We really can't afford the house we want/need will things get better for us or just forget it?

mrsmortgage

We want a very specific type of house in a very specific location. We can afford "bigger" houses, but ultimately they might offer an extra room (that we need) but our girls share and all of the houses we've seen have smaller rooms that what they currently sleep in. So we don't think our quality of life will be massively improved in that way. We're short by £30-£50k. What we don't know is that maybe after this "craze" houses will come low enough that we can afford one? It has become way TOO stressful and with the whole idea that we have to sell before we can even view some houses only adds to the stress. 

moneysavinghero

If you can't improve your current situation by moving, then just stay where you are. Stress removed.
If prices do drop then you may be able to move ( bare in mind that your house would likely fall in price too if prices fall generally).

Keep saving and wait for prices to become more sensible.

RelievedSheff

If you can't afford the type of house you want in the area you want then your options are to stay put, look in a different area or compromise on the type of house in the area that you want.

You cant just magically make the house you want in the area that you want affordable to you.

No one knows what is going to happen to house prices and if they tell you any different then they are a liar.

mrsmortgage

We really can't move to a different area, commuting times  would become a nightmare, no public transport for the older children, etc... Saving that much would also mean we can't do other things that we want to do (holidays for example) and by the time we save that money the children would not even live here and we feel they'd still miss out 

Davesnave

When stuck between a rock and a hard place you need to think outside the box you put yourself in, or put your faith in prayer.

I must admit, we held fire while mad decisions would have impacted the children most. Meanwhile, despite much prayer and a few lottery tickets the world didn't change in our favour.

After that though, we bloody went for it........ and then we wished we'd done it sooner!

pinkteapot

What do you need the extra room for? (Presumably not for one of the kids as you said they'll still share) Could you extend, or build a summerhouse? (one of the proper insulated/heated/powered ones)

theoretica

Were there a lot of houses coming on the market at a price you could now afford a year or 18 months ago?  If there were, then maybe getting yourself into the best position possible to take advantage if the housing market falls over the next year or so would be wise.  If there weren't then they seem unlikely to appear and maybe working laterally to maximise the space you have, maybe with custom furniture or partitions, would be worth thinking about instead.

teachfast

Check out schemes like Help to Buy (now FTB only unfortunately for you but wasn't for ages) that allow you exactly the leg-up you're after. 

It's not as simple as saying you can't do it.  There are ways.

mrsmortgage

We need the pother room for our toddler who still sleeps with us and sleeps in his brother's room when he's not staying with us. When we've done the historical searches, it looks like we'd always be short (by about the same amount?) We've seen houses that have come on the market that we thought we could afford, but ultimately they're not a massive improvement of what we currently have. 
We have no outside space, so not much we can do in terms of extension, loft is too low, etc...  Because we're not FTB we couldn't get any help (my husband could last time, but even with that help we couldn't afford anything back then). My salary has doubles almost overnight and that has been the biggest help in our purchasing power, but still now close enough to something we'd be happy with. 

Tiddleshalifax

I think you have your answer. 

If when you’ve looked historically you’ve always been short financially, decisions on how to move forward are important. You either stay out and save hard so that you can reach the shortfall, or you compromise. I don’t think anyone can predict if it’s going to get better.

RelievedSheff

mrsmortgage said:

We really can't move to a different area, commuting times  would become a nightmare, no public transport for the older children, etc... Saving that much would also mean we can't do other things that we want to do (holidays for example) and by the time we save that money the children would not even live here and we feel they'd still miss out 

What do you appreciate the most. A family home you are happy with or a holiday that is been and gone in a week or two?

If you want that house then you will have to make sacrifices to get it.