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good good i am thinking of doing the same.
may i ask OP how do you decide which property to buy, being a first time property buyer?Another night of thankfulness.0 -
elephantrosie wrote: »good good i am thinking of doing the same.
may i ask OP how do you decide which property to buy, being a first time property buyer?
Keep an eye on the market in the area you think you want to live for a few months - you'll quickly narrow down particular locations you will/won't accept and get an idea about what you can afford and what you like within that.
Also, being single you don't have to worry about the property being suitable for anyone else
It's like going on holiday by yourself (which I thoroughly recommend) but on a massive scale - you can do what you like! 
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Err.....maybe, maybe not.Also, being single you don't have to worry about the property being suitable for anyone else It's like going on holiday by yourself (which I thoroughly recommend) but on a massive scale - you can do what you like!
The first house one buys won't necessarily be the same as the property lived in during middle age or later in life. It's in the nature of things to change.
Therefore, if the first house purchased appeals to few others, it's possibly going to be harder to sell and a poor long term investment.
I bought my first house as a single bloke. I left it, ten years later, married with one child and another planned. Stuff happens!
It was easy to sell-on because I'd bought carefully. It sold for over 6x the price I'd paid. Hopefully, house prices won't rise that steeply in the future, but it's still the case that the first property bought has a huge influence over the second.
EDIT: I agree with what you say about narrowing-down locations. Over the months when I waited, I walked the area constantly and narrowed it down to just two streets, both cul-de-sacs with no further development potential. People said I was mad, and of course, I did keep a weather eye out elsewhere, but as a FTB I didn't have a set time limit.
A house came up in weeks rather than months, but if necessary, I'd have waited a year for the right house on the right street..0 -
Can you only afford the repayments if you have a lodger? I would reconsider if so, as you may find you can't stand living with a stranger, and it's not ideal to have to rely on the extra income.
I bought alone and the scariest bit was pressing "confirm" when transfering the deposit to my solicitor via online banking. All those years of savings reduced to numbers on a screen that disappear with a slight push of a finger!
Unless you buy a total wreck, or are expecting the place to instantly look like a show home in one of those Tarquinna and hedge fund manager husband Rupert show us round their Georgian rectory articles in Posh Cotswolds Interiors magazine, then you don't need to spend that much on DIY and decor. The key is to sort little jobs (leaking gutters, the odd missing tile etc) before they become big expensive jobs.They are an EYESORES!!!!0 -
Your future self will think you are crazy if you dont do it!!
* and be a bit !!!!ed off with you 0 -
GoodnessGraciousMe wrote: »Also, I am scared that home ownership will mean no more holidays and spending the rest of my single life missing out on fun with my friends (I know it sounds silly).
Home ownership means you can be the person with the amazing tricked out living room who invites people over for movie nights, and can host much better than everyone else because you can customise the house to your whim and don't need to worry about losing the deposit at the end of it all (though obviously you don't want your friends to wreck your house)!
Yes, you may transition from wild club nights to parties at home or to other entertaining - but that's not a result of home ownership, just of getting older. And you'll find you have just as much fun with much less expense!
(The house I had my offer accepted on was a fair chunk under my budget, I'm using the difference to remove the chimney breast in the living room (and renovate the heating, which currently runs off a functional but still 40 years old back boiler), giving me a flat wall so I can get a projector and a home cinema system.)0 -
OP this is totally doable so do it!
Your numbers are almost exactly what mine were when I purchased nearly 2 years ago.
Salary around £44K
Flat purchase price £250K
I got a 0% credit card just in case any big bills came up and I also took out British Gas home care for the boiler and heating system (because I have no idea how old the boiler is). The BG home care has paid for itself multiple times thanks to my bumbling efforts to remove radiators for decorating...
I made sure I had a financial cushion in place for anything unexpected: then 7 months in I was made redundant. Took me 10 months to find a full time job but I had enough money from savings and picking up contract work to ride out the storm. I also took in a lodger for 6 months, which was a huge help with the finances.
Monthly spend looks something like this:
Water £70ish quarterly (get a water meter installed so you only pay for what you use)
Council tax £83 (inform the council that it's a single-person household so you get the discount)
Netflix £7.49
Internet £15 with Virgin
Electricity and Gas £30
Leasehold management £120 (includes insurance and block maintenance such as gardening/repairs)
British Gas home care £21
TV license £147 - I pay this up front rather than monthly
Best of luck."The problem with Internet quotes is that you can't always depend on their accuracy" - Abraham Lincoln, 18640 -
DumbMuscle wrote: »
(The house I had my offer accepted on was a fair chunk under my budget, I'm using the difference to remove the chimney breast in the living room (and renovate the heating, which currently runs off a functional but still 40 years old back boiler), giving me a flat wall so I can get a projector and a home cinema system.)
Nooooo!!!!
Don't destroy a proper chimney breast, put the home cinema on a different wall!0 -
The proper chimney breast has a back boiler in it, and the flue is shared with the adjacent property (also with a back boiler) - so it could never be used as an actual fireplace, and isn't particularly attractive!0
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I was on £26k when I bought my house. I had £10k gifted deposit from parents and bought a 2 bed terrace with garden for £90k. Got to love the north! None of these first time buyer schemes around then sadly or I might have been able to afford one in better shape.
It's 70s decor hell - but it's mine and its in a decent area. I couldn't have afforded one already done up in the same area so despite being rubbish at DIY and having no savings to do any work I went for it anyway. Never regretted it once. Did consider a lodger but decided against it as it's really not a large house. Having someone pay to live there would also mean I'd need to spend money on the house to fix a few things I can live with for the timebeing but wouldn't expect anyone else to :rotfl:
My bills are considerably lower in this house than they were in the 3 bed terrace I rented before. Mortgage repayments are less than my rent was, utilities are also cheaper, 75% council tax helps too. Have had to spend a bit fixing some dodgy pipes outside a couple of years back and I'm going to have to spend a bit on the roof in the next few years, plus a new boiler at some point I'm sure, but the main spending will be on getting rid of the 70s carpet, flower-textured painted wallpaper, peach coloured marble fire surround removal and of course, the avacado bathroom suite replaced with something decent. All whilst I still live there - fun!
OP - you have the money and are in a good position financially it seems. My advice is to do it asap!0
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