The more I try to help myself the worse off I'm becoming

pimento

Where do you live? (which county)

kaom

St Albans, Herts but now looking at Welwyn Garden City as it's close enough to my kids and also has a train to London. Plus prices are lower than in St Albans where a house you wouldnt want to live in costs over £400k. it's ridiculous. the only saving grace with St Albans is that the rental prices are actually "reasonable" (I use this word in total tongue in cheek and in context) when compared to other areas as there are lots more properties to rent here. however we're looking at WGC as we need to be in a place that has more affordable properties so that when we come to buy a place we can keep our child at the same school

pimento

You need to lower your sights. Really. I'd love to live in Mayfair but I can't afford it.

retireby50

You mention you work from home - are there any tax breaks/allowances that you may be entitled to?

kaom

retireby50 wrote: »

You mention you work from home - are there any tax breaks/allowances that you may be entitled to?

there are tax benefits for the self employed - so for my wife's YouTube business* she will be able to offset some costs against tax

(*this small income is included in our income/outgoings)

pmlindyloo

I understand your concerns about living near to your children but I think you are going to have to compromise.

If you moved further out from St Albans (I put in 10 miles radius) then there are some more affordable houses.

Also, if you do decide to continue renting then I would like to suggest that you get some independent financial advice about your shares (if you haven't already done so)

In the current crazy situation I would be loathe to have any money in shares at the moment. Just a suggestion.

Since you work from home is there any possibility that your wife could get a little part time job or do something on a self rmployed basis? if you are in the kind of job where you can juggle your hours this may be a way to up your income.

Don't forget that you could buy a smaller house with a large enough garden to have one of those rooms/offices built - in the scheme of things they are not too expensive and may even double up as an extra bedroom.

kaom

pmlindyloo wrote: »

I understand your concerns about living near to your children but I think you are going to have to compromise.

If you moved further out from St Albans (I put in 10 miles radius) then there are some more affordable houses.

Also, if you do decide to continue renting then I would like to suggest that you get some independent financial advice about your shares (if you haven't already done so)

In the current crazy situation I would be loathe to have any money in shares at the moment. Just a suggestion.

Since you work from home is there any possibility that your wife could get a little part time job or do something on a self rmployed basis? if you are in the kind of job where you can juggle your hours this may be a way to up your income.

Don't forget that you could buy a smaller house with a large enough garden to have one of those rooms/offices built - in the scheme of things they are not too expensive and may even double up as an extra bedroom.

thanks for your reply. In response to your points:

we are looking at Welwyn Garden City which is around 9 miles away.

My wife is self employed - she makes animation videos for YouTube - it produces an income; not much but better than she'd get if she worked in a shop or office for the hours she does.

Re holding shares or not...I know, I hear you! it's pretty scary out there right now. not sure what to do here tbh

FatVonD

kaom wrote: »

St Albans, Herts but now looking at Welwyn Garden City as it's close enough to my kids and also has a train to London. Plus prices are lower than in St Albans where a house you wouldnt want to live in costs over £400k. it's ridiculous. the only saving grace with St Albans is that the rental prices are actually "reasonable" (I use this word in total tongue in cheek and in context) when compared to other areas as there are lots more properties to rent here. however we're looking at WGC as we need to be in a place that has more affordable properties so that when we come to buy a place we can keep our child at the same school

Isn't St Albans one of the most expensive towns in the South East? I think you need to look at the train route going out of St Albans and find somewhere further out but on the same train line (so you can catch the train to collect your kids more quickly and cheaply than driving) where rentals/houses are cheaper. This may be what you've done with WGC.

3 bed houses where I live are £500/600k so I simply can't afford one. I have a 2 bed house and we've moved the kitchen into what was the dining room so we now have a kitchen/diner and our old kitchen now has a day bed for when my husband's children stay but it could equally have been a study.

Does your ex wife work? Would there be any mileage in you moving into the home you own outright and her renting if she might be entitled to benefits?

retireby50

kaom wrote: »

there are tax benefits for the self employed - so for my wife's YouTube business* she will be able to offset some costs against tax

(*this small income is included in our income/outgoings)

I was thinking more in terms of you working from home especially as it impacts on the number of rooms required:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/tax-allow-ees.htm

Capital allowances

If you buy something like a filing cabinet or a desk for your work - called capital expenditure - you might be able to get capital allowances to help with the cost.
Household expenses when working at home

You may be able to get relief for some household expenses and some travelling costs if you work from home. You might also be able to get capital allowances for capital expenditure.

Rockporkchop

kaom wrote: »

St Albans, Herts but now looking at Welwyn Garden City as it's close enough to my kids and also has a train to London. Plus prices are lower than in St Albans where a house you wouldnt want to live in costs over £400k. it's ridiculous. the only saving grace with St Albans is that the rental prices are actually "reasonable" (I use this word in total tongue in cheek and in context) when compared to other areas as there are lots more properties to rent here. however we're looking at WGC as we need to be in a place that has more affordable properties so that when we come to buy a place we can keep our child at the same school

It's a difficult one. Have you thought about double renting? You could cash in your shares and buy a decent, rentable property for approx £250k using your £50k as deposit. Make sure it is something you like and would be OK to live in if push came to shove. Rent that property out for approx £1000 or more per month to at least cover the mortgage. Then rent a nice place for yourselves long term in St Albans near to a good school.

It's not without its risks obviously and you would need to keep some money in reserve for months where the property might be empty but it is a decent enough way to get back on the property ladder and get your money working for you. I know someone who bought and is renting out a Chelsea flat and rents a gorgeous four bed house in Broxbourne for herself and is actually making money on a monthly basis, which gets ploughed back into the mortgage.