What comes after Covid, wwyd?

Evens_Steffers

Densol said:

Do you get child tax credits ? Put your figures through on “entitled to” website and see if Universal credit would help you out better. UC credit pay some money towards the “rental element” of a shared ownership house and you pay the mortgage and usual maintenance charge - you might be surprised that this could work well for you to get a bigger home 
look at “share to buy” and widen your search. Look at the tab that says “ calculate “ and play around with those. They will also tell you how much the rent part is for the “entitled to” Densol said:

I did a quick calculation 
If just hubbie worked at £27,000 pa before tax, you didnt for example 
rent £800 month ( as part of shared ownership ) 
all including CB, tax credits and housing - all under UC its suggesting £252 a week - so £1100 a month 

VERY VERY quick calculation I did 

 Densol said:

I did a quick calculation 
If just hubbie worked at £27,000 pa before tax, you didnt for example 
rent £800 month ( as part of shared ownership ) 
all including CB, tax credits and housing - all under UC its suggesting £252 a week - so £1100 a month 

VERY VERY quick calculation I did 

To be honest no we haven't been very up to date with this since I went back to work. Have investigated and looks like we are certainly elegibleDavesnave said:

Evens_Steffers said:Our families say we would be mad to give up a secure property. 

That might be true right now, but  it won't be in the future if the need for space overwhelms the benefits of security.

The Cotswolds probably means a pleasant environment and good schools, but it's possible to achieve both of those in a less costly location, probably with the loss of convenience and easy access to family.

We lived in a similar location and couldn't have bought what we wanted there on my retirement, so we moved to somewhere 100 miles distant. Schools and environment are fine here, but there's a penalty in being distant from some everyday services and the nearest family member is 80 miles away. It's a price we're willing to pay, but it wouldn't suit everyone. We've seen people arrive here from more urban locations and sell up again within a few years.

Maybe lurking and eventually posting a SOA on the Debt Free Wannabe Board would be a way into building up that deposit?

Davesnave said:

Evens_Steffers said:Our families say we would be mad to give up a secure property. 

That might be true right now, but  it won't be in the future if the need for space overwhelms the benefits of security. 

Thank you for acknowledging this. The overwhelm is real! It's hard when our desire for more space, which we *can* pay for albeit at the risk of saving less and slowly- is met with judgement. 

. It would actually bridge the gap between HA rent and private rent, allowing us to move but not sacrifice on how much we are able to save. Not rushing into anything but more flexibility. Thank you for the nudge. 

[Deleted User]

Evens_Steffers said:

Currently live in a 2 bed HA flat. Two adults a one yrold and a 3yrold. We've got lockdown induced itchy feet. Need more room for the kids now baby is more a toddler and not having a garden has been... challenging. HA rent is £420pm. Private rent for three bed £850+ pm in the area (around £795 for a 2bed) Room allocation for HA strict  so no swaps allowed/ almost impossible. We have around £4k savings and a joint income of £30k per year before tax. Any of our peers who have a mortgage have either got a shared ownership or have had financial help/ inheritance (we are 30). I feel stuck and not sure if even looking into home ownership is ridiculous in our position. What would you do? 

Sadly this is a very common situation for young people.

COVID-19 might help you in the long run. It's unfortunate we have to think this way but it is likely to kill a lot of older people or at least shorten their lives significantly. With the herd immunity plan out the window it won't be as many as it might have been but we are doing worse than Italy now so it's going to be significant. Obviously it's a postcode lottery. People losing their jobs may also mean some repossessions.

That means inheritance and more properties becoming available to buy. With the pause in sales going on at the moment too there will be a glut when things start getting back to normal. That means lower prices, although probably not enough lower to make them really affordable.

Ignore all the "sell your iPhone" and "just save harder" rubbish. It's not your fault.

Thrugelmir

Evens_Steffers said:

Thrugelmir said:

See how events unfold. Interesting and potentially challenging times lie ahead. 

Indeed. I feel the need to be 'ready' for something. But what that is I don't know. We could comfortably pay a mortgage and outgoings per month (which we have based on what peers pay not a professional insight) it's just having the lump deposit to get off the ground. 

Focus on saving as much as you can. Use a LISA to boost your money. Unfortunately there's no easy answers. Never has been. Be prepared to move eventually to a cheaper area just to get your feet on the first rung of the ladder. Your rent is currently low maximise the opportunity while you can.