Negative equity, no deposit, options for getting a more family friendly home

stupot101

Thanks for the replies guys. I agree a BTL mortgage and renting is too risky. It's my wife's preferred option and she'll be hard to convince otherwise though!

I work for my lender and it looks like they are at least going to consider lending us more to extend, if it increases the value of the home. If we can't do the extension we may look at taking the chimney breast down and removing an airing cupboard and an internal wall. Would create some more space for the wee lad and let us have a dining table.

carefullycautious

Hi, have you a big enough garden to have a wooden garden room that you could make into a play room that would also store all the children's toys etc. You don't have to have anything too elaborate but if insulated well it could solve some problems.


Would knocking any walls down create more living space? You need a fresh pair of eyes to look at what can be done to improve things.

Errata

Stay put, plenty of people in the past and now have brought one or more kids up in two up two down. Assuming you only have yard, it will be big enough for a small shed for a buggy and toys that aren't being played with - which will be most of them. Store rarely used 'stuff' in the loft. Keep your living room immaculately tidy and it will seem much bigger.
A downstairs bathroom isn't a drawback, unless the adults have a very weak bladder, and it's handy for potty training and disposal.
If you move into a rental you may find yourselves being moved out every six months - with all your 'stuff'.
Why do you think your mortgage provider would lend you even more money when your property is worth significantly less than you currently owe them? They're usually not keen on throwing good money after bad.

ReadingTim

Regarding the extension, you might want to check the extent to which it will really add value - what you're currently suggesting (moving bathroom upstairs, increasing room size) might not add much. There's also likely to be a ceiling price for the road, area and type of house, and improve as you might, you won't break it by much, regardless of how much you spend.

Tixy

If you did manage to borrow to extend (which is unlikely in negative equity) - would this be a long term solution?

If still only an interim solution then you will likely be increasing the amount of time you are stuck in the current place. As you will have even less to save a month due to higher repayments on the mortgage.

theartfullodger

Your best bet may be to move to another country & hope those you owe money to don't find you & come after you...


And the rest of us poor s*ds remaining end up paying...

Red-Squirrel_2

The average two bed terraced house is plenty big enough for two adults and one child, whatever their age. Yes, its nice to have a garden of course, but its not urgent.

Maybe you could look at making better use of the space? Decluttering, better organisation, more practical furniture/storage solutions can make a surprising amount of difference. I know you're probably rolling your eyes at that suggestion, but honestly, its worth considering!

4 is really your only option, rather than not an option at all, and I'd say you need to work hard on saving/paying down the mortgage as much as possible so that if things change and there is another child to consider in a few years, you will have more and better choices then.

pinkshoes

You have no equity and no savings, so your only options are:

1. Stay put, make do, save hard, hope house prices rise.

2. Sell, take a loan to cover the debt, rent somewhere more suitable.

Is it possible of of you takes another job to earn more, so you can save some money?

owlet

We lived in a tiny terraced house while my daughter was growing up. Downstairs was lounge (straight off the street), kitchen & tiny bathroom. Upstairs was just bedrooms. Small back garden.

We came up with clever storage solutions & had a small shed in the garden.
The living room was the play room during the day & messy play was in the kitchen. After little one had gone to bed, her toys were tidied away & it became adult living room.
We asked people for money or small gifts at Christmas & birthdays because we didn't have the space for large toys.

It was fine & I loved my little house. We moved in when my daughter was 5 months old & stayed there until she was 18 years old. Kids don't need loads of space, they accept what they have without question or issue. They need love, food & clothing.

We also had a tiny mortgage, which was brilliant. When friends were struggling because interest rates had gone up, we were sitting pretty. Have a good think first, would be my advice.

hcb42

Make do and overpay your way out of negative equity

Don't spend good money after bad, and don't become an accidental landlord, both disasters waiting to happen