Stay in a cheap flat and save for a house, or immediately move to a nice rental?

Cintakins

Me and my kids have been living in a cheap rental and I've been able to save a bit of a deposit up. However the place doesn't feel ideal for their development. they're teenagers and have been sharing a room, and the flat feels so cluttered with all our stuff (we've so many musical instruments and my son has decided to sleep in the lviing room for his own space, giving us no floor space in that room).
 I'd been thinking about buying for a while and have a 10k deposit saved up, but I can only get a mortgage of about 110k, which doesn't give us any good choices. I suspect that the kind of house we could go for with that will leave us feeling just as crampt as in this flat. My kids are 15 (special needs) and 13, so they really need their own rooms soon.
 I'm about to embark on a masters course in data science, hoping it might lead to a better paid job. I currently work as a factory worker.

So, I'm wondering if I should stay put and continue to save up for a larger deposit (however, as a single mum, I doubt the mortgage amount I could get will ever go up much). There might be new builds to apply for on the housing association website next year (but they may not be as nice as one of the rentals I'm currently looking at).
Or should I bite the bullet and rent a decent property that will likely be between £200-£300 more than the rent I'm already paying. My calculations show that I should be able to afford it, but I won't be able to save up much money on the side, if any. Potentially might have to dip into my savings. The kids will finally have their own bedrooms, and we'll feel more comfortable inviting their friends over. It'll be good for their development.

I feel like if I wait till I can buy a place, I'll be waiting until the kids are ready to leave home.

I'm leaning towards renting the bigger place, but reluctant to choose the option because that rent money won't go towards something that I can own, and I won't be able to work towards a larger deposit whilst living there.

In case you were wondering why we're in a small flat, it's because a few years ago their dad was getting their child benefit, so it was all I could afford at the time.

Bluebell1000

If income would potentially be less than your outgoings, for me that would be an absolute no, it risks spending the deposit you have worked so hard to save, and then having to move back somewhere smaller.

Have you checked that mortgage amount is correct, via a chat with a broker? Personally I would look at a smaller house now with a view to extending it in future, or wait and see if you can get that higher paying job, I wouldn't want to take the risk.

Brie

I'm hoping you've got the child benefit sorted out by now?  What about shared ownership so you could build some equity?

Cintakins

Brie said:

I'm hoping you've got the child benefit sorted out by now?  What about shared ownership so you could build some equity?

That's a possibility I guess. There are some new houses being built near my sons school. Which remind me of another reason for moving sooner rather than later. The nearest special needs after school clubs are in the county next to us, and they won't let my son join because we're in the wrong county. I worry a lot about his social development. I would be lower on the priority list if I was to apply for one of those houses not being in that county. I tried persuading them that I had a strong enough local connection for the homebuy scheme (my son has been in the special needs school in that county for 7 years), but they kept declining.

gwynlas

Rather than have your son sleeping in the living room taking up floor space,presumably because he's moved his bed in, invest in a good sofa bed for yourself. It might mean that you have to be more organised in terms of storage of duvet etc but it sounds as though you might need to declutter anyway. The idea that we all need a room each is quite a westernised modern concept and we all tend to fill our spaces with stuff. Not that long ago homes had poor heating often just a single fire in living room so everyone congregated in the same space and unheated bedrooms were solely for sleeping in. 
With your plans for further study and the ages of your children it is unlikely that you will be able to buy anything suitable soon but at least when you do you will be out of the progressively costly rental market. Best wishes for your future.

Cintakins

gwynlas said:

Rather than have your son sleeping in the living room taking up floor space,presumably because he's moved his bed in, invest in a good sofa bed for yourself. It might mean that you have to be more organised in terms of storage of duvet etc but it sounds as though you might need to declutter anyway. The idea that we all need a room each is quite a westernised modern concept and we all tend to fill our spaces with stuff. Not that long ago homes had poor heating often just a single fire in living room so everyone congregated in the same space and unheated bedrooms were solely for sleeping in. 
With your plans for further study and the ages of your children it is unlikely that you will be able to buy anything suitable soon but at least when you do you will be out of the progressively costly rental market. Best wishes for your future.

tbf our spaces works okay, it's just a bit miserable living here, having t put the extra work into making it livable. We can't get a sofa bed because I don't see how we can get one into the flat without getting some kinda crane to fit it througha window. Today I've been looking at a high sleeper for my son for his room but he hates the idea. He's autistic and hates trying new things.

I think that their ages are putting pressure on me to get a good place whilst they're still living with me, hence considering renting. I viewed a beautiful place today, cheap for what it is, but I dunno if I could afford it, as it's £300 more than my current rent. But it's on the cheaper side of most 3 bedroom rentals. But they'd have a place within a couple of weeks that they could happily invite friends over to. Another issue with it is that it's quite isolated. 

But like you say, I think atm I'm now leaning towards staying put and trying to make the space better. My son is currently threatening to go live with his dad if I buy him a high rise sleeper bed and move him back into his own bedroom section (they've a partition wall dividing their room) though lol

RHemmings

Your children are teenagers, and every year counts at this stage. If I were you I would find the next step up in rentals so that they can have their own rooms and enjoy their lives with you. Then, once they leave home, you are freer in your choices for purchase. 

Just my opinion. 

EDIT: After reading more of the posts here (which I should have done before posting), if moving to a bigger place means not just not being able to save but eat into your deposit, that's serious and puts you between a rock and a hard place. 

As long as a house is reasonably liveable, you can make your family life in it as you wish. People are more important than walls. Is there no compromise between the two extremes of your current overly cramped situation and not being able to maintain or increase your deposit? 

dronid

At the moment rents are not stable. It's quite possible that the rent levels could easily go up after the first year.
Are you living in a particular area. (e.g. London a deposit for the same property would probably be £100000, somewhere else £10000. Ultimately it's about what you can afford and sustain. Being clever with space is beneficial and, in some ways, getting as close to the right property is the most important thing. Remember in an older style 2 bed house there's often a dining room that could be a bedroom if you chose. The big things are that you would not be paying rent so not exposed to unexpected eviction, you'd be potentially putting money into something you own (whether or not the market crashes in the future aside it's still more asset saved than rental) and you're in a position of solidity to plan from. Best of luck on the decision.

Cintakins

RHemmings said:

Your children are teenagers, and every year counts at this stage. If I were you I would find the next step up in rentals so that they can have their own rooms and enjoy their lives with you. Then, once they leave home, you are freer in your choices for purchase. 

Just my opinion. 

EDIT: After reading more of the posts here (which I should have done before posting), if moving to a bigger place means not just not being able to save but eat into your deposit, that's serious and puts you between a rock and a hard place. 

As long as a house is reasonably liveable, you can make your family life in it as you wish. People are more important than walls. Is there no compromise between the two extremes of your current overly cramped situation and not being able to maintain or increase your deposit? 

I think I could afford to rent a bigger place, but the jump of + £250 at least in rent just seems scary, and my son is extremely averse to change. I agree with your original comment. I guess I'm also feeling daunted with the thought of the extra work to move. I'm embarking on a masters degree and want to do the best I possibly can (I only ever seem to scrape a pass whenever I do a course, so this is going to require some dedication, because I really want a well paid job) and I'm planning on continuing working part-time. I would need to continue to work full-time if I move to a 3 bedroom place, but staying in this flat means, if necessary, I can reduce my work hours to study more.

MultiFuelBurner

Flat pack furniture doesn't need a crane to get it into a small property