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Advice for a (hopeful) First Time Buyer

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Hi everyone,

I'm 23 and since I was 18, it's been my goal to buy my own house rather than renting. I live at home and after finishing uni, my parents have been very kind with rent, asking me to put money into a LISA instead. 

I have 13k saved in high yield savings accounts. I then have 12k in my LISA. No dept. 

I currently make 18k a year (I've been out of uni for a year), which I'm trying to increase as I think that's what's stopping me at the moment. I work part time in marketing, part time at a shop and I'd love to get a full time marketing position to really boost my income (aiming for around 25-30k by next year). 

I have a partner who is finishing her masters this year and aims to (fingers crossed) be on a similar salary. She loves the idea of saving to buy too, but we both need to get full-time work in order for it to be a reality. She has under 5k of dept, but has 2k saved to pay it off (the loan she has can't be paid off fully unless she has the full amount). 

I'd like to know if anyone has any advice. What would you do in my situation, and how much would you realistically save for a deposit + emergency fund? Or should I rent? I know the freedom would be nice, but it does feel like throwing away money in my situation.  

Comments

  • ACG
    ACG Posts: 24,555 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper I've helped Parliament
    How much are you looking to purchase for? 
    2 x £18k incomes is £36k. 
    You could probably get a mortgage of around £140-150k plus your deposit on top gets you to around £175-180k. 

    I dont know if that is enough or not. In northern England you might be able to buy a nice house where as in London you might be able to buy a garage. 

    I dont think there is much advice, you sound like your doing everything right. Keep doing what your doing and it will all come together. 
    I am a Mortgage Adviser
    You should note that this site doesn't check my status as a mortgage adviser, so you need to take my word for it. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Mortgage Adviser Code of Conduct. Any posts on here are for information and discussion purposes only and shouldn't be seen as financial advice.
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