getting my own place

jamels2

i'm in my early 30s and it's time i got my own place instead of what i've been doing up til now lodging at family or sharing with friends.

i wanna live on my own but can't decide if i want to buy or rent somewhere.

what puts me off buying is having to borrow money off the bank, i like living debt free and haven't made my mind up whether a mortgage is an ok debt, or as bad as the rest.

however, i'm not sure renting is a good alternative, considering that i will most likely be indirectly paying off somebody else mortgage that way!

with renting, the idea that i might be given notice and that the place won't be mine isn't a massive problem as i don't have a lot of belongings and could easily move again if i had to. in a way i like the freedom of renting and a friend who rents is pretty care free and enjoys not having the responsibilities of maintenance etc.

if i did rent i would make sure i put away some savings each month to add to my lump sum i have right now, the intention being i would buy somewhere outright in the future when i needed more security and had the required funds.

with buying i think that the mortgages offered are too much percentage, if i was to consider a mortgage i'd feel a lot happier if i put down 20-40%, i feel like a 90%+ mortgage is too much of a loan. is this a consideration when you buy? are the interest rates that much better with a bigger deposit?

anyway sorry for ranting on, i would love to hear your comments on this and anyone who is in the same position or can offer an opinion on whether buying or renting is the better option for a single 30 something. thanks!

w00519772

I am also in my early 30s and faced the same dillema.

I have decided to buy (though I have not yet found a house). I believe that house prices will rise over the next few years so I think it will prove to be a good investment.

I guess it depends were you live. If you live in London then it may be better to rent as house prices have recently gone through the roof. Also how secure is your income? If you have a secure job then it may strengthen the arguement to buy.

ACG

Short of winning the lottery or being given a decent sum of money the chances of you being a cash buyer for a property is pretty slim.

So that means your either going to rent forever and still own nothing or your going to have to get a mortgage.

jamels2

thanks for the replies, w00 out of interest how much % will you be putting down on your purchase? acg, why do you think it's not possible to buy once you rent? I earn 1500 a month and could rent for 600, allow another 400 for bills etc and i can save 500 a month, 6k a year which would soon add up. I think after 10-15 years i could easily buy.

Rovver125

jamels2 wrote: »

I earn 1500 a month and could rent for 600, allow another 400 for bills etc and i can save 500 a month, 6k a year which would soon add up. I think after 10-15 years i could easily buy.

You say that now but life does have a tendency to throw unexpected spanners in the works! With 1k of basic bills, saying you can save 500 a month sounds a little ambitious to me, does that 1k really include all bills, running a car, groceries etc etc?

I'm early 30s, bought earlier this year with my gf, 85% mortgage. No regrets so far, it's a lovely feeling knowing that we are actually investing in something now, with no danger of being given two months notice, having to fight to get repairs done etc.

It all boils down to personal choice, if you think you can do it your way & don't want to be saddled with the biggest debt of your life, then go for it, everyone's different after all

monty-doggy

15 years at 600 a month would be £108,000 paid off your mortgage.

Doesn't that make more sense???

staffie1

monty-doggy wrote: »

15 years at 600 a month would be £108,000 paid off your mortgage.

Doesn't that make more sense???

..providing the mortgage is interest free

jamels2

I just like the idea of a totally debt free life, not owing anything to anyone, especially the bank!

Slightly different question, if I want to sell and buy, is it best to do it all at the same time? Or are there advantages (if I have a place to stay in the meantime) to selling first, waiting a little while before buying, IE no chain?

staffie1

jamels2 wrote: »

I just like the idea of a totally debt free life, not owing anything to anyone, especially the bank!

I'm sure that appeals to everyone, but in the real world (unless you come into a substantial amount of money) it's unlikely you'll get through life without borrowing at some point. Not that there's anything wrong with borrowing sensibly in order to achieve major goals in life. 'Sensibly' being the operative word!

Carer

I have the opposite opinion to most posters - I can't think of anything worse than having a huge debt hanging around my next for the next 25 years of my life. I'd be always worrying something will happen, illness, redundancy that would mean loss of income and therefore possible loss of my home.

It's pretty normal in a lot of countries to rent for life and it was here too until fairly recent history.

I have always said I will never buy a house unless it is outright. I am very happy renting, no maintenance bills, no worries about possible job losses. Been renting for 25 years now and brought up a family in rented.

Oh and never been in debt in my whole life and I'm now mid-forties.

jamels2

Carer, your views appeal to me, no debts!

Just like I don't agree that some animals are looked-after pets and others are commodities/food on our plates, I feel that mortgage debts are no different to cc's/loans, all bad!

Why do we want to own? What's the point of having worked so hard for an asset that we can't take with us? I know some will say to pass on to your kids, but in my case I don't have them, and anything I've got I've had to work for and don't feel like I should have had anything given to me.

I can see both sides to the argument but I feel I am siding with the no-debts lifestyle, less anxiety/worry. As long as it's still possible to save, have a contingency, money for holidays, isn't that all you need?