Can we ever stop renting???

littlem's

We have been renting for the past 3 years, since we got married.

We live in London, so house prices are high.

My OH is (recently) self employed and works from home.

We are hoping to start a family so we need a 3 bedroom home.

I can't work due to disability but get a small pension and benefits. Houses locally are well over £200k.

We just can't see how we can get out of this 'rent trap'.

Our current landlord is considering selling - we feel very vulnerable having moved 3 times in less than 3 years. We'd love to settle!

On mortgage repayment calculators we are spending more than we would in rent than we would if we had a mortgage but we don't earn enough to borrow those sums.

Can anyone suggest anything to help us??? We don't think we'll ever be able to buy! Many thanks for your time to read this! :easter:

BobProperty

You might not like this but...
Why live in London?

John Commuta quotes someone in one of his works, the gist of which is along these lines:
"Why do you live in city x?"
"Because that's where my job is"
"Why do you do that job?"
"Because it pays well"
"Why do you need a well paid job?"
"So I can afford a house in city x" Lightbulb :eek:

Poppy9

If your OH is working from home can you consider moving to a cheaper area. Also it will be a bit tricky getting a mortgage based on OH earnings if only recently self employed. It's not impossible but you might have to have a higher rate.

I don't know what your disability is but have you thought about trying to get some sort of work or retraining. A salary will give you stability and help towards a mortgage.

If working is impossible because of incapacity you have to think how you will cope with a baby. If your OH is working from home it's might mean he is distracted by the baby and your needs and will not be as productive.

Good luck and I hope OH business goes well.

suki1964

Has your husband tried a self certificate mortgage?

And yes, is moving an option?

Wickedkitten

Don't you need a 25% deposit for a self cert mortgage? Not to mention having to state your actual salary.

suki1964

Wickedkitten wrote:

Don't you need a 25% deposit for a self cert mortgage? Not to mention having to state your actual salary.

Must admit I didnt know about the 25% deposit

The salary isnt a problem as I gather from the OP that what they are earning now covers their outgoings and that a mortgage would actually be cheaper for them

lilac_lady

London and Edinburgh - don't know who can afford property there. You would need to move out of a big city before you could afford a family home. Big decision for you but you've started thinking seriously about your position so you've already taken the first step in changing your lifestyle.

Jorgan_2

littlem's are you renting a three bedroom or two bedroom property at the moment? If its a three bedroom can you move down to a two bedroom & put the difference towards a deposit.

As a few have said, do you need to stay in London if your other half is self employed? Have a long hard think about it, I did & have had no regrets. I moved away some four years ago & ended up with a lot bigger house, half the mortgage & a better quality of life. I do the same job now for slightly less salary, less hours & less stress. It took us 9 months of researching & soul searching before taking the plunge but it was worth it.

ChrissieI

Sorry to take this off thread but I've a question for Jorgan. We live in a large town not far from London. My husband wants us to relocate as we can sell our house pay our debts and have a smaller mortgage. He has no children and his parents are no longer alive. He is not close to his only brother. But I have a grown up son (about to get married) and Mother living close by. (Who may need me as she gets older) I also have a lot of family here. I know my husband is right but I feel it is hard to break the ties from here. So my question is did you leave family behind when you moved and what made you finally go. Do you miss the place you grew up?

Doozergirl

Jorgan wrote:

I moved away some four years ago & ended up with a lot bigger house, half the mortgage & a better quality of life. I do the same job now for slightly less salary, less hours & less stress.

Me too! :j I'm a London girl, born and bred, but I'd never go back there to live. It's great to visit and I probably spend more time in the West End now than I did when I lived in a suburb. We have a house instead of a flat, clean air, open countryside and I get to spend most of my time at home enjoying the children and posting on here whilst H gets his hands dirty. I used to be desperately climbing the career ladder but I can't see the point anymore, when all I did was drive home to my little pigeon hole, where I didn't even know the people upstairs, and collapse with a glass of wine (still do that though!). :beer:

It's bliss

meanmachine_2

If you're starting a family, and your husband can work from home, get out of London - get out and never look back!

The capital is fun in theory, but when I lived in S London I was skint all the time and could never afford to enjoy it.

If you have friends locally, then your true mates will visit you wherever you live.

As I understand it, 2 million people have left London in the last 10 years (so lord knows why house prices have gone up...), and happily I'm one of them.