Good amount to have in the bank (young couple with a target)

Buzzybee90

Hi everyone.

My partner and I have a target year which we are saving towards. That year is 2017.

What do you believe would be a good amount to have in the bank in 2017 in terms of house purchase (would be looking around 200k), wedding (I know they don't have to be expensive!) and general savings.

We find having a target a great motivation but would appreciate advice.

Thanks.

19lottie82

one million thai bhat........................... mwah ha ha ha ha! :rotfl:

seriously tho, no one can answer that in regards to your situation. only you can say.

browneyedbazzi

I'd be aiming for a 20% deposit plus fees (legal costs and stamp duty) for the house.

The wedding depends entirely on what sort of wedding you want - some people manage it all under £1000, other spend fortunes. Until you have an idea of what you want it's impossible to set a budget.

Buzzybee90

browneyedbazzi wrote: »

I'd be aiming for a 20% deposit plus fees (legal costs and stamp duty) for the house.

The wedding depends entirely on what sort of wedding you want - some people manage it all under £1000, other spend fortunes. Until you have an idea of what you want it's impossible to set a budget.

Thanks. I'm thinking more of the house and then the wedding is sort of a general pot. 20% seems good.

tea_lover

As a very rough guide I'd be aiming for at least 20% of house price (so approx. £40k), £5-£10k for legal fees, expenses, etc. General savings - 6 months outgoings.

Wedding - that's the 'how long is a piece of string' part of the question. Think I'd see how I got on with the rest of it and if there was any left over, it certainly wouldn't be the priority.

browneyedbazzi

Just to add- 20% plus fees savings for the house is based on the assumption that with your income you could qualify for a mortgage for the other 80%. If your income is lower and you wouldn't get a mortgage for £160k then you'll need a higher deposit.

Buzzybee90

tea_lover wrote: »

As a very rough guide I'd be aiming for at least 20% of house price (so approx. £40k), £5-£10k for legal fees, expenses, etc. General savings - 6 months outgoings.

Wedding - that's the 'how long is a piece of string' part of the question. Think I'd see how I got on with the rest of it and if there was any left over, it certainly wouldn't be the priority.

Thank you. That's really helpful. Wedding not priority and I'm sure my family would help us out. My parents didn't have a mortgage :eek:

browneyedbazzi wrote: »

Just to add- 20% plus fees savings for the house is based on the assumption that with your income you could qualify for a mortgage for the other 80%. If your income is lower and you wouldn't get a mortgage for £160k then you'll need a higher deposit.

Thanks. I'd like to have a cheaper house (who wouldn't!) but there's really not much choice.

tea_lover

Another thing to bear in mind is if you're just starting out in life you may have additional expenses for things like furniture, bedding, white goods etc.

It could be that you have these things already (and of course you can get things second-hand or free) but if you don't have so much as a kettle to your name it's more expensive than if you're just moving from one house to another.

Buzzybee90

tea_lover wrote: »

Another thing to bear in mind is if you're just starting out in life you may have additional expenses for things like furniture, bedding, white goods etc.

It could be that you have these things already (and of course you can get things second-hand or free) but if you don't have so much as a kettle to your name it's more expensive than if you're just moving from one house to another.

Good point. We do have some of the major expenditures, bed, settee, some furniture. I think our crappy washing machine will have given up the ghost but excellent point!

jemb

Have you looked into mortgages? We moved 31st Oct and as DH was a first timer and I wasnt then we got a 90%, so only needed 10% deposit. We were selling though so had fees. So if we were in your position we would be 10%, search fees, solicitor other fees, moving costs ie vans and then additional £3k for things for the house, decorating, white goods etc.

Alan_T_2

As a general rule I go by the principle that you should start off with at least 3 months worth of gross salary as "liquid" savings as a contingency fund.

After that for house fund I would seek to put 25% of value of property away as a potential deposit. You may use less, but having that amount would allow you to have funds available to do work straight away in the property (potentially giving you wider range of options). Remember when it comes to purchasing at that value you have to factor in budget for Stamp Duty, Solicitor Fees, Removal Costs, Surveys etc... so would say you need at least £5k for that.

Beyond that remember that you need to be able to pay for furniture and fittings, possibly out of the deposit amount, but be prepared to have other funds for this.

Wedding... well see what's left and adjust plans accordingly, but from my experience you don't need to go nuts to have a great day. We were £4k, included honeymoon costs, and it was great. Just remember it is a wedding for you two, not everyone else, and don't get sucked into thinking what others will think of your plans... as long as you are both happy with things it doesn't matter as it's your big day not theirs.