Should you have your first home by 24?

thegirlintheattic

I don't think many people do. At the moment it's looking like I will be 25 before getting on the property ladder.

phoebe1989seb

Our DS is very fortunate in that he and his GF bought a property in SW London last year when they were both 22 soon after starting graduate jobs in the city. Whilst they both had a very good independent education and mixed with some extremely privileged types, not many of their peers are lucky enough to be in this position. However, they were only able to do this thanks to an inheritance DS received from my uncle and money his GF was given by her mum from the sale of another house. They don't have a mortgage either

DH and I didn't own a property till we were in our thirties as we lived rent-free in a house that was owned outright by my parents when we were first married. Most of our friends bought houses in their twenties but are still paying mortgages now (mid forties). Thanks to working very hard to restore our homes to their former glory (and to an extent due to prices rising) by our early forties we had managed to be mortgage-free which I admit was a wonderful feeling - no longer being beholden to a bank or building society

lorelei_lou

I don't know if buying at 24 would suit many people these days - money aside, it takes longer now to get into a good paying, secure job and a lot of people I know have still been changing careers/jobs quite a lot in their early/mid 20s and haven't really become 'settled' in any way until their early 30s. As ukcarper says, people used to get married and settled into a job much earlier. Owning a property does tie you down a bit and could make it harder to pursue new career opportunities, etc.

I was 27 when I bought my flat though (I'm 29 now). But I knew I definitely wanted to stay in the area and my job long term. A few years prior to that, I didn't really like the job I was in or the city I lived in. If I'd bought then, I'd probably have ended up stuck there and wouldn't have moved away and got a job that suits me much better. A lot can change in a person's early/mid 20s and for some people it's not a good time to be tied down with a major commitment like owning a property.

I also learnt a lot from renting and sharing with different housemates over the years. I'm glad I had that experience - if I'd had my own place younger, there's a lot I might have missed out on.

I don't think there's an age by which anyone 'should' have done something in their life though, it's different for everyone. It's more about circumstances, and there are some advantages to not being on the property ladder...

Nelski

I bought my first house (on my own) at 21 straight after university - it was the logical thing to do then as it cost just 19k..... cheaper mortgage than renting - disagree with UKcarper as most of my friends did the same. Its far more about house prices than partners. That same house which is probably now worth over 100K would have been totally unreachable on my first salary. The house I bought after that I did buy with a partner so I think that was the way it was for my generation (I am in my 40s)

I feel for the people who so want to get on the ladder but I guess our norms are very different now and renting will become far more the way forward. Its a shame really as there is a real sense of security in part owning (bank still owes a little bit ) your own home.

J_i_m

I was about 26 when I moved out of the parents home into a rented flat. And I did so because I wanted to consolidate my independence because no matter how old you are whilst at "home" there's always the feeling of being the insubordinate.

However... Due to financial issues, namely reduced income and increasing rent I moved back home after 2 years in order to be able to save money towards a deposit on a home of my own.

I envisage another couple of years from now before I have enough money to put down as a deposit and shall then be in my early 30s.

DRP

Employers in my sector (university education/research) look very favourably at people who have a moved around and gained wide experience, so owning a house in your 20s can be a millstone that may inhibit career progress.

OP, given that buying a house these days isn't a guaranteed profit-making exercise, I would recommend that you wait, you save your *ss off for a huge deposit and when you have established a career and are looking to settle down for family reasons, buy a place. :money:

00ec25

Boureoisie wrote: »

Just a question, should you have your first home by the age of 24?

I am interested to know this as, I am getting nowhere fast getting on the property ladder and being a student for many years.

Thanks.

No, you should have it by age 23, otherwise you are an utter failure in life

Saturnalia

I would imagine the vast majority of graduates don't own property at 24, after all they've only been working for 3 years at that point (assuming a 3-year bachelors degree).

Graduate salaries aren't what they once were either, as demand for those jobs has massively outstripped the supply; and especially in London where most of these jobs seem to be based, demand for housing has outstripped supply too.

If you're single you have next-to-no chance of owning property in your twenties unless your salary is massive, and face it by 24 it is unlikely to be.

If you are in a couple or friends buying together then maybe you could, provided you don't mind living on fresh air after the mortgage is paid.

I'd say that thirty-four is a far more realistic estimate!

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

The typical age of a first-time buyer (FTB) in the UK varies for different regions.

This is according to new research from Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, which revealed levels for some areas are much lower or higher than the national average of 30.

It was shown that Yorkshire is home to the youngest average FTB age of 28, while the highest, 36, is found in Wales.

In London, FTBs getting their foot on the first rung of the property ladder tend to be around the 33 mark, slightly below the 34 recorded for the south-east of England.

Sharing the national average of 30 are Scotland and England's south-west, while typical north-east and north-east FTBs are aged 29.

http://www.houseladder.co.uk/Property_News/2012/04/FTB_ages_vary_across_the_UK_2887.aspx

littlesparkles

My boyfriend and I bought a flat when we left uni at 22. This was only in 2006 but 100% graduate mortgages still existed then. We are now in the process of buying a larger house - this time with 20% deposit (15% of our own plus 5% new build builder's deposit). The mortgage payments on the flat have been very similar to rental costs in our area. This means that we have managed to 'save up' some equity rather than just giving it all to a landlord so now we have a deposit for our next house. We have never ever even almost struggled with our mortgage payments (or other finances for that matter) so it is a shame for that these 100% graduate mortgages are no longer available for those who are now leaving university and have good jobs secured. It would have been more difficult for us to have saved up enough money for the house deposit if we had just been paying rent rather than paying a mortgage and building up some equity. Neither of our parents could have helped with a deposit so I expect we would have been in rented for some time.