroom if you struggle .
  • TBagpuss
    TBagpuss Posts: 11,204 Forumite
    First Post First Anniversary Name Dropper
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    If you can manage the cost of the two bed I would go for that. It gives you more flexibility - you may be able to take in a lodger if you need to in the future, to help defray some of the costs, you have more room to grow if you start a relationship or if you want to start a family later on. Or if you simply want to be able to have visitors come to stay from time to time!

    And for all those reasons, a two bed is likely to be easier to sell in the future.
    All posts are my personal opinion, not formal advice Always get proper, professional advice (particularly about anything legal!)
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