Can we afford this - much bigger mortgage...

RedFraggle

BillJones wrote: »

It's possible that the OP is pope, I suppose.

Or maybe it's Prince Charles we're talking to.

I work in central government, another round of cuts is coming, my job is ringfenced but I still wouldn't consider I am in no danger of losing my job.

A dangerous assumption, I hope you are right OP!

Thrugelmir

redrabbit29 wrote: »

Good advice, I will be doing that.

Do you think I should save the cash in the bank, or overpay the mortgage?

I plan to keep some money in savings just in case something goes wrong, but I thought if I could pay £10k or something extra on the mortgage it may really help long term.

What rate of interest do you pay on your mortgage?

Blackeyez09

I'm sorry but I'm on 51, 602 (junior doc) partner on 30-40000 as he is currently a locuming doctor and we only took out 148000... Mainly as mortgage is solely based on my income as locum work for doctors can be sporadic plus I could afford more (210,000 apparently) but we are at the age where we might think about starting a family and life can throw unexpected costs at you!

One or two of my friends have taken sole m mortgage of between 200000-250000 on similar incomes because it buys you a better area round here and they are quite stretched

I'm in a very secure job but nothing is certain that's for sure!...

Soleil_lune

Blackeyez09 wrote: »

I'm sorry but I'm on 51, 602 (junior doc) partner on 30-40000 as he is currently a locuming doctor and we only took out 148000... Mainly as mortgage is solely based on my income as locum work for doctors can be sporadic plus I could afford more (210,000 apparently) but we are at the age where we might think about starting a family and life can throw unexpected costs at you!

One or two of my friends have taken sole m mortgage of between 200000-250000 on similar incomes because it buys you a better area round here and they are quite stretched

I'm in a very secure job but nothing is certain that's for sure!...

Have to echo this. Over a quarter of a million on a mortgage with only 60K gross pay a year is absurd. It's a phenomenal amount. And no way are they going to have £2K a month left after the mortgage payment. Probably more like 1.5K or less. And as they will be so outrageously stretched with such a massive mortgage, there will be a massive risk of losing the house, because anything can and will happen. I have seen so many people fall by the wayside by biting off more than they can chew, and taking on mortgages that they can barely afford.

As a few people have said; it's nigh on five times the joint salary and it's very naive (and a bit dangerous) to assume that you will never ever lose your job. If anything, you're more likely to be finished from a public service position than a private sector one these days, as cuts are being made constantly.

All this said, it's unlikely that the OP and his partner will get such a high mortgage anyway. I don't know how they do it now, but the last time we got a mortgage; (very early 2000s,) the amount was four times the main wage earner's salary. Certainly not five times both wages.

Why can't people be happy with what they've got? Even if they're not happy with where they're living, get something somewhere else, but within the same price range.

And yes, maybe some people are happy 'just staying in' and never going out, never going on holiday, never buying new clothes, never going out for meals, or to the pub; never buying anything. That's all well and good. But if you don't have any choice because every last penny is going into supporting your over-priced, over-sized house, then that will cause resentment and frustration, and ultimately, regret. Trust me, I have seen it happen.

And having once lived in a huge 4-bed house, and now living in a small 2 bed cottage; IMO big houses are over-rated; costly maintenance, very high bills and LOTS of cleaning. I would never swap my little 2 bed cottage for our 4 bed house now, even though it's half the size. The energy bills have dropped from £170 a month for gas and electric to £70 for gas and electric, the council tax is a quarter lower, the water rates are half, and it takes a third of the time to clean.

mrginge

The attitude of 'no way i can lose my job' doesn't really fill me with confidence in the quality of our government workers.

redrabbit29

My god...

I really appreciate all the advice but can you please just accept my job is secure. I'm not being naive, I'm not being overly confident. It is secure and that's that. I don't want to go into detail about my profession or justiy why it's safe.

Like I said, thanks for responding but reading post after post, with some sarcastic tones in regards to my job is really frustrating.

Also I understand the mortgage I was talking about I HUGE. I asked here to gauge if it's a bad idea or if it's something reasonable to go for. I've had a good response from you all, clearly with a view that it's too much.

Thanks everyone

jaylee3

redrabbit29 wrote: »

My god...

I really appreciate all the advice but can you please just accept my job is secure. I'm not being naive, I'm not being overly confident. It is secure and that's that. I don't want to go into detail about my profession or justiy why it's safe.

Like I said, thanks for responding but reading post after post, with some sarcastic tones in regards to my job is really frustrating.

Also I understand the mortgage I was talking about I HUGE. I asked here to gauge if it's a bad idea or if it's something reasonable to go for. I've had a good response from you all, clearly with a view that it's too much.

Thanks everyone

The reason people are commenting is because you posted on a public message board, inviting opinions and views, and you stated categorically that you will NEVER lose your job. THIS is why people are commenting on that aspect.

Fact is; not one single person in the world can say this. Not even a prime minister or president, so it just sounds a bit bonkers for someone to say it to be honest. Everyone on here, like me, knows that no job is safe. NO job in the WORLD.

I doubt anyone is interested in what your job is either - so don't worry about not telling us. Everyone just knows that no job is 100% secure, so it's weird that someone thinks their job is.

ukcarper

Soleil_lune wrote: »

Have to echo this. Over a quarter of a million on a mortgage with only 60K gross pay a year is absurd. It's a phenomenal amount. And no way are they going to have £2K a month left after the mortgage payment. Probably more like 1.5K or less. And as they will be so outrageously stretched with such a massive mortgage, there will be a massive risk of losing the house, because anything can and will happen. I have seen so many people fall by the wayside by biting off more than they can chew, and taking on mortgages that they can barely afford.

As a few people have said; it's nigh on five times the joint salary and it's very naive (and a bit dangerous) to assume that you will never ever lose your job. If anything, you're more likely to be finished from a public service position than a private sector one these days, as cuts are being made constantly.

All this said, it's unlikely that the OP and his partner will get such a high mortgage anyway. I don't know how they do it now, but the last time we got a mortgage; (very early 2000s,) the amount was four times the main wage earner's salary. Certainly not five times both wages.

Why can't people be happy with what they've got? Even if they're not happy with where they're living, get something somewhere else, but within the same price range.

And yes, maybe some people are happy 'just staying in' and never going out, never going on holiday, never buying new clothes, never going out for meals, or to the pub; never buying anything. That's all well and good. But if you don't have any choice because every last penny is going into supporting your over-priced, over-sized house, then that will cause resentment and frustration, and ultimately, regret. Trust me, I have seen it happen.

And having once lived in a huge 4-bed house, and now living in a small 2 bed cottage; IMO big houses are over-rated; costly maintenance, very high bills and LOTS of cleaning. I would never swap my little 2 bed cottage for our 4 bed house now, even though it's half the size. The energy bills have dropped from £170 a month for gas and electric to £70 for gas and electric, the council tax is a quarter lower, the water rates are half, and it takes a third of the time to clean.

I put the figures through Tax cal and Mort cal they are £35k take home £2113, £25k take home £1579k, total £3692
£265k at 6% £1727. Difference £1965 these figures include 5% pension contribution. I live on a lot less and am quite happy it all depends on your lifestyle.


I can understand him wanting to move but as I've said he would be in trouble if girl friend stops working and he could consider moving to somewhere smaller. I live in a 4 bed but as I no longer need them I would be just as happy in a smaller house.

lessonlearned

redrabbit29 wrote: »

My god...

I really appreciate all the advice but can you please just accept my job is secure. I'm not being naive, I'm not being overly confident. It is secure and that's that. I don't want to go into detail about my profession or justiy why it's safe.

Like I said, thanks for responding but reading post after post, with some sarcastic tones in regards to my job is really frustrating.

Also I understand the mortgage I was talking about I HUGE. I asked here to gauge if it's a bad idea or if it's something reasonable to go for. I've had a good response from you all, clearly with a view that it's too much.

Thanks everyone

OK for the sake of argument let's just assume that you are right and you will never lose your job and be made redundant.

Can you guarantee that you will never become sick.

My husband was just 49 - fit as a flea when he developed a rare neurological disorder called Cerebellar Attaxia - the effects of which are similar to Motor Neurone Disease. His condition has left him in a state not dis-similar to Stephen Hawkins.

Like Stephen my husband was a brilliant academic and owned his own IT company. We went from an income of over £120K a year to zero - which is how I came to discover Martin and MSE.

I am not suggesting anything like this will happen to you nor would I wish it on anyone.

I tell you this to just be aware that you can never know what life has in store for you. No-one knows what nasties can be lurking around the corner.

I agree with the majority on this one. To take on that level of financial commitment leaves you dangerously exposed to the vagaries of fate.

Save a bit more first and expand gradually to minimise risk.

BTW - we did have a healthy cushion, cash in the bank, and assets we could sell. And we had insurance.

Trust me on this - getting sick costs money and a serious illness soon depletes your savings and assets.