Seperated dad looking to buy

Nhiggs

I've recently separated from my wife.
We have 4 kids, and a mortgage on a home. 

I now need to move out and get a property of my own, preferably a 3 bed so all the kids can live there some weeks too. 

I'd prefer to buy, as the rental prices around here match the mortgage prices, and (from previous experience) get you worse properties, with horrible landlords.

However, I'm going to struggle getting the money to buy one.
I don't want to make my ex sell up, otherwise we will both be in the same situation.

Does anyone know of any shared ownership schemes or anything similar to help dads in my situation.

If all else fails, I'll have to go to a smaller property and that probably means having less access to the kids as they will hate being crammed in.

Cheers.
N

tacpot12

I doubt you will find anything specifically to help fathers. You are likely to find shared ownership schemes in your area, but you should think about how things may change in the future to make sure that the scheme gives you enough flexibility. You can find homes available to buy on shared ownership schemes on Rightmove.co.uk. 

I've been in your situation, and you might have to accept that financially you can't afford to buy somewhere as large as you would like and pay child maintenace. The starting point is to develop a budget for yourself to see what disposable income you will have. You need a financial settlement with your wife, and when you look at all your assets you may find that you have or can get enough cash for a deposit to buy.

I had a sofa bed in a two bedroomed house, so I could sleep downstairs while the children had the bedrooms. Due to the distance I was from them, they could only come ever other weekend, so that was a reasonable compromise. 

deannagone

You are looking at this from the father's perspective (not suprisingly). Your children will almost certainly just be happy to be with their dad, even if all three have to share a room.  Its still early days.., if so, renting might be better until things settle down and you get an idea of what practical arrangements are going to be long term between your ex, and your children. Particularly while house prices are in such flux and no one can really predict what is going to happen to house prices.

Plus, I am afraid, between the two of you there are going to be legal fees to cover if you do divorce.  Wikivorce might be a good site to go to.https://divorce.wikivorce.com/forum-index

SDLT_Geek

If you do buy, remember the extra 3% stamp duty land tax for additional properties.  You might need a "property adjustment order" to escape that.

Thrugelmir

Nhiggs said:

I don't want to make my ex sell up, otherwise we will both be in the same situation.

Consult a family solicitor for advice. May well be the case that your ex remains in situ until your children leave full time education.