Have a deposit.. Still sturggling to afford to buy?

LJS2014

Reading your original post, my situation 2 years ago wasn't too dissimilar from yours. If there is one piece of advice I would offer you it would be to take plenty of time to weigh up the pros and cons of buying now vs renting and continuing to save for another year or two. If you choose the latter you might not necessarily have to settle for a small garden to escape to when the small flat starts to get to you I bought a small flat and now 2 years on I'm in the process of selling it because in hindsight it just wasn't a long-term home. Situations change so quickly so be really sure that if you do buy now it's a property that you think will have enough longevity for you. Just my personal opinion but better to wait and save a bit longer to get the right place

KJBlackwood

Think about rehoming the cat?

GoldenShadow

If you can't afford it you need to compromise. Deposit isn't everything.

We are moving 25 miles away to a cheaper town because we can't afford to buy where we live. I would far rather live here, but it's cheaper for our travel costs to multiply by four and buy a cheaper property there in the long run.

You either want it enough to make sacrifices or you don't.

k12345678

Lala2015 wrote: »

Thank you for all the replies!


It's nice to know I'm not going completely mad and isn't actually me just being silly with my money!


I am actually going to start looking for a higher-paid job.
What makes me want my own home even more is that people are telling me I should 'stay put' or point blank can't afford it where I live.
I'm, struggling, I get that. I also get that by not finding/wanting a partner, I'm probably making things harder on myself financially, but after the drama I went through, I think it will be just my kitten and I for a while...


I'll get there eventually I guess!

You will get there eventually but you need to understand that Surrey is just insane (I know, I live there too!). Anyone I know who has bought has been partnered up - its a way of doubling your income which most people cant just do on their own instantly. Its not really a situation which you can just make happen though!

£28k is lowsh for where you want to live especially if you are on your own but very well done for saving as much as you have! You said your income is high for your job though? What do you do?

I agree with others that Crawley is not a bad shout - a lot of much cheaper property there than in many places. Forget anything inside the M25.

You do sound as though you are putting a lot of emphasis on your cat though. It is NOT important in the grand scheme of things if you want to own a property. Harsh but true. Not wanting a normal upper level flat is massively restricting what you can even look for. And im not sure if your mortgage would have to take into account expenses for the pet - its all affordability checks these days but I cant remember if I was asked about pets last time I got one.

If you value the cat more than owning, fair play but you may be stuck for a while. If you can put your wants above the cats, you have a better chance.

Red-Squirrel_2

I hope people aren't suggesting that the OP should get rid of the cat? For starters, she clearly loves it and it sounds like its been a real comfort through a tough time.

Innys1

Lala2015 wrote: »

Completely understand - But I am compromising...I just would prefer certain things.

Probably not enough, to be brutally honest.

greensalad

I'm in a very similar situation. Same wage as you, also live in Surrey.

I have a partner though. We have decided we are not going to be able to save up enough deposit to live in Surrey, quite frankly. We also want a flat with a garden. So we are having to consider moving to another county.

Surrey, absolute nightmare. Don't know how anyone afford to buy here.

sofarbehind

Well done for saving so much! I feel your pain, it's frustrating when you make so many sacrifices and it still isn't enough. I also gave up on Surrey and London because I felt, in my mid 30s, I was running out of time and it just wasn't going to happen otherwise. Still not sure where I'm going to settle but it will hopefully be worth it eventually.

sniggings

Innys1 wrote: »

Probably not enough, to be brutally honest.

exactly, I've not heard any.

I'm on min wage and commute more than 30mins, widen your search area to 60mins and you open up loads of options.

The cat aside, I think you are daft going for a GF flat as they tend to e much noisier then top floors.