We need help- first time buyers where to begin

Amyysmith

Hi everyone,

Were after advice my husband is in the army but is leaving in 2 years so we want to get a house before he does so. I'm not working at the moment as we have been living in Germany and were due to move back to England in 2 months. My partner earns £22,000 a year

What we want to know is firstly what kind of mortgage can we get we don't know how much roughly we would get on a mortgage but have been looking at houses up to £90,000

We are planning a family so we need a 2 bed house but would idealy like a 3 bed (we don't mind having a house which possibly needs a bit of work.) were also wanting it to have a bit of a garden. but as we have been out of the uk for a while we could do with some help knowing what areas are good to look out on our price range, we are thinking somewhere that's within easy reach to the coast, we found quiet a lot of houses in our price range and what we wanted in the Norfolk area, does anyone know much about this area or some other places we could look.

Also what's a good deposit to put down? We need as much help as possible so any information you could give us we would be very grateful

hazyjo

Roughly, you'll get up to 4x salary, maybe only 3x. 25% deposit of purchase seems to be the norm these days! You will probably find something with a 5-10% deposit, but the rates won't be great. What sort of deposit do you currently have?

Am sure there was a 'where to buy in Norfolk' thread here recently... maybe try the search. If not, am sure others will be along to comment.

Good luck.

Jx

wymondham

I'm in sunny Norfolk, and travel around it a fair bit - if you have any questions fire away!

pretty much anywhere in Norfolk is in easy reach of the coast - 30/45 mins max?

poppysarah

Save. Save. Save.

GlynD

Good time to buy Amy. A lot depends on where you want to settle though. The coastline will cost a fortune but out of the way villages will be cheaper.

pararct

Is your Husband leaving as part of the Defence Review redundancy scheme? Or will he get a lump sum payment after his term of service? Of course either will assist greatly towards a deposit. In the meantime try and keep a married quarter and save save save as has been said.

As for location a big factor for me when I came out was to be where it would be easiest for me to find work in my chosen area. Depending on what trade your Husband is employed in and what 'De-Mob' courses he can get on prior to discharge will need to factored in. In fact I would put this requirement above most others such as close to the sea ect.
Consider approaching SSAFA http://www.ssafa.org.uk/whatWeDo.html

The questions you need answering is their bread and butter.