Would selling our house solve our problems?

walletmoths

It's been a very long story but to cut it short... my husband lost his job and I work part-time. We have two young kids. Hubby is doing his level best to find work but in 3yrs can't even get an interview. (He's convinced it's because of his age and because he doesn't have a degree in his field of work - a degree subject which didn't exist 20yrs ago.)

We've worked and re-worked our budget and we've saved tons to get where we are today, but we're still spending £200 per month more than we earn and raking up a huge overdraft. We get the benefits we're entitled to - which isn't much at all.

Anyway, the question we're pondering over is if moving house will solve our debt problems? But there are problems with this too...

- The bank will only let me have a mortgage because I'm employed. That amount comes to less than our first house cost us 20yrs ago and I'm 99% certain that houses of that price don't exist.

- Our house has been valued and they all say it'll fetch what we bought it for 7yrs ago. So no profit there, only losses because of the moving fees etc.

- If we sell for what we bought it for, we won't have the 25% deposit that the bank requires for a new mortgage.

- If we sell our home and rent, the cheapest rent I've found on a house much smaller than ours is £200 more than what we pay for our mortgage.

- If we sell and then rent, we'd have some cash from the sale which would stop any benefits we're currently getting until we've lived off the money and then run out - so no chance of getting back onto the housing ladder.

Stuck or what?

At the moment, we're scraping by and paying an interest-only mortgage because we can't afford to pay it properly. I guess I'm just fishing for ideas really. What's your opinion on if we should move or stay? Our home is becoming more and more in a state of disrepair because we simply don't have the cash to fix anything. We also live 32 miles from where I work and spend a hideous amount of money on travel, so moving nearer would be a financial help.

Thanks for reading

eyeopener2

Can your husband change his field of work to get, well, anything really? Could you extend your hours?

I know you've probably been through all this but I thought it was worth asking.

Selling your house would seem to bring more problems than it solves and certainly doesn't solve your financial situation.

thehappybutterfly

It's a tricky one isn't it?

I'm not sure what I'd do but given what you said about rent being substantially more than your mortgage, and that you're on benefits, might you get housing benefit if you sold and rented? Even privately - I'm pretty sure you don't have to be an HA or Council tenant to get HB.

Could your mortgage company give you a break for 3 months?

Is your hubby being realistic with his job apps? Is he applying for everything regardless of salary? Even if he took something very basic, it's easier to get a job when you're in a job.

Can you get a full time job? Or a second job? Can hubby get 2 part-time jobs? Lots of shops are always looking for staff in the run up to Xmas.

Have you cut back on everything possible household-wise ? I mean things like entertainment, groceries, phones/TV/broadband etc?

shop-to-drop

I agree selling the house doesn't seem to solve anything just create more expense. You need to get your husband back to work. If he has been out of work 3 years he should most certainly be looking for any job he is capable of not just within his field. As you are working any income he can produce even if only part time to start with will help.

pmlindyloo

walletmoths wrote: »

It's been a very long story but to cut it short... my husband lost his job and I work part-time. We have two young kids. Hubby is doing his level best to find work but in 3yrs can't even get an interview. (He's convinced it's because of his age and because he doesn't have a degree in his field of work - a degree subject which didn't exist 20yrs ago.)

We've worked and re-worked our budget and we've saved tons to get where we are today, but we're still spending £200 per month more than we earn and raking up a huge overdraft. We get the benefits we're entitled to - which isn't much at all.

Anyway, the question we're pondering over is if moving house will solve our debt problems? But there are problems with this too...

- The bank will only let me have a mortgage because I'm employed. That amount comes to less than our first house cost us 20yrs ago and I'm 99% certain that houses of that price don't exist.

- Our house has been valued and they all say it'll fetch what we bought it for 7yrs ago. So no profit there, only losses because of the moving fees etc.

- If we sell for what we bought it for, we won't have the 25% deposit that the bank requires for a new mortgage.

- If we sell our home and rent, the cheapest rent I've found on a house much smaller than ours is £200 more than what we pay for our mortgage.

- If we sell and then rent, we'd have some cash from the sale which would stop any benefits we're currently getting until we've lived off the money and then run out - so no chance of getting back onto the housing ladder.

Stuck or what?

At the moment, we're scraping by and paying an interest-only mortgage because we can't afford to pay it properly. I guess I'm just fishing for ideas really. What's your opinion on if we should move or stay? Our home is becoming more and more in a state of disrepair because we simply don't have the cash to fix anything. We also live 32 miles from where I work and spend a hideous amount of money on travel, so moving nearer would be a financial help.

Thanks for reading

I agree that selling the house does not seem to be an option.

You seem to have been doing everything that you can to cut down on expenditure (worth posting a SOA to see if the great folks on here can spot anything you may have missed) so..........

The only answer is to increase your income (sorry sounds so easy when I know it isn't )

Two ways to do this - sorry to state the obvious - find more work and increase hours so that you maximise your benefit entitlement and/or take on another job(s)


For example, do you work 24 hours a week and are claiming Working tax credits as well as Child Tax Credits? If you aren't then try, to do this - either increase your working hours, get a second job or your husband gets a part time job to increase the hours.

You say that you have 2 young children. Presumably at the moment your OH is sharing child care responsibilities in the home. You need to think outside the box and take any job to up your income.

If you put different scenarios into the benefit calculator on www.turn2us.co.uk (click on Benefits on the banner at the top and you will see the calculator) you will see your entitlements.

You could try full time for OH at minimum wage, you getting another part time job etc etc.

I expect after 3 years your OH is feeling very despondent. Any job would be so much better for him than what he is going through at the moment.

If he enjoys looking after the children then you may want to consider him the house husband and you look for full time work.

There is no magic solution - just a simple case of either upping income or reducing expenditure - sorry.

laurel7172

Does your husband have any skills he could sell? I appreciate it might not be the best use of his professional abilities and experience, but lawnmowing, dogwalking, even cleaning-anything to find that £50 per week you're short?

Jireh_2

I'm in a very similar situation to you and I feel selling and renting for a short while may be your best option.

The rent may be more expensive but if you get somewhere close to your work then that could cut on travelling expenses.

Also dont forget you dont have to pay ofor insurance and all the other things that come with owning a home.

walletmoths

Thanks so much everyone - you've got some really good ideas, and it's started us thinking a bit more rationally about it all.

thehappybutterfly

It's hard to think clearly sometimes when you have problems with multiple solutions isn't it?! Look at them as individual issues, write them all down with their solutions then you can clear your head a bit and tackle them one at a time. Otherwise you will end up thinking in circles and getting nowhere fast!

Good luck with whatever you decide but don't rush into anything re your home. Once it's gone, it's gone.