Never mind the house prices, I'm saving a deposit.

Ivrytwr3

people who have bought property tell you they are better off, those that haven't predict a property crash.

No-one knows what will happen, but i do know i bought a property 3 years ago for £92k which is now worth £130k. I could have saved £20k in that 3 years, but that £20k, had i saved it, would have been wasted on the purcharse price as that had risen almost £40k.

born_again_saver

Hi to all the deposit savers who have posted today - good to hear from you and more great examples of deposits built up. It's encouraging to hear that a lot of us are in this position but doing something constructive to improve our situation. As has been recognised above, a house price crash discussion is not for this thread and to be discussed elsewhere. We're talking deposit saving here, never mind what's happening to house prices as it's really beyond our control anyway whatever happens :rolleyes:

Living with your parents and saving seems to offer great scope for saving large amounts, if it is an option open to you. I hope this doesn't sound too nosey, but if you're in this position how much do you give to your parents for your upkeep? Just wondered how it compares to the costs of private renting, but I guess it depends on the financial circumstances of your folks and how much they need to maintain their household.

Looking ahead to my savings for this month, I'm hoping to add another £300 to the deposit. For some reason I've spent more than planned lately so it's looking a bit tight for the next month or two, but I'll get there somehow

MrSafeGaz

I guess I am quite lucky in that my parents don't ask me to pay any 'rent' as such. This is under the proviso that I actually save for a house though.

neverdespairgirl

born_again_saver wrote: »

Living with your parents and saving seems to offer great scope for saving large amounts, if it is an option open to you. I hope this doesn't sound too nosey, but if you're in this position how much do you give to your parents for your upkeep?

I don't live at home, but my sisters and brother do. My younger sister and brother are studying, and pay nothing. My other sister works, and pays some rent, but not really a market rent.

RoxieW

would anyone like to start a 'saving for deposit' thread - if not I'll go ahead and do it as I think many on here are in the same boat.

skap7309

born_again_saver wrote: »

Living with your parents and saving seems to offer great scope for saving large amounts, if it is an option open to you. I hope this doesn't sound too nosey, but if you're in this position how much do you give to your parents for your upkeep? Just wondered how it compares to the costs of private renting, but I guess it depends on the financial circumstances of your folks and how much they need to maintain their household.

I currently pay £200 PCM but at the same time have dinner/stay over my girlfriend's house every night and i contribute a bit to her bills to. I have offered to pay more at home (i will help out with unexpected maintenance bills) but my dad knows the uphill struggle us FTBers are facing and i think he sees just how hard i am trying to get this deposit made up, so it is a bit of give and take.

Austin_Allegro

Ivrytwr3 wrote: »

people who have bought property tell you they are better off, those that haven't predict a property crash.

No-one knows what will happen, but i do know i bought a property 3 years ago for £92k which is now worth £130k. I could have saved £20k in that 3 years, but that £20k, had i saved it, would have been wasted on the purcharse price as that had risen almost £40k.

This is a good point. In the last ten years its really not been worth bothering to save for a deposit, as house prices were rising so rapidly. I've been saving hard for the last few years but often got dispirited due to the hyperinflation in the property market, and would occasionally blow some of my savings on holidays etc. Now that it looks finally as if a correction (long overdue) is coming, saving is becoming much more worthwhile.

Even if, by some miracle, house prices start going up again soon, I'll still keep saving - and spend my money on a boat to sail away from this insane country!

firsttimetom

people who have bought property tell you they are better off

Only on paper. Actual wealth is only realised when a house is sold. Hence people thinking they are better off than they are and MEWing themselves to the hilt on the belief Houses will rise in value forever.

No-one knows what will happen, but i do know i bought a property 3 years ago for £92k which is now worth £130k

Well done. ~40% in 3 years. Good for investors. Bad news for every one else (Including you if you intend to upgrade). It also shows you how mad this whole thing has been.

Anyway, lets not turn this into another HPC thread.

I'm 23, still living at home (sharing a room with my brotehr as I have done for the past 21 years) and thinking of moving out and renting. Have a nice deposit, so think I'm in a good position to move out and rent with my G/F. WIll be looking to buy 2010 ish with a deposit of hopefully £65,000 and could use my ISA of £14,000 if needed. Only on a small wage though (£15,000 before tax).

Good luck to everyone. I'm glad to see there are still some sensible people out there!!!

IveSeenTheLight

MrSafeGaz wrote: »

I guess I am quite lucky in that my parents don't ask me to pay any 'rent' as such. This is under the proviso that I actually save for a house though.

My parents worked this a different way and I intend to do the same for my children.

I had to pay rent as soon as I started working. This was increased each year.
When I moved out (I saved a little in order to get a place), they then handed me back all the money I had paid in rent.

This helped me understand more the value of money and also provided a nice boost when moving into my first home.

MrSafeGaz

IveSeenTheLight wrote: »

My parents worked this a different way and I intend to do the same for my children.

I had to pay rent as soon as I started working. This was increased each year.
When I moved out (I saved a little in order to get a place), they then handed me back all the money I had paid in rent.

This helped me understand more the value of money and also provided a nice boost when moving into my first home.

Yes, I agree that this approach has its advantages in certain scenarios, such as if the persons parents need the money (presumably not if it will be given back) or if the 'saver' does not have the restraint required to save alone.

However, I think the learning potential is greater if a person is given the responsibility to save this money themselves. They learn about restraint and not having to spend everything they have there and then for the sake of it. They learn about the benefits of saving first hand which is a potential motivator for doing the same in later life. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, the person is almost forced to learn/research about how it is best to save/invest this money in the relative long term ready for when the cash is needed. The research done here can provide large benefits down the line.

Horses for courses I guess. I am glad that I was given the responsibility of saving this money for myself. In the past few years since I left uni I have learnt a massive amount in terms of finance due to my own research and that will be extremely valuable in the coming years.