30K deposit but car has suddenly packed up

Adamc

Hi all - sorry if this is best placed elsewhere.

My partner and I have 30K deposit for our first home after several years of saving. However, my car has broken down and repair costs are equal to its value.

Do I deplete the fund and buy a secondhand but newish car outright, or get (hopefully) interest free finance which will affect the mortgage loan available. I feel the latter option may be preferable given that any value of the house that can be paid at the time of purchase is better than taking that amount as part of a mortgage loan (due to interest).

We are in no rush to buy the house but with seemingly ever increasing prices it seems sensible to get on the ladder.

enthusiasticsaver

Which is more important to you?

_sb

Sell your broken car to the scrap man, they'll even come and collect the car from you. Then purchase a very cheap runaround until you have completed house hunting and purchasing. You could literally pick up something for £500, it wont be the car you want but sometimes you need to prioritise.

csgohan4

I have had some good old bangers in the past, local dealers or Auto trader, just make sure you back ground check them and if you have a mechanic friend, check it out too

Thrugelmir

Adamc wrote: »

or get (hopefully) interest free finance which will affect the mortgage loan available.

No such thing as a free lunch. The finance is built into the selling price of the vehicle. Try and get a discount by paying in cash from a main dealer.

stridernje

What is the value of the house you are looking to buy? Also how important is the need of the car to you? Are you looking at the second hand house market or brand new with the government 20% incentive?
One thing I would suggest is to get the maximum mortgage you can afford. House prices will always go up and the gap always get bigger over the long term between smaller & larger houses.

bigstevex

House prices will always go up..... LOL! Yeah I thought that when I bought in 2007, still waiting for it go up past what we paid

Why not get a cheapish second hand car to last you 1-2 years while you get your house and then get something finance based afterwards so your mortgage isn't affected?

stridernje

bigstevex wrote: »

House prices will always go up..... LOL! Yeah I thought that when I bought in 2007, still waiting for it go up past what we paid

Why not get a cheapish second hand car to last you 1-2 years while you get your house and then get something finance based afterwards so your mortgage isn't affected?

You were unlucky then. I brought my house 2010 and it has gone up 47%.

Tammykitty

get a reasonable car, for a reasonable price, plenty of cars for £2k and under.


That way you aren't using much of the deposit

honestsammy

How much is your car worth and how could you possibly spend £30k to fix it?

If you did buy a decent replacement you would have to spend a few more years saving up, and in that time prices may have moved further.

At the end of the day it looks like you need to decide what is more important to you, but I think most of the people on this forum will tell you to bite the bullet, get a cheaper car and preserve your savings. I don't think this is not the type of emergency to spend your house deposit on.