What are my chances of owning my own home?

Smodlet

Is taking a second job an option? Have you considered a change of career in order to earn more? Is there potential for advancement in your current job?

Other than those, it would be all the usual stuff: De-cluttering to sell on fleabay/FB, ensuring your outgoings are as low as possible, etc. Do your parents switch energy supplier regularly? If not, maybe you could save them some money and recoup at least some of what you save them. HTH.

Pixie5740

zackyv6661 wrote: »

I am currently paying out £600 a month towards debts. I am still tied in with my last property for another month, as we had just moved into a rented property when I had to leave and move back with my parents. So once I have paid my last half of the rent for that house I can put that towards my debts too

If you're able to put that much a month towards your debts then once they're paid off you'll be able to save a decent deposit within a few years.

booksurr

zackyv6661 wrote: »

If I were to stay in the same job, I would estimate it could be around £23K, so not a huge amount more (we don't get huge pay rises and are seriously underpaid for what we do!)

so it will take you a year to pay off your debts

you will not get a mortgage for more than 95% of the cost of the property so you need a deposit of at least £5,000
on £1,300 take home pay saving £5,000 is a question of what sort of lifestyle you wish to lead

borrowing 95K on 21k salary is 4.5x your income which is (currently) on the top of what lenders will accept

in 3 years you say your salary will be 23k, therefore you had better hope that house prices have not risen by more than 2k x 4.5 = 9k in the meantime

doable, but you are at the top end of what lenders will accept and so very exposed to interest rate rises when it comes to effect on your future standard of living

zackyv6661

Jamiesmum wrote: »

Chances of promotion?
What will you be paying your parents?
Can you be frugal?
Willing to go without luxuries?
How much can you save per month?
Can you make any extra cash?

Absolutely possible, of course it is. A promotion would help, how generous your parents may be will help. Being as frugal as possible + ditching anything that costs too much (without depressing yourself).

Set yourself a target and a time limit, say 4 years at your parents - if you exceed your savings by then just carry on until the 4 years are up then look. Don't get carried away if it's within reach suddenly with extra costs. Extra cash to boost the balance will get you off on a positive start and be a good reminder.

Good luck!

No chance of promotion where I am at the moment. I am considering looking for another job though, as I am not enjoying this job at all, hopefully paying more too!
My parents have asked for £100 per month which is absolutely fine, and won't impact too much!
I have worked out I could potentially save around £750-£800 per month whilst still allowing myself some cash left over to live on.
I would ideally like to have my own car again, but will put that on hold if it means I could have my own house. I do get the bus to work anyway, so it would only be used evenings and weekends.

I'm always trying to think of ways to make extra cash, and have got a few things listed on ebay at the moment, plus I do sell the occasional painting.

I could certainly try and fight for a decent payrise at work. After researching, the average wage for the job I do is around £24-£25K, so I am underpaid! I did however just get a £4K payrise last year after fighting for that :T

Thank you!

Smodlet wrote: »

Is taking a second job an option? Have you considered a change of career in order to earn more? Is there potential for advancement in your current job?

Other than those, it would be all the usual stuff: De-cluttering to sell on fleabay/FB, ensuring your outgoings are as low as possible, etc. Do your parents switch energy supplier regularly? If not, maybe you could save them some money and recoup at least some of what you save them. HTH.

I could potentially take on a second job at the weekends. I hadn't really considered that! I have considered a change of career, and I am hoping to undertake some home learning to help me get into a new, better paying career! Unfortunately no chance of advancing in my current role.

I am always trying to help my parents save money where they can. Unfortunately I'm not one of those lucky people who have parents who can help me with a deposit, so it will all have to come from me!

Thanks for all the replies so far everyone It's much appreciated!

[Deleted User]

Definitely get a second job.., every bit helps. When I was single (without kids), it was what everyone did lol. Every £20 per week earned is an extra £1k a year. In one case, one of my evening jobs actually helped me get a full time job because the experience was relevant.

squeeks

Clear all your debts, if you can.

When you are getting close to a 95% LTV deposit you can start looking around, but you will probably want to wait until you are at 85% LTV.

For a 100K property we are looking at 5 - 15K savings for a deposit. You will also want something put aside to cover your stamp duty and solicitors fees (allow 1 - 2K for this... it will more than likely be less, but some spare cash is always handy for surprises and may give you more options... like furniture/white goods etc...)

As always you can probably find a mortgage broker for more creative solutions that requires less deposit or allows you to borrow more. Be aware though that these typically will cost more in the long run.

There may also be options to buy in partnership with a housing associations - again it depends how quickly you want to move and how long it will take to save.

Small_Yeti

Hi Zackyv, I'll give you some hope! Firstly don't listen to your Dad. He probably means well but he sounds quite like mine. I used to listen to my Dad and it set me back years as I was always thinking he knew better and obviously I couldn't do things if he told me I couldn't. As soon as I realised that probably wasn't the case and forged my own path and trusted in my own choices I started to get the life I wanted. They love you and they will always think you are the little girl they raised and they know better. You know your own life and what you want from it. Go get it. Don't listen to other people who tell you that your dreams are impossible.

Now onto your situation. When I was 29 I was paying off quite a lot of debt myself and earning quite a bit less than you. I managed to pay it all off by the time I was 30. Here's how I did it. I got a second job waitressing and all the money I earned from that went into paying off my debt (you have a better salary so may not need to do this). Every penny of this went towards the debt, including to the penny tips. As soon as I had any extra money I phoned up and paid off some of my debt so I couldn't spend it. If I saw something (new shoes, coat, book, whatever) and somehow found I could make my money stretch to be able to afford them then I would phone up my bank and pay off that amount of money there and then because if I could figure out I had that money to spend on whatever then that was money that could go towards my debt. I'll be honest, it wasn't always fun and it wasn't always easy. I kept a very small diary with me at all times and every time I paid something off I reduced my total debt in the diary and that pretty much kept me going but I won't lie, it was hard!

Once I cleared the debt I treated myself to a spa day on the first debt free month and then I started saving. I staircased my savings. So I started with what felt like a sizeable amount but which is actually a small percentage of what I save now. I arranged a direct debit into a savings account on the first of the month and I didn't touch it. Every so often I would crank it up a little bit. Every time I got a pay rise I put the pay rise straight onto the direct debit for the savings rather than get used to having the money.

I ended up marrying a lovely chap and so the savings grew a bit more, although he did not earn anywhere near as much as me for a lot of the time we've been saving and whilst we put the same in now, I probably put in three quarters of our savings. As his earnings increased he did the same as me and just put the increase into the pot so now he matches me.

The point is that eight years later we're just waiting to exchange on a house with a very sizeable deposit (just over a third of the property price, which appears to be a comparable price to those you are looking at).

If you'd told me at 29 I'd be debt free and had saved this much I wouldn't have believed you. You have to be completely focused on clearing the debt first (it's not fun but you'll get there) and then save as much as you can every month. I always tried to push it quite hard but knew that I would be able to take any car maintenance/genuine emergency money and occasionally a holiday from it. I work on the two thirds rule, in that at the end of the year I will probably have two thirds of what I have saved left. I try not to take from the account but it usually works out at around that. I also have a nice life and the extreme finances eased when I had paid off my debt. So now I have a couple of days out or date nights a month and can get stuff I need. The restrictions also made me better at understanding what I needed instead of just what I wanted and now I have a good balance between the two.

So it is completely possible and I know you'll do it if you want it!

zackyv6661

Small_Yeti wrote: »

Hi Zackyv, I'll give you some hope! Firstly don't listen to your Dad. He probably means well but he sounds quite like mine. I used to listen to my Dad and it set me back years as I was always thinking he knew better and obviously I couldn't do things if he told me I couldn't. As soon as I realised that probably wasn't the case and forged my own path and trusted in my own choices I started to get the life I wanted. They love you and they will always think you are the little girl they raised and they know better. You know your own life and what you want from it. Go get it. Don't listen to other people who tell you that your dreams are impossible.

Now onto your situation. When I was 29 I was paying off quite a lot of debt myself and earning quite a bit less than you. I managed to pay it all off by the time I was 30. Here's how I did it. I got a second job waitressing and all the money I earned from that went into paying off my debt (you have a better salary so may not need to do this). Every penny of this went towards the debt, including to the penny tips. As soon as I had any extra money I phoned up and paid off some of my debt so I couldn't spend it. If I saw something (new shoes, coat, book, whatever) and somehow found I could make my money stretch to be able to afford them then I would phone up my bank and pay off that amount of money there and then because if I could figure out I had that money to spend on whatever then that was money that could go towards my debt. I'll be honest, it wasn't always fun and it wasn't always easy. I kept a very small diary with me at all times and every time I paid something off I reduced my total debt in the diary and that pretty much kept me going but I won't lie, it was hard!

Once I cleared the debt I treated myself to a spa day on the first debt free month and then I started saving. I staircased my savings. So I started with what felt like a sizeable amount but which is actually a small percentage of what I save now. I arranged a direct debit into a savings account on the first of the month and I didn't touch it. Every so often I would crank it up a little bit. Every time I got a pay rise I put the pay rise straight onto the direct debit for the savings rather than get used to having the money.

I ended up marrying a lovely chap and so the savings grew a bit more, although he did not earn anywhere near as much as me for a lot of the time we've been saving and whilst we put the same in now, I probably put in three quarters of our savings. As his earnings increased he did the same as me and just put the increase into the pot so now he matches me.

The point is that eight years later we're just waiting to exchange on a house with a very sizeable deposit (just over a third of the property price, which appears to be a comparable price to those you are looking at).

If you'd told me at 29 I'd be debt free and had saved this much I wouldn't have believed you. You have to be completely focused on clearing the debt first (it's not fun but you'll get there) and then save as much as you can every month. I always tried to push it quite hard but knew that I would be able to take any car maintenance/genuine emergency money and occasionally a holiday from it. I work on the two thirds rule, in that at the end of the year I will probably have two thirds of what I have saved left. I try not to take from the account but it usually works out at around that. I also have a nice life and the extreme finances eased when I had paid off my debt. So now I have a couple of days out or date nights a month and can get stuff I need. The restrictions also made me better at understanding what I needed instead of just what I wanted and now I have a good balance between the two.

So it is completely possible and I know you'll do it if you want it!

Thank you so much for taking the time to write a detailed reply! It's great to hear your positive story.

Yes, whilst I love my dad and I understand that he will always want what is best for me, I do still have to do this by myself, and set my own goals. But I am very determined, and positive that I will own my own home one day, whether that is on my own or with a partner!

pself

Another take on this, when I was 26 I bought a house with shared equity on it when meant that I could buy a house on the market for £185k, which I wouldn't have got close to otherwise. There are downsides to shared equity as many on here will say, however it enabled me with a very small deposit to buy a nice two bedroom house, when otherwise I would have been looking at a studio, a big difference. 7 years on I have a great partner and we are selling this house that I staircased straight to 100% on with pay rises and mortgage over payments. All to enable us to buy a long term house for us in a lovely location etc which a lot more equity having made the move on this place.

Not for everyone but another approach which can be quicker.

skint_chick

I would carefully weigh up the cost of a car - tax, insurance, maintenance and fuel - vs the cost of taxis or hiring a car for the weekend if you want to take a longer trip. If you will only use it on weekends is it for somewhere you can't get the bus to? Also do you live close enough to places to cycle or take the train and cycle- that's usually possible outside of commuting hours. And will you have to borrow money to buy one or do you have some money to buy a cheap car? If it's just a taxi or two a month it might be cheaper not to have a car. Mine costs me about £85 a month just for tax, insurance, MOT, and petrol and I drive about 8,000 miles a year and I'm older than you with max no claims bonus.

You can do it if you want it enough - make sure you factor in service charges etc if you're buying an apartment. And do lots of housework and spoil your parents because £100 a month is a bargain!