Buying a house to save on rent

eidand

I would not think twice. 5 years, well, you might decide you like the house and stay put. I would go for it, tbh, especially if you can get a good deal on a decent house

helen20201

hazyjo said:

You're forgetting mortgage interest, risk of prices dropping, and the cost of moving. My last move cost nearly £20k what with solicitors, stampduty, EA, removals, etc.

Not to mention upkeep. If renting and the boiler breaks or the roof needs fixing or replacing, it won't cost you a penny. Own the house, and it comes out of your pocket.

Thanks. I'm taking mortgage interest and the cost of moving into account when I talk about breaking even. 

gwynlas

Five years is a reasonable time to own your first house as circumstances can and do change. The important thing is to buy the best that you can afford otherwise you will have to factor in cost of improvements unless of course you are willing and able to add value to a property by way of refurbishment.
Owning your home will give you more security than private rented and you can choose to make extra payments to reduce your capital perhaps through rent a room scheme.
Make sure you do your due diligence by researching areas, not buying next to HMOs or social housing amongst other owner occupiers if at all possible.
Feel free to return to to the forum for advice on specific properties if you  wish.

helen20201

gwynlas said:

Five years is a reasonable time to own your first house as circumstances can and do change. The important thing is to buy the best that you can afford otherwise you will have to factor in cost of improvements unless of course you are willing and able to add value to a property by way of refurbishment.
Owning your home will give you more security than private rented and you can choose to make extra payments to reduce your capital perhaps through rent a room scheme.
Make sure you do your due diligence by researching areas, not buying next to HMOs or social housing amongst other owner occupiers if at all possible.
Feel free to return to to the forum for advice on specific properties if you  wish.

Amazing advice there at the end, thank you! I am clued up about mortgages and finances but not about the aspects you've mentioned. Is there a section on MSE where I can find more info on this, or is it a case of looking through forum posts?

bert4567

I do think it depends on your situation - i put down a big deposit after saveing for 8 years, and consequently my LTV was 75%, im also over paying on the mortgage - so over the first 2 years I'm hopeing to have the mortgage down by 30k, thats after interest payments.  But valid points on stamp duty, EA etc.. if you want to move - i also look at the fact im not paying rent as i have been for 20 years, might move after 2 years and probably break even - but stay another and then things start getting better.  Not sure how your looking at it, im looking at my property going down a little but my main focus is getting more equity by smashing the mortgage as much as possible !

helen20201

bert4567 said:

I do think it depends on your situation - i put down a big deposit after saveing for 8 years, and consequently my LTV was 75%, im also over paying on the mortgage - so over the first 2 years I'm hopeing to have the mortgage down by 30k, thats after interest payments.  But valid points on stamp duty, EA etc.. if you want to move - i also look at the fact im not paying rent as i have been for 20 years, might move after 2 years and probably break even - but stay another and then things start getting better.  Not sure how your looking at it, im looking at my property going down a little but my main focus is getting more equity by smashing the mortgage as much as possible !

Thanks! What does EA stand for? 

hazyjo

helen20201 said:

bert4567 said:

I do think it depends on your situation - i put down a big deposit after saveing for 8 years, and consequently my LTV was 75%, im also over paying on the mortgage - so over the first 2 years I'm hopeing to have the mortgage down by 30k, thats after interest payments.  But valid points on stamp duty, EA etc.. if you want to move - i also look at the fact im not paying rent as i have been for 20 years, might move after 2 years and probably break even - but stay another and then things start getting better.  Not sure how your looking at it, im looking at my property going down a little but my main focus is getting more equity by smashing the mortgage as much as possible !

Thanks! What does EA stand for? 

EA = Estate Agent

Marvel1

The way I look at in my situation is this:
My mortgage is £200 a month, rent is most likely double that.

Maintenance costs in last 13 years: flat roof £800.

MobileSaver

SpiderLegs said:

All this scaremongering about maintenance costs. Honestly how many people ever had to have their roof replaced.

^ This 100%.

In over thirty years of owning numerous properties, I have never once had to replace a boiler or a roof.

MovingForwards

Is this you wanting to buy and live in your own home, whilst saving and building equity to move up the property ladder, or leave the country and have a new life somewhere else?
If so, I don't see why you wouldn't buy a home now, not everyone gets their first home as the one they see themselves living in forever, especially if it will take another 5 years to save up on top of however many years you have already been saving.