Buy or stay in HA?

kelslayer

Background, was in about £20k debt 8/9 years ago, was in private renting with husband and 2 young children. Reached breaking point and got on the housing list for social housing. Managed to get a smaller house, as the house had a local connection thing on it which made us eligible. 

Since then we have worked hard to clear the debt, as the boys grew we managed to do a house exchange to a 3 bed property. Th house is in the countryside, south facing garden, large garden. It’s a nice house, my only niggle is the dining table is in the lounge. The rent is very reasonable.

fast forward and we are where we are now. Since then I’ve spent 5 years training on a course, passed 8 of the 10 exams, and salary has increased. My salary should increase again once I qualify. 

Last year I was gifted £25k,. Amazing, we can buy our own house….. we are now half way through a house purchase. 

Now, I’m 43 and my husband is 53. The mortgage payments are £1400, our rent is £650.

my husband was settled with the fact that we may not ever own our own house. And I know I’ve pushed him a bit to do this.

im now having a wobble that now we are finally breathing and able to give our boys what they want and need we are going back to watching our spends and quality of life. Also the mortgage takes hubby up till he’s 75, which he’s a bit concerned about.

I have said that I will try to reduce the term by adding to the mortgage where we can.

the alternative is we save/invest our surplus income, so we can still
leave the boys something when we pass.

I guess from this long story is just wanting a strangers perspective on this?

jonnydeppiwish!

If I were in you position, would would buy, but only because I would want my own place. Obviously it’s a lot cheaper to rent for you at this moment and you have no big repair bills in a rented property.

twoLou

First off - What a wonderful achievement and turnaround you have made.

I have found that buying houses nearly always produces wobbles, whatever the circumstances 

In your position I would buy, in a rental there is never any real certainty.

If you can afford the mortgage then I would do it but only you can know that, however
this is buying your own house and if you can’t maybe afford to give your 
boys some things think of the huge thing you can  - their own house to live in.

The very best of luck whatever you do decide to do.

housebuyer143

I actually would go the other way and not buy. You have a secure tenancy in a house you like and how can swap if needed. The rent is so cheap that you can enjoy your life and not need to scrimp and save.
Yes, you don't have something to leave your kids when you are gone, but you are able to enjoy your time with them now and potentially leave them money when you are gone.

Everyone is so obsessed with buying, but with it comes maintenance, insurance, and a very very large mortgage. If you didn't buy your savings can gather a good amount of interest and also provide an income. If you fall on hard times then your rent is paid.

If it was private renting or buying, I would say buy everyday, but I personally think what you have now is better than owning.

To add, and something maybe not considered is the mental implications of having a mortgage that large until 75. Subconsciously it puts stress on you as it means you will always have to be in employment and probably full time or you might not be able to afford the house. I'm not sure how much as a percentage of your salary the mortgage is but the higher it is, the more you might feel trapped.

MFWannabe

That’s a huge jump in payments. Is where you are buying a much bigger property? 

Are you able to buy your HA house? I thought it was allowed at a good discount when you’d been there so many years. 

I’m all for buying and owning own house but in your circumstances I’d look to see if I could buy the house you rent now and if not I would stay put and save save save 

lincroft1710

kelslayer said:

Last year I was gifted £25k,. Amazing, we can buy our own house….. we are now half way through a house purchase. 

Now, I’m 43 and my husband is 53. The mortgage payments are £1400, our rent is £650.

my husband was settled with the fact that we may not ever own our own house. And I know I’ve pushed him a bit to do this.

im now having a wobble that now we are finally breathing and able to give our boys what they want and need we are going back to watching our spends and quality of life. Also the mortgage takes hubby up till he’s 75, which he’s a bit concerned about.


the alternative is we save/invest our surplus income, so we can still
leave the boys something when we pass.

I guess from this long story is just wanting a strangers perspective on this?

You have a secure tenancy and no worries regarding cost of house repairs should they arise (I've already spent £5,000 this year on necessary repairs/replacements). You are thinking of spending an extra £9,000 per annum (which will probably increase) for the next 22 years so that when you reach the ages of 65 and 75 respectively you and your husband will be able to say "At last we have our own home". If both of you together or the last surviving spouse need to be taken into care, the house will have to be sold to fund this care.


If you want to "leave something" to your sons, whether it be what remains of your savings or the house.then that is your choice, but there is no moral or legal obligation to do so. Concentrate on living now not ensuring there is something to leave your sons when you pass.

Sarah1Mitty2

Good advice, I would stick the 25k into Premium Bonds and start saving into a money market fund with a portion in cash (maybe half and half ?) held within an ISA, maybe buy into a couple of cheap index funds with any dividends/interest as it is paid or re-invest into the MMF or cash account (hold everything within the same ISA) now is not a good time to be buying property in my opinion, especially at double the monthly cost of your rental.

LicoriceStick

Difficult call.  I can completely understand the desire to buy your own home but that's a significant jump from £650 to £1400 a month.  Would you be able to overpay in order to pay the mortgage off more quickly?  That might alleviate your husband's fears about being 75 by the time it's paid off.  If you can't do you foresee having enough income to pay the mortgage for 22 years?  Will your husband still be working in his 70's?

As we got older and nearer to paying off our mortgage I got a bit paranoid that our job situations would change or one of us would get sick and we'd be unable to pay the mortgage.  I became a bit obsessed with overpaying as much as possible in order to be mortgage free.  My fear stemmed from an article I read about a man in his late 50's who only had a few more years left before he'd paid off his mortgage but got made redundant.  He couldn't find another job and his house was repossessed  

I guess it really comes down to your attitude to risk.  I am risk averse!  Good luck whatever you decide.

MultiFuelBurner

If this is going to cause stress in the relationship you need to sit down and have a frank discussion about the pros and cons of it all and be honest.

HampshireH

twoLou said:

In your position I would buy, in a rental there is never any real certainty.

I would stay in the HA property with the cheaper rent as long as it meets your needs. (Aside of the dining table but you can change that).

This rental does offer certainty unlike the suggestion above.

You are very unlikely to have the right to buy your HA house but a right to acquire may be possible depending on the property.

£25k isn't a lot of money when it comes to house buying.

I would suggest put it in the bank. If £1400 mortgage a month is affordable then save the difference between your rent and these payments for a year or 2. Then you will have a bigger deposit/savings and know whether it's affordable.

Don't know the age of your boys but if you buy now could ou afford school trips, holiday, the driving lessons, uni, and all the other things you may want for your kids etc should you be paying £1400 a month in mortgage?

Murphybear

I would carry on renting.  As a social tenant you are secure and you don’t need to worry about repairs.  To misquote Jane Austen “your income is all your own”.  I live in a 3 bedroomed house with a friend which is part of an over 60s sheltered housing.  We’ve just had all our heating upgraded and they are giving us £200 to help pay our heating bills.  As I claim disability benefit all my half of the rent and council tax is paid.