About to buy but is it the right thing to do?

sham63

Ignore post - didn't see your reply!

fistfullofdollars

I would buy.

I would also take all the HPC stuff on here with a pinch of salt.

If you want to start a family IMO you need a stable base. I wouldnt feel 110% secure renting in that position. Also, if you are buying home and not an investment there is never a great time to buy.

Its funny how the HPC lot havent mentioned the latest statisitcs about the UK population increase projections. 65m people by 2016, increasingly older population, 5 million more people than now..... where are they all going to live? What do you think thats going to do the the supply and demand of housing in the UK? House prices etc?

lizzymouse

thank you for all replies- it really isnt an easy decision to make-putting all the the circumstances of our particular situation together and i have to say it has been one of the most misreble times of my life. I always thought buying my first home would be something nice and exciting and its ended up being pretty much a nightmare because it it does feel like we are buying at the wrong time. whatever decision we make now will have huge implications and i want to make the right decision but there is no way to know right now what the right decision is, it all depends on which way the housing market and the mortgage rates are going to go and if im fortunate enough to have children, they are all unknowns!
My gut instinct is to rent and wait a bit longer........i think my husbands gut instinct is to buy though!:eek:

Stuckupahill

Flip a coin - heads to buy, tails to rent....then choose whatever you wished it landed on....
seriously though I'd stop worrying so much about what MIGHT happen...you can't control mortgage rates or house prices...so stop fretting about them.....
Personally, I think the overriding thing you need think about is starting a family. you're 37..and you've no time to waste (I speak from experience, albeit my sister's - who bitterly regrets waiting and would now happily sell her home to have her own child). Save yourself years of ivf, frustration and heartache and start tonight - i'm not kidding... apparently the chances drop dramatically after 35 years of age so you can't afford to mess about.
If you're serious about wanting kids then that's the priority - everything else takes a back seat.....
There's no harm in making plans though, so assuming all's well and you're going to have a minilizzymouse late next year then the next thing you need to think about is...do you want to be moving before, during or after pregnancy...and make your decision based on that.
(If it were me and i liked the house i'd move now so that it's all ready for the baby...)
forget about interest rates - they'll go up and down as sure as the sun does...so shouldn't affect your decision...just choose the best rate for you at the time....
If you're planning to stay in the house more than say 5 or 10 years then house prices won't come into it either - any short term dip will get overtaken by inflation over time....

If you delay and stay renting then you may at best save £5-£10k on house prices...but you'll still have the same decisions to make...and (hopefully for you) you'll have the added pressure that the clock will be verymuch ticking which isn't a good place to be!).

We're in a chain in which two people (my wife and my purchaser) are both pregnant (purchaser is 7 months!!)....we'd both have preferred to have moved before or after the baby but not during!
Hope that helps
Andy

lizzymouse

thank you andy- that does help.

If i was 27 and not 37 i dont think i would be worrying about the child thing quite as much. I have already prepared for myself for the fact that i may have already left it too late, but im not prepared to just give up completely at this stage- although IVF ect wont be an option for me- i definatley take the view that if its meant to happen it will and if it isnt meant to happen it wont so i will just let nature take its course and not mess with it.

but you are right- it would be nice to be settled in before any baby comes along.

that is the big problem with renting- it is not secure- if the owners want you out, there isnt alot you can do about it.........

Magentasue

We've always had a mortgage and never rented so not been in your position. We have four children and and our income has gone up and down due to unemployment, redundancy, bringing up children etc. and it is only in the last few years that we have had any money over for the stuff you spend £1100 a month on!

We were always scrimping and ended up in debt just to keep up with food, clothes and domestic necessities. But over the years it got easier because our mortgage payments, while not going down, stayed the same instead of going up as rents do. For this reason, I would choose to buy rather than rent if you think your income might go down. If I were you, I would tell your parents to save their money, pay for everything yourselves knowing you can rely on their help when (and if) you need it. That way, you can buy a house confident that you won't come unstuck.

You're right about the lack of security when renting but it works the other way. If YOU want to move but can't sell your house, you're stuck whereas if you rent, you can just give notice.

I'd still buy though! Good luck with your decision.

carolt

If renting costs are virtually the same as buying, I can't really see your argument against buying - is it just that you are worrying that if you waited you could buy something bigger? Or that interest rates might go up? If it's the former, I'd agree with the other posters that it's probably better to stop stressing about houses now and get on with the fun business of making babies , if it's the latter, whilst obviously it is a possibility, you could just as well end up renting and having your rental costs put up by the landlord.

Normally, in the current market, I'd advise caution in buying, but that has a lot to do with rental costs being so much cheaper than buying for most people. If that does not apply in your case, there seems no clear reason NOT to buy....

I'd say your budget - of 1100 for fun - seems pretty generous, and even if you had a child and wanted to stop work/pay for childcare you'd be able to get by reasonably comfortably on that budget. Don't forget, that when/if you have children, a huge part of your 'entertainment' budget is drastically reduced, as you no longer have time/inclination/ability to go out so much!

Re childcare costs, don't forget childcare tax credits and vouchers, which can take a lot off the final bill.

Moreover, once you have children, as other posters have said, you do find a way to survive - maybe it's because you have to, or parenthood sharpens your budgeting skills or something - but you do.

I'm wondering whether it's because - as another poster has suggested - you have cold feet. Is it really buying per se that is worrying you? Or are you not quite sure about this house? Or are you worried about all the help you are getting from your parents and feeling responsible for that?

At the end of the day, whatever decision you make, I'd say don't stress about it; it will be fine either way (and stress reduces chances of conceiving!). I've had 3 kids in rented accommodation - not by design, but by getting let down on a number of properties we were trying to buy, and I can honestly say it hasn't made a jot of difference to them. In one way, it was helpful, as we found out about the school my kids attend and the village it's in only a very short time before the closing date for applications for that school year, and were able to move very quickly as we were in rented accommodation, and were able to get my eldest (and hence all her siblings) in, whereas had we had to sell/buy a house, we would probably have missed the boat (and I put giving my kids the best possible education at a FAR higher priority than owning my own home)....

Good luck with your decision - it sounds like it will work out well either way. If you feel more comfortable with it, wait a while and rent first. Whatever, stop worrying about it - making babies is where your energies and efforts should be, not on whether it is your name on the deeds or not? who really cares in the long term....

lizzymouse

Well, i have had a good old chat with my husband tonight and we have decided to go for the house:j I think maybe i am guilty of getting 'cold fee' as it is such a massive financial decision.

i think i have probably over exagerated what 'entertaiment' money we have at the end of the month- there is about £1000 left over after bills and mortgage paid but we use some of this money for day to day expenses so it is not all striclty leisure money, but it is money left over.

In the position we are in, it will cost us no more per month to buy than it does to rent, so thank you to everyone for their comments- i have no doubt my husband and i will have to learn to tighten our belts and cut back but it will be nice to do this in our ow house:cool: roll on the 9th november ! (moving day !)

Doozergirl

I'm glad.

if you are worried, then come and learn the art of moneysaving! You have no excuse not be be saving something each month now, but additional moneysaving on all the day to day stuff means you have more left over to stash away for when the baby comes and you can't work.

If the worst comes to the worst, you go out to work, but if you fix your rate for 5 years (or longer, 10!) say, then hopefully you'll not be too far off the point where you can go back to work without jeopardising any relationship you have with baby as they will be at nursery, maybe even approaching school - if you feel that being a stay at home mum is the best option for baby. The difference then between renting and mortgage will be entirely negligable

Good luck

mini_huny_money

lizzymouse wrote: »

thank you for all replies- it really isnt an easy decision to make-putting all the the circumstances of our particular situation together and i have to say it has been one of the most misreble times of my life. I always thought buying my first home would be something nice and exciting and its ended up being pretty much a nightmare because it it does feel like we are buying at the wrong time. whatever decision we make now will have huge implications and i want to make the right decision but there is no way to know right now what the right decision is, it all depends on which way the housing market and the mortgage rates are going to go and if im fortunate enough to have children, they are all unknowns!
My gut instinct is to rent and wait a bit longer........i think my husbands gut instinct is to buy though!:eek:

I can totally understand waht you[re saying I thought completing on my house( first time buyer after renting for years)would be so exciting but am terrified now!!!! first mortgage payment due on 1st November and on my own......eek