The 'We're saving for a deposit' thread

MrDT

Haven't been on here in ages. Girlfriend and I have been saving for a while now, and are pleased that between us we now have a good wedge in the bank Savings haven't been going up as quickly as they once did as we're not being as tight as we once were, just enjoying ourselves but still putting a fair lump aside each month, not totally mse - but a good balance for us.

I'm not entirely convinced that house prices won't drop further in the next couple of years, in fact it seems entirely logical to me that they will - increased taxes, public sector cuts, increasing base rate, etc - they all point to decreased affordability and lower house prices. We're not letting this put us off completely though, we could fix at 5.29% for ten years right now, that could well outweigh leaving it a couple years and buying at a lower price with a more expensive mortgage. And anyway, since when did house prices follow logic?

We're basically in the "if the right house turns up at the right price we'll go for it" boat. Come to think of it, that's probably the same boat we were in last year... We've got our eye on a place that meets one half of the requirement - the 'right house' (that ticks most, if not all of the right boxes), sadly it's not at the 'right price' (it's at the sellers wishful thinking 'joke price'). We placed an offer on the house that was rejected as 'too low'. I've pointed out to the EA that it was a generous 'first and final' offer that was actually a few grand more than what a very similar property in the same street sold for in January. I'm hoping this feedback makes it back to the vendors and gives them a bit of a reality check. If they get real we could well end up buying this place, in the meantime we're happy in our rented house and increasing our savings.

Feels a bit of a swizz posting on this thread as we're not really saving a deposit anymore - haven't been for over a year actually, we're boosting our savings. Since we've not bought yet I think we still 'fit in' here though We'll likely stump up ~30k as a deposit and anything we have over that will be held back as an emergency fund, paying upfront fees, and the start of our future savings (we have no intention of paying a mortgage over 25 years, more like 10-15 so overpayments aplenty). It may not be the ideal approach as far as minimising interest payments freom day one goes, but neither of us can face going from having tens of thousands in the bank down to nothing, so this is what we'll be doing.

rictus123

Well i think il be a regular in here over the next few years. Im only 18 and been earning full time since i left school just before i turned 16. So far got about £1900 to my name. But with a little debt. Not too worried about it as its virtually no intrest. Of these savings i think whats in my Isa will be for my house fund. Over the next 5 years, an average of £500 a month = £30k not including intrest. Looks easy on paper, and il be able to buy(with gf so i only need half costs, house about £140k) when im about 23 no problems. The worlds my oyster just now

bodmil

Hey MrDT, it's good to hear your situation. Sound like you have it all very well managed.

But how does anyone cope with this -

MrDT wrote: »

neither of us can face going from having tens of thousands in the bank down to nothing

It's something I fear already!

Vixstar

I'm trying to get my head round it too (although having savings is a relatively new thing) add to that the fact that a mortgage may well eat into saving power and the little niggling thoughts I have about overpayments and being a MFW.

rictus123

Is there a good ftb mortgage guide for those looking to buy in the next few years?

140k house price. Am i right in thinking,
£2k for fees
£500 moving costs(we dont have much stuff, itl be mostly getting bought new for our lovely love pad-want some nice stuff in it since we will be spending so much time in there and also want quality)
£5k for furniture
£1k soliciters fees
10% deposit = £14k

Cost = £22.5k to actually move in. + £7.5k emergency fund = £30k total so £15k each.
Right? Or anything iv forgotten? Im aiming at saving about £600 a month average after my pay goes up this summer, itl also get easier when its a bigger rise again next summer. If i manage that average itl take 25 months to get my £15k share. So looking at about 2 years this summer i can do this. Or if i wait an extra year we could go for a £20k+deposit.

rictus123

Any ideas about mortgage payments based on the above?

tara747

rictus123 wrote: »

Well i think il be a regular in here over the next few years. Im only 18 and been earning full time since i left school just before i turned 16. So far got about £1900 to my name. But with a little debt. Not too worried about it as its virtually no intrest. Of these savings i think whats in my Isa will be for my house fund. Over the next 5 years, an average of £500 a month = £30k not including intrest. Looks easy on paper, and il be able to buy(with gf so i only need half costs, house about £140k) when im about 23 no problems. The worlds my oyster just now

rictus, how long have you been with your GF? Are you totally confident that you will still be with her in 5 years' time? Between 18 and 23 you may both change a lot. All I'm saying is... don't count on staying with someone so far into the future at your age. Hope I don't like a bossy big sister lol! And congrats again on your savings.

p.s. how much is your debt and would you consider paying it off with your savings? As Martin says, there's no point in having debt and savings at the same time (mortgage and student loans excepted presumably). :money:

tara747

Hello and welcome to the newbies!!!

Vixstar

On a not the best rate mortgage predicted repayments were approx £600 on a £147500 mortgage with a 20% deposit. You may find a £140k mortgage and 10% deposit more expensive

Dinah93

Our morgage is going to be £844 a month (excluding the insurances, life cover etc which ammount to nearly another £100) on a £132,000 morgage with 15% deposit fixed for 4 years. Its more than we'd really like to be paying but we're getting married in 5 months, we can't keep living with my parents after that so a line has been drawn!