How much would you stretch

caeler

Hi @Redwino222 love the name, especially as I’ve just indulged in a large glass with lunch! 

I’m single and live in a 4 bed house so I totally get having plenty of solo space. I wanted lots of down stairs space plus a study and the only way to get that was to have more bedrooms. Anyway, when I was 30 I did stretch myself (to buy the house I’m in) but now at 40 I’d be less inclined but then I have my forever home and I’m close to being mortgage free. I never wanted a mortgage over £1K a month but that’s because I always wanted to overpay too, to reduce the term. When I think about “stretch” it’s all relative. My earnings kept growing so it all worked out fine. Good luck. 

dimbo61

I can only add that whatever home you buy please consider an offset mortgage if self employed or living on your own.
We have had 3 offset mortgages over the last 15 years and love them.
The feeling of having a large savings pot offsetting the mortgage and available if needed to pay the Tax bill, replace the Car or Boiler, pay for a holiday ( Anywhere right now !) and top up each month.
Helps me sleep at night and means we are paying down the mortgage much quicker.
Less Interest and more repayment each month.
Still live and enjoy life but not earning peanuts in a " Savings account "

caeler

@dimbo61 clearly I’ve been doing something wrong, never had a big savings pot! 😂

enthusiasticsaver

Rather than fixating on maximum figure to borrow I would decide first of all how large a house you need and what is the ideal situation for it. Then look at the price.   I certainly would not be looking to borrow the maximum when you are in your 40s.  When we  were  in that position we were looking at early retirement and although you say you want to retire at 65 is this when you want to retire or when you can afford to retire? If you borrow the maximum you will inevitably have less budget each month for other things.  

IAMIAM

dimbo61 said:

I can only add that whatever home you buy please consider an offset mortgage if self employed or living on your own.
We have had 3 offset mortgages over the last 15 years and love them.
The feeling of having a large savings pot offsetting the mortgage and available if needed to pay the Tax bill, replace the Car or Boiler, pay for a holiday ( Anywhere right now !) and top up each month.
Helps me sleep at night and means we are paying down the mortgage much quicker.
Less Interest and more repayment each month.
Still live and enjoy life but not earning peanuts in a " Savings account "

I always find offset interest rates are ridicullously high (practically double) standard mortgages, when I look at First Direct, theirs are nearly 3 times as high. Any good offset lenders out there?

MovingForwards

No where near your income, but I only went to about 3.2x my salary as it got me what I want and leaves me able to overpay, save and pay into a SIPP. 

It's a personal decision regarding how safe your job is and how easy to find a replacement at that salary, how long it will take to build a safety net, how comfortable you feel paying X a month with other outgoings, what your long-term plans are and many other things.

fred246

I have got a property that is too big for a couple. After early retirement I quite like the idea that if my investments go bad I can downsize and get some more cash. However the Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE) people recommend spending the minimum on your accommodation so you can maximise the amount you invest giving you a big as pot as possible as early as possible to retire early. So they would say the bigger your house, the later you retire. I remember saying a similar piece to the petrolheads on the motoring section ie the more you spend on your car, the later you retire. They didn't like that.

Bowlhead

The level of judgement from some people in this thread is genuinely abysmal and lots of the thinking incredibly archaic.  
Wanted to say thank you to @Redwino222 because we scarily have lots in common in terms of earnings and pension (though I'm slightly younger and only just on the ladder, bloody London prices!) however the decision making he's going through is something i'd be contemplating in a few years time too because even though i'm happily single (shock horror, single people can be happy!), I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a starter flat....

brownbagsFTB

Bowlhead said:

The level of judgement from some people in this thread is genuinely abysmal and lots of the thinking incredibly archaic.  
Wanted to say thank you to @Redwino222 because we scarily have lots in common in terms of earnings and pension (though I'm slightly younger and only just on the ladder, bloody London prices!) however the decision making he's going through is something i'd be contemplating in a few years time too because even though i'm happily single (shock horror, single people can be happy!), I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a starter flat....

Agreed. It’s incredibly insulting to suggest that us single people are all miserable and somehow unworthy of a nice, spacious home. I’m with you, I’m picturing being in my house for the next 5-10 years at least, so there’s no point in buying a pokey little flat. Been there, done that! 

IAMIAM

PEOPLE ARE CONFUSING JUDGING SOMEONE IN A POKEY FLAT VS SOMEONE WHO IS BEYOND THEIR MEANS
Pokey Flat 250k Manchester or 1.5 million in Knightsbridge
3 Bed Detached 300K Yorkshire or £750k Surrey
See the difference. The End.