What would you do??

Clockley

Looking some advice as me & my Husband don't know if we are potentially making a mistake!
Basically we own our house outright after paying off the mortgage with money my husband was awarded in compensation. My husband purchased the property as an 18 year old & has been here for 11 years now. I moved in 5 years ago and since then we've renovated & improved the house & it's nice but it's not something we've chosen together and after having our Son 7 months ago we want to start afresh in a home we have chosen together.
our current home needs more money spending on it (new windows and a boiler in the near future) & we feel we've spent enough on it already! We don't want to get a mortgage out at the moment as I'm at home with the baby and living on one wage for the next couple of years.
Our plan is to sell up & move somewhere a little cheaper than our house is worth, pay off some small debt & live in a low maintenance home that's cheaper to run & maintain so we can save. Then in about 5 years, look to move to the "forever" home - bigger & Get a small mortgage to make that happen.
We gave found a property that we both like but it's considerably smaller than our current 3 bed home. We could definitely live there happily & not have to do anything at all (it's a new home that's immaculate), but it's just not as big or as nice as our current home!
Is it a mistake to move somewhere smaller & downsize, even if it's temporary? What would you do??

fishpond

I would stay where I was.

Bossypants

My first thought is that for the cost of downsizing (EA fees, legal fees, moving costs), you could probably at the very least get a new boiler for your current place, which should help keep costs down, and then you could stay in your nice, big house while you save for the forever home?

Anatidaephobia

How much more money does your current house need spending on it? and how does this compare to the costs you'd face if you did decide to move?

hcb42

I agree, stay put. Boilers are a lot cheaper than moving expenses!!! Even windows can be done over time.

Hoploz

If your child is 7 months old and you are considering a short term move of 5 years I'd suggest you consider where he may go to nursery and school. It seems a long way off now, but they start school the september before they are 5 and you apply for school places the year before. That means if you don't want to be stuck applying in the wrong area or rushing to move in time, you need to be in your preferred area when he is about 3 and a half.

If you are aware of this that's ok but I just thought I'd mention it in case it's helpful.

mtbbuxton

I'd stay in your current house and use what you would spend on moving to upgrade.

M x

RichardTheComic

Moving does cost a lot so you do need to factor that in. What can you do to your current home (within your budget) to make you like a bit more?

I don't want to pry - but is it that your hubby already owned it, so you don't feel it's your home?

System

If I had no mortgage, I would not sell and move to a slightly cheaper area. To me it sounds counter intuitive to do that if the plan is to buy again in 5 years.

gettingtheresometime

And don't underestimated how much stuff a little one will accumulate as they get older

TBagpuss

I think I would look at staying put, and spending the cost of the move on the boiler.

Bear in mind that the new place will have a premium for being new - it's like buying a brand new car. How big is the estate and how long are they still going to be building? Would you be competing against newer houses if you do plan to sell in the next 5 years?

If the fact that you didn't have input into choosing this house is influencing you, another option would be to chose to spend some of the money you'd spend on moving on some cosmetic changes to make the house feel more yours - redecorate a couple of rooms to your joint taste.

Another consideration would be whether you might be considering another child would the new house you are considering will work if you decided to have another?