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Probably a stupid questions but should we downsize?

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  • davilown
    davilown Posts: 2,303 Forumite
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    hazyjo wrote: »
    PS options 1 or 3 for me. Would forget 2.


    Bear in mind it cost me around £20k to move.

    Thanks - yep that was my budgeting guess
    30th June 2021 completely debt free…. Downsized, reduced working hours and living the dream.
  • davilown
    davilown Posts: 2,303 Forumite
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    Smodlet wrote: »
    Which location do you prefer, OP? I agree that, if your OH is not happy after 2 years, he/she never will be but you need to be happy too.

    Is there any room for compromise on area, perhaps to something you both prefer, even if the commute is extended a little bit?

    All I can say is, hold out for what you want; if you don't, you might regret it.

    All the best to the two of you.
    Hi,
    To be honest they are both really nice places to live - the only benefit for our current location over the other is I can run in to the hills from my back door!

    We are happy to sell up and rent for a short period to give us the best opportunity to buy somewhere we’ll both love
    30th June 2021 completely debt free…. Downsized, reduced working hours and living the dream.
  • davilown
    davilown Posts: 2,303 Forumite
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    AdrianC wrote: »
    £2k/mo on a £200k, 23yr left mortgage plus cards and loan with 60mo to go? To live in a house you don't both actually like, and that's way bigger than you need now the kids have moved out and are standing on their own two feet...?
    yep you’re right!

    MSE mortgage calc reckons just over a grand a month on the mortgage, so your loan and cards are swallowing the thick end of a grand a month...? How much do you owe on them...?
    £215k, £26k, and £9k on CC - trying to pay the cc off quickly to be honest
    Stop thinking "but down the ladder!" - that mindset is costing you a grand a month, before you consider your wellbeing...
    Think about prioritising your lives... Downsize, be happier, stop feeding that substantial debt monkey.
    Thanks for your honesty, that’s how we’ve starting to feel about it
    If you prefer the larger place, with a £50k mortgage, then you could massively overpay without spending more than you are now, and clear it in the next few years.
    just checked the mortgage calculator- we could pay it off in 10 years and still be significantly financially better off
    30th June 2021 completely debt free…. Downsized, reduced working hours and living the dream.
  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
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    In all honesty, with those figures you'll never find anything half as nice as what you've got. People talk of downsizing, until they see what that buys them and you don't get half the home for half the money.....

    Stay where you are. Leave thoughts of downsizing until you know in your heart it's what you want.
  • DCFC79
    DCFC79 Posts: 40,598 Forumite
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    davilown wrote: »
    I'll be honest I like both the areas, but my OH is keen to move due to 'not liking' the bungalow still after 2 years.


    Why don't they like the bungalow ?


    Is it because its a bungalow ?


    Or is it the location ?
  • davilown
    davilown Posts: 2,303 Forumite
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    DCFC79 wrote: »
    Why don't they like the bungalow ?


    Is it because its a bungalow ?


    Or is it the location ?

    Just don’t live it - not comfortable for them. Everyone has their likes and dislikes and unfortunately this is one of them
    30th June 2021 completely debt free…. Downsized, reduced working hours and living the dream.
  • AnotherJoe
    AnotherJoe Posts: 19,622 Forumite
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    davilown wrote: »
    Just don’t live it - not comfortable for them. Everyone has their likes and dislikes and unfortunately this is one of them

    Then move but for your own sanity go detached for future protection and cost saving (how much would it cost to move if the neighbours were noisy)
  • ethank
    ethank Posts: 2,197 Forumite
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    Would never leave a detached house for anything other than detached now.
  • Cakeguts
    Cakeguts Posts: 7,627 Forumite
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    I live now in a semi. We have lived here for 30 years and had 3 different neighbours in that time so the semi bit wouldn't really bother me.



    The way I am looking at this is that you bought where you live now as a family home? You don't any longer have the family so you don't need the extra space for them but you are still paying for it.



    What you do is going to depend on how much you like working and whether you want more time to sit in the house that at present you are spending all your time working to pay for.



    If you were mortgage free you could spend the spare income enjoying yourselves rather than spending it on buying space that you don't need.


    At the moment you can get out into the countryside easily but only when you are not at work. So this is what I would do. I would downsize into the semi and then instead of paying a mortgage put more money into savings and a pension so that when you retire you will have a good quality of life.
  • Okydoky25
    Okydoky25 Posts: 1,139 Forumite
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    I am in the same predicament. We have near on £200k equity on our £500k property and can purchase a very nice but smaller detached 3/4 bed in the same area for £300k. This will dramatically reduce our mortgage so I think its a no brainer for us.
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