Over 50 first time buyer - is my plan feasible?

trust.no.1

Thanks for all replies for far. To answer the queries, I would like to move to the Birmingham/Coventry area. This would be quite an expensive and strenous commute into Central London and not really feasible (for me) until the time I retire. My rent is currently 1500 pcm. I salary sacrifice a signficant portion of my salary into my pension (having been doing this for many years). If I take on a mortgage in addition to renting i would reduce the amount paid into my pension.

The Mon-Fri lodger is an idea I hadn't thought off. Thank you gwynlas. Again however I'm mindful of the possible pitfalls of a tenant/lodger in the property. I accept there will always be some element of risk there - but that having been said not all renters/lodgers are bad!

Wrt the mortgage - I will definitely seek the services of a mortgage advisor. I'm sure my situation is not a unique one

dwsjarcmcd

Whilst you say the financial side isn't your main priority, it's obviously important.  As has been mentioned, it sounds like you would need a B2L mortgage.  These are more expensive than 'normal' mortgages and you would need to put in more of your savings as the max LTV would be around 75%.  Factor in higher arrangement fees and much higher Stamp Duty costs (+3% over purchases) and potential hassle of renting and it would seem to be more cost effective and less hassle to continue renting and buy when you're ready to buy in the West Midlands.
 

Newbie_John

£1500 a month is £54k in 3 years.

There are up to £150k 1 bed flats in outer London for sale, assuming the value remains the same after 3 years - you're just facing buying/selling fees which could be about £20k. Apart from fees, the time and stress related to it.
But it could be financially beneficial to do so.

Personally, if your plan is to buy a dream house in just 3 years (buying could take a year to do, so you're not that far really) - I wouldn't bother with buying anything now - just focus on saving - especially as you have done it for the past years. BTL may be quite difficult with tenants issues, obtaining mortgage.. and you don't know what will happen in 3 years time - you may decide to live elsewhere, retire later, stay in London.. you have the flexibility now that you will lose.

trust.no.1

Exodi said:

I think you should take your own advice, stop fortune-telling and buy when the time is right. If it it involves a knee-jerk short term BTL arrangement in which you count on tenant payments to off-set your mortgage, with ambitions to evict the tenant shortly after, I'd say the time is not right.

Presumably you have around 10 years till SP age? I'd imagine that would be how long they'd allow you to take a mortgage for - you could probably use some mortgage calculators on lenders websites to work out how much they'd lend you based on your income over this time frame (plus you'd have your TFLS on top).

Thank you for your comments.

The problem (as alluded to by another poster) is that in my browsings I've seen a number of desirable properties that were I able to - I would definitely looking into purchasing. But for the practical reasons I mentioned I cannot do so.

My worries about the housing market is why I am reluctant to purchase in London at this moment. I accept my fears could be unjustifieed here.

The BTL route does not look appealing - In my naivety I didn't realise I would need such a mortgage. I don't think of myself as an aspiring property magnate  

Based on the responses so far I'll:

1. Get an idea of mortage payments for a period up to age 70 using a calculator
2. Look into the feasiblity of a Mon-Fri room  in Central london, living in the property on weekends. For me this would mean a friend or lodger in the property - both scenarios can lead to future eviction related headaches.
3. Seek the services of a mortgage advisor - early payoff of any mortgage would be a priorty for me.
4. Make an informed decision based on the previous 3 steps