Mortgage on minimum wage?

captaincupid87

On minimum wage I earn £823 after tax. I get £73 per 4 weeks Working Tax Credits.

I live with my parents. Per month I pay £150 dig money (which cannot be reduced), £200 in food, £70 travel, £250 to my savings, £20 to my mobile, £20-30 on clothing, £20-30 on books, £10 on insurance, and the rest is normally spent on various contributions towards household bills such as vet bills, petrol, cleaning materials etc, as well as birthday events and usually one night out per month.

After I use my savings for a once in a life time trip to Florida next year (I am paying for both me and my mother) I plan on savings for a mortgage.

I have no desire to live with strangers - the whole point of moving will be to live alone - and I don't want to be in a relationship in my life so will not live with someone in the future.

I am wondering, when I cut down on costs and can save about £300 per month after the holiday, if I would ever be able to buy my own place? I would have just under £500 a month to pay a mortgage, electricity and heating, tv licence, internet (I study part time online), council tax, and any other bills not counting food. The cheapest flats I've seen in my area are £50,000 for a 1 bed flat in the rougher areas - although there is a nearby 3 bed £72000 flat I have fallen in love with.

If I saved for 10 years in a row, it would give me £36,000. Between legal fees (slightly less than normal as I live with a lawyer), moving costs, recedoration, buying furniture etc, I really don't know how much would be left for a deposit that would give me a mortgage of under £250 a month.

My job won't ever pay above minimum wage and I haven't been able to even get an interview for anything else. I do hope if I ever manage to pass my degree 9in 2017 at the earliest) that i can get a better paying job, but for now, with bills rising far faster than my £15 per year wage rise, I can't see a way towards owning a place - especially once the house prices recover.

Private renting in this area costs £350 upwards a month for a bedsit. I cannot get on the housing list as it is 'full'. I cannot drive and need to be close to my family, doctors surgery and a hospital for various health reasons. At the moment I only live 20 minutes by bus from my work, so that isn't an issue.

Does anyone have any advice for obtaining a mortgage on minimum wage, and which companies I would be best approaching? Or any other helpful advice?

sinbad182

It doesn't sound like a great idea.

Why not concentrate on the degree and put all your effort into sorting a career out, rather than fretting about saving enough money over a decade to buy a shit flat in the worst part of town which you'll be too skint to upkeep anyway?

lowlitmemory

If I have read this right, you won't even have a deposit ready for another 10 years. Who knows what the market will be like then?! You won't get a mortgage now with no deposit. I would say just save, save, save and then if you are able to use this for a house deposit, great, if not, you may be able to put it to good use or take the money for a rainy day.

martinsurrey

A 40 hour week on minimum wage (£6.08) is £927 a month net (so I guess your working a 34-5 hour week.

If your determined to save and buy you should be aiming for 50+, time at work is time you cant spend!

I would suggest that you either

- Get more hours
- Get a second job (bar work?)

after that just save save save, and think about this again in 3-5 years when you have a £20k deposit

captaincupid87

@martinmurrey: I get paid for 35 hours; there is no option of overtime and as I have said, I haven't even managed to get an interview for another job. I have been sending out targeted 20-30 CV's a week to various businesses for the last year and have had no replies beyond 'no jobs available'.

@sinbad182: I need to work to pay my parents. They're ill and their money doesn't cover the bills. I can't swap work for uni so I'm doing a degree with the OU (earliest pass, 2017). Best I can do with degree is teaching. My friends in teaching are having to go abroad for work. I know 3 people with my degree (Eng Lang & Lit) who can't find work.

penguingirl

captaincupid87 wrote: »

I can't swap work for uni so I'm doing a degree with the OU (earliest pass, 2017). Best I can do with degree is teaching. My friends in teaching are having to go abroad for work. I know 3 people with my degree (Eng Lang & Lit) who can't find work.

I'm interested in why you are doing your degree? I don't know many people with an English degree, but it sounds like you don't think it'll give you great employment prospects. Is there anything else you can study that is more vocational? If you are keen to be a teacher have you tried getting voluntary experience at a school, scout group etc? A bit of experience might help to secure you a TA job or something that would help you pursue your career, and it looks like you have time to do a bit of volunteering.

Have you thought about posting about your job on the employment & jobseeking board? They may be able to suggest things that you can do to boost your shorter-term employment prospects (courses you can take, volunteering opportunities, better ways of wording your CV).

martinsurrey

captaincupid87 wrote: »

@martinmurrey: I get paid for 35 hours; there is no option of overtime and as I have said, I haven't even managed to get an interview for another job. I have been sending out targeted 20-30 CV's a week to various businesses for the last year and have had no replies beyond 'no jobs available'.

1,000 CVs and not a single interview?

Do you change your CV based on what sector you're sending it too? I had 4 CVs as a student, pub, factory, restaurant, and office.

Has anyone other than you looked at your CV in an objective way?

What kind of work are you doing ATM?

Other than sending out CVs what are you doing? (Until you get the job you want, your job IS trying to get it, so 20hours a week of dedicated looking, research, interview practice (get your parents to help), even volunteering in a charity shop will get you retail experience (lead on to a Saturday job in town?)

captaincupid87

@penguingirl: I am doing the degree because I miss learning. There is nothing I actively WANT to do for a career as such; but like everyone else in the country I need to work, and I'd rather study something I enjoy than study something I hate, if that makes sense? It might not help me get a career but then, I know scientists stacking shelves in supermarkets because they can't get work. My uni work takes approx 3-4 hours a day depending on the modules. So far asking at the city schools for work experience and volunteer positions has been fruitless without experience and/or training. I'll try the job seeking board though, thank you.

@martinsurrey: I have applied for jobs in warehouses, shops, pubs, other offices, care homes, and restaurants. I'm a junior and have been for 7 years in a solicitors office (hence minimum wage but have to do reception and secretarial duties as well). I target each cv towards the job. I apply to job adverts in the papers, jobcentre and online, and to loal companies in general in case there is anything else going. All in I have had about 30 'no position' letters but all other cvs were ignored. I have had my cv checked by professional agencies and they only fault they find is I have only worked one job for so long so no 'field diversity'. I also go into businesses and ask if there are jobs going, although that never gets a positive response. My CV is on mulptiple job sites but no responses. I triple checked my contact information was correct because I was so shocked at the lack of response. I have only asked 4 local charity shops for volunteer spots but was told they had weekend volunteers and I would need to come in during office hours, which I can't do for free.

Mickygg

Unfortunately I'd say just save for now and don't think about buying. When buying a house it's not just the mortgage to pay, it is council tax, gas, electric, service charges, repair bills, water etc. On top of the deposit you need extra for a rainy day, such as in case the boiler goes and you need a new one, the roof needs repairing etc.

Brallaqueen

£200 on food?
£20 on mobile?
£40-60 on clothing and books?

Reducing the above will mean you can save more.

19lottie82

you've been an office "junior" for 7 years? really? I thought the whole point of a job like that for for school leavers was to get a bit of experience then move up.
(sorry don't mean to sound nasty)
have you spoken to your employers about a promotion?

I agree with the others, if you have 7 years experience of working in an office, and have applied for hundreds of jobs with not even an interview, you're obviously going wrong somewhere.

Speculative applications, although sometimes successful, can often be a waste of time. Try regestering with some recuitment agencies, they can put your forward for roles that they thing you will be suited for, and help you with your CV / interview techniques.

Can I also ask why you never want to have a relationship? That's a pretty rash statement to make at 25 (im guessing your age based on your username). Things in your life can change on a day to day basis without you expecting it!