Affordable?

StractBoo

I'm looking for an unbiased opinion on whether you think this mortgage wold be affordable please.

Together my partner and my salary comes to (a year) £42,000
a month £2,300

We were lookng at a house £168,000 (price on the market)
However houses in that area selling about 10k less than that so probs about £158,000

We have 20% deposit and monthly repayments will be between £703-£850 a month over 25 years.

We have estimated how much council rates, water, gas, food etc would be and would be and think we'd have enough left. About £600 a month. Does this sound affordable to someone unbiased?

Sarah_Joanne

Have you compared your outgoings now to what you expect them to be if you take on this mortgage? That would be the first thing I would do. And only you know what you deem to be affordable, ie what cash you need left over to live your life how you want to.

opinions4u

StractBoo wrote: »

I'm looking for an unbiased opinion on whether you think this mortgage wold be affordable please.

Together my partner and my salary comes to (a year) £42,000
a month £2,300

We were lookng at a house £168,000 (price on the market)
However houses in that area selling about 10k less than that so probs about £158,000

We have 20% deposit and monthly repayments will be between £703-£850 a month over 25 years.

We have estimated how much council rates, water, gas, food etc would be and would be and think we'd have enough left. About £600 a month. Does this sound affordable to someone unbiased?

At the end of the day, only you can decide what's affordable or not based on your lifestyle and ability to adjust.

I'd suggest you stress test your finances based on the following major events:

1) If all your income stopped for 3 months could you meet all your commitments (solution: have an easy access savings account with 3-6 months net pay in it)?

2) If one of you gave up work to look after a child, could you cut back the luxuries and survive on one income?

3) If your mortgage rate went up by 5%, could you still afford it?


Additionally, how about considering the following minor events:

4) The toilet is blocked - can you easily find £100 for a plumber?

5) The car fails its MOT and needs £600 of repairs?

6) Three tiles fall off the roof of your house due to wear and tear, so are not covered by the insurance. Can you find £300 to replace them before the roof starts to leak?


If you're struggling on 4,5, or 6 then you really need to review your finances big time and shouldn't take out the mortgage.

If you're struggling on 1,2, or 3, then you need to sit down and work out how you would deal with situations (or similar) outlined. If that means saving for another 6 months or so, then do that.

getmore4less

Have you done a SOA/budget based on what you spend your money on and estimates for spends over the next 5years at least?

StractBoo

Thanks. I think we need to work out if we can afford a 5% interest increase but it's so difficult knowing where we'll be in 5 years (we would be getting a 5 year fixed mortgage). As for 4-6 yes we have savings which are not going towards deposit, fees, decoration etc so we would be fine for that. We have also worked out how much we want to save each month and then whatever we have left at the end of each month that we havent spent would also go into savings (i've always been very good at savings)

StractBoo

minnie123 wrote: »

Hi are you sure you have calculated your monthly take home correctly our joint yearly salary is just over 40k and our take home is £2625 not including benefits?

Well we are estimating low as my boyfriend has only been in his new job for 1 month but he has not been paid yet so we are not quite sure what he'll be getting.
I am aware this means we'll have to wait a few months before we can get a mortgage. He is with Barclays and they said we can buy now as probation period doesnt matter if he is banking with them, however a lot of people have told me that other banks/building societies tend to accept a letter from employers 3 months into probation period. Does anyone know if this is the case? We have appointmens with a few places so we can ask then for certain.

matttr6

Just for a comparison, me and my partner earn less then you (about £2300 take home). We purchased a house at the beginning of the year for £149k (put down 10% deposit) and thus far, things are fine. The house is newish so that takes out some of the mentioned maintainance factors. We're just about to sign for a 5yr fix as we would rather pay a bit more for the security (also going to overpay)

jockosjungle

Think about it hard, do you need a house that expensive? I know many people who have a nice house but cannot afford a chinese takeaway and you can pretty much write them off the week before payday.

I went to see HSBC and they offered £146k on a salary of £29k, when I asked how I'd pay it off as long as I could afford the mortgage and bills the fact that i wouldn't have any money to go on holiday with was my problem.

dimbo61

Lets start with the good news !
you have saved a 20% deposit and keep up the good work over the next few months as you need at least 3 months of wage slips from your Boyfriend. So save save save
You are both working and house prices are not jumping up by hundreds each month so unless in a rush to buy next week the" ball is in your court"
The prices on display in the estate agents are not what houses are selling for at the moment ( going cheaper)
So build up your savings, clear any debts and credit cards each month and dont buy a new car next week on finance.
I would try and get a 25% deposit together ( even if it means using all your savings ) and look at a 5 year fix with coop at 3.99% ( make sure you have a very good relationship)
Good Luck

StractBoo

dimbo61 wrote: »

Lets start with the good news !
you have saved a 20% deposit and keep up the good work over the next few months as you need at least 3 months of wage slips from your Boyfriend. So save save save
You are both working and house prices are not jumping up by hundreds each month so unless in a rush to buy next week the" ball is in your court"
The prices on display in the estate agents are not what houses are selling for at the moment ( going cheaper)
So build up your savings, clear any debts and credit cards each month and dont buy a new car next week on finance.
I would try and get a 25% deposit together ( even if it means using all your savings ) and look at a 5 year fix with coop at 3.99% ( make sure you have a very good relationship)
Good Luck

Thanks, I think this is what we are going to do. The houses we are looking at are £168,000 ish on estate agents website however when I checked on Zoopla they are selling in that street for about £157,000. I guess it depends on what offer they accept as to how much deposit we will have. At the moment we have 20% on £168k so if we got house down to £158 we'd have closer to 25%. We are visiting some banks/building societies at wkend to see what they say...

suisidevw

Yes, you should be able to afford this mortgage and still have a nice lifestyle IMO!