Feel like I'm pressuring myself to buy my first house

Carl2510

Save up as much as you can while you live at home it’s the best way. Move out when your ready. 

MikeL93

Carl2510 said:

Save up as much as you can while you live at home it’s the best way. Move out when your ready. 

I have been saving incredibly hard for about four years but it just feels as though it's becoming harder and harder to find something that could be affordable. Firstly house prices in my area have risen 11% since the pandemic started and secondly because it's become a very desirable area houses aren't staying on the market for long, I think I read they're on the market for an average of 10 days around here.

I do have a plan for starting the ball rolling in terms of getting a mortgage but I can't do that until my car is sorted. But I feel as though saying this is a way of me trying to justify to people why I'm still living at home.

grumiofoundation

Do you have a lifetime ISA? 
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/

How much are you saving per month? 
Is your pay likely to increase?
I wouldn't worry too much about house prices in the short term - especially if your affordability is increasing faster than house prices. 

You don't need to justify living at home nor not owning a property.
Are you tied to the area you currently live in?
Is there a scenario you may want/need to move for work?

MikeL93

grumiofoundation said:

Do you have a lifetime ISA? 
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/

How much are you saving per month? 
Is your pay likely to increase?
I wouldn't worry too much about house prices in the short term - especially if your affordability is increasing faster than house prices. 

You don't need to justify living at home nor not owning a property.
Are you tied to the area you currently live in?
Is there a scenario you may want/need to move for work?

I have a Help to Buy ISA which currently has £14,000 in it.
I am saving anywhere between £500 - £900 a month
It's unlikely I'll get a payrise in the next 12 months but I can't say for certain
I am tied to the area I am currently living in and no I can't see a scenario where I will move for work as I work from home most days even before the pandemic started.

ACG

Can you try and find a doer upper property.
Not to be rude, but if you cant afford the area you want to live in, you cant afford it. There will have to be some sacrifice, either moving out of the area, finding a cheaper property, buying with someone etc. 

My first home I bought in 2013 I bought for £84k. I had to spend about £15k doing it up over a couple of years. It was a horrible house when I bought it and it was about 3 miles from where I grew up. I sold it after 4 years for £155k. I made about £55k on the property, that then meant I could afford to buy in a nicer area than I grew up in. 

I would never have been able to afford to live where I live now if I had not got lucky with that last house, but I had to live in an area I didnt want to, in a house that was old, dated, had no proper heating and only 1 working plug socket. 

MikeL93

ACG said:

Can you try and find a doer upper property.
Not to be rude, but if you cant afford the area you want to live in, you cant afford it. There will have to be some sacrifice, either moving out of the area, finding a cheaper property, buying with someone etc. 

My first home I bought in 2013 I bought for £84k. I had to spend about £15k doing it up over a couple of years. It was a horrible house when I bought it and it was about 3 miles from where I grew up. I sold it after 4 years for £155k. I made about £55k on the property, that then meant I could afford to buy in a nicer area than I grew up in. 

I would never have been able to afford to live where I live now if I had not got lucky with that last house, but I had to live in an area I didnt want to, in a house that was old, dated, had no proper heating and only 1 working plug socket. 

The issue is the area where I live is rather secluded and houses are selling for not much less than £160,000. Apart from that I'd either have to look at buying a flat which I'm not prepared to do or I'd have to move 10 miles away to the next town which quite frankly I'm not prepared to do as it would involve moving away from my friends and family and knowing absolutely no one.

My parents have told me again that there is no rush for me to move out and they'd prefer it if I sorted my car out first, see what my finances are like after that and then see what I can afford mortgage wise or stay at home a bit longer and keep saving for a deposit. 

ACG

It does not sound like you are pressuring yourself to buy your first home. 
You have said you are not prepared to buy a flat and you are not prepared to move areas (I am not saying you should do either of those by the way). Someone who is pressuring themselves would be making sacrifices to buy somewhere... anywhere - you are not doing that. 

csgohan4

buying a house when your not ready, financially or psychologically, is false economy. The cost of rectifying the mistake is far more costlier and far transcends the rent is more expensive than mortgage argument

No shame in buying later. I didn't but till my late 30's. I don't like moving houses too much, some people buy a cheap one and upscale, I prefer to do it in one go, personal preference. 

MikeL93

csgohan4 said:

buying a house when your not ready, financially or psychologically, is false economy. The cost of rectifying the mistake is far more costlier and far transcends the rent is more expensive than mortgage argument

No shame in buying later. I didn't but till my late 30's. I don't like moving houses too much, some people buy a cheap one and upscale, I prefer to do it in one go, personal preference. 

I think I’m like you, I’d rather wait and buy either a semi detached or even a detached if the opportunity arose rather than buying a cheaper terraced house, doing it up and then moving again a few years later