Saving for house deposit

[BlahBlahSheep]

Great video from the Economist about why the housing obsession is ruining the country, anyone that thought my scepticism comes from being a "bitter renter" should watch it

The video’s interesting but the difference with their example of Switzerland is that renter’s rights were protected and they could take out decades-long leases. Renting in England gives a bad deal to renters (or it did when I was renting). I decided to buy because I was sick of renting absolute shitholes from landlords who didn’t want to pay to get anything fixed. If you ask for something to get fixed or complain to the council about poor conditions, you risk getting evicted. I don’t have that worry now and if something’s broken, I get it fixed.

If house buying is bad for the economy, the government need to make some drastic changes to make renting an appealing option. I don’t think it’s fair to guilt people who want to buy though.

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

And that's great for you if it works out.

But it sounds like you haven't overstretched yourself and are benefiting massively from paying down the debt when interest rates are at the lowest they've ever been in the 300+ year history of the bank of England. It might not be the same for other people and who knows what the future holds.

I just get a bit sad seeing people straight out of uni, not enjoying life and concentrating on getting into debt and thinking as soon as they get a mortgage they're winners in life. Sure it's worked out for other people, but it could also be a huge mistake. Ponzi schemes never last forever and someone always gets burnt. The future is uncertain. People should be on the streets with how renter's in the UK are treated like a second class citizen, it's almost seen as an underclass.

Oh definitely, I had my first child v young so had a heap of responsibility on me anyway. I probably wouldn’t be on the property ladder if I didn’t have a baby when I did. You need to weigh it up, and they do speak to you when you buy a house, if interest rates were to go to 12% then this is what your repayments would be.

It’s all a bit what came first the chicken or the egg. I can see why the weight of a mortgage around your neck might seem preferable to private rent where the landlord can just turf you out with v little notice. Neither are ideal, unfortunately.

 

[Yel]

if people ended gym memberships or stopped going out to dinner etc.

No fucking way. £50 gym is a bargain for using it several times a week and going out for dinner a couple of times a month is nice.

 

[CheeseToastie]

I have to say though, moving out and renting with my partner has given me some good life skills, it's hardwork moving out and living with someone else I also have quite a nice landlord!

I find some people my age now who are jumping into mortgages with their partners after living at home and have never lived together are struggling with the pressure of a mortgage and getting in to a life routine, working, cooking, cleaning, laundry etc. So in that respect I'm glad to have rented, but the end goal is to get on to that property ladder!

I also use Plum which I find really helpful and it puts little chunks of money away without me realising on top of my own regular savings.

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

Just cut back where you can, don’t eat out with the house, only buy clothes if something needs replacing, invest in an insulated cup if you’re a coffee drinker like me.

We bought a house almost 4 years ago (I was 27) Our mortgage is half the cost of what our rent was. Sure we are responsible for anything that goes wrong so you need to factor that in.

In this country private rent is absolutely eye watering. I live in a v cheap part of the country and my private rental was so expensive. There are not enough council houses or even housing association properties. So if you can’t buy a house and you don’t have a relative to live with your only option is the private rental market where landlords can pretty much charge what they like. You will get good landlords but there are plenty of rogues too.

Do I think that private rentals should be managed better? Absolutely. Should rent be capped and tenants given more security? Absolutely. It won’t happen though.

I work in the retirement sector and the amount of people of retirement age who are struggling with poverty and high rental costs is unbelievable. Ok you might need to sell your house to fund your care, but until that point you can be living in your own property with no stress.

I’d always over pay each month if you can. Don’t over stretch yourself either. If you can try and put the biggest deposit you can down. 10% as a minimum. If you need to get furniture etc from gumtree initially then so be it.

 

[Scvee13]

What I did was looked at all the outgoings and cut what I could, if you eat out more than once a month can you cut it back? If you are staying with inlaws then you must have a good amount of money per month? We rented from the council while we saved, I tried to save at least £300 a month which is easier said than done. Definitely look through your last few months of spending and see where the money is going.

 

[Parttimegossip]

My boyfriend has this and its so good! Barclays don't do this but they have a "blue rewards scheme". I put £4 a month and they put £3. Doesn't seem a lot but adds up!

if you bank with Barclays, they have a section in their app called ‘Spending’ it breaks down where you spend your money.

So instead of thinking aboutquitting your gym, you might discovered you spend £150 a month eating dinners out, £100 a month buying your lunch out at work and another £50 on coffees. So it would make sense to work on that then just cancelling a gym membership that you actually enjoy!

 

[EvieBaby]

Any tips for saving for a house deposit? My boyfriend and I are both 24 earning 22-55 K and we live in Oxford...……...
Have a Help to Buy ISA set up which minimum £50 a month goes into. My boyfriend has the same.
I have found some people advise us to enjoy our lives now e.g. have lots of holidays/travel but some people say no holidays/meals out/nights away/gym memberships so we can just save save save. We're really struggling to find a balance!! Any advice?

I've just started saving, I'm 27 and single and earn around £35k. Because I live at home I can afford to save around £800 per month, but that is after I pay my car Finance off early, I'm trying to shrink/get rid of any debts so I can save more without having to stop my social life. I've been paying an extra £200 for my car Finance, and cut down my phone contract. Ive also made sure I have a monthly spend budget and try to not go over that. Not sure if this helps but it's just a start

 

[101d]

Sorry just jumping back in here! I actually sat and worked out my outgoings yesterday (can't believe I have never done that before!! So embarrassed!) and I have around £700 left after all bills. I get this may not seem a lot to some people but it is for me and I have no idea where I'm spending that money scarily!! How much would you guys try and save from that £700 ? I still have to do food shopping with that money but it's different every week so I'm not sure how much to minus.

I would start with £300 saving, so that you have £100 per week of the month to do what you want/get your food. If you find you're scrimping, save £200 instead, or if you know you'll need more money that month, save less

 

[Lyds26]

When we were saving for our house deposit we stayed in all the time. It drove us crazy but it was worth it in the end. We would go to the library and borrow dvd box sets and stay in watching that or have friends over for a games night, buy a sack of potatoes and you can make potato wedges then get a dip to go with, it doesn’t have to be an expensive do.
Everyone is different but I personally like the security of knowing our home will be ours once the mortgage is paid off, renting wasn’t for us. Also, a 5% deposit is perfect just to get that first step on the property ladder and as your circumstances change you can increase your monthly payments and reduce the term to pay it off sooner. That’s what we are doing and after 6 years our 25 year mortgage has only 11 years left on it. Good luck, it will all be worth it.

 

[Yel]

Ok well in my lifetime then, for me personally at the moment, buying a house was better for my circumstances. By the time anything like that is passed Ill probably be mortgage free. What I’d recommend my kids to do will depend on the market at the time. We put 15% deposit on our house and have over paid every month since. We didn’t use help to buy or anything like that. I’d hope in 10 years we will be mortgage free. Il be 41. My kids will be 17 and 13. Il be happy with that, if it works out.

And that's great for you if it works out.

But it sounds like you haven't overstretched yourself and are benefiting massively from paying down the debt when interest rates are at the lowest they've ever been in the 300+ year history of the bank of England. It might not be the same for other people and who knows what the future holds.

I just get a bit sad seeing people straight out of uni, not enjoying life and concentrating on getting into debt and thinking as soon as they get a mortgage they're winners in life. Sure it's worked out for other people, but it could also be a huge mistake. Ponzi schemes never last forever and someone always gets burnt. The future is uncertain. People should be on the streets with how renter's in the UK are treated like a second class citizen, it's almost seen as an underclass.

 

[LLJ]

Sorry just jumping back in here! I actually sat and worked out my outgoings yesterday (can't believe I have never done that before!! So embarrassed!) and I have around £700 left after all bills. I get this may not seem a lot to some people but it is for me and I have no idea where I'm spending that money scarily!! How much would you guys try and save from that £700 ? I still have to do food shopping with that money but it's different every week so I'm not sure how much to minus.

 

[101d]

Doesn't save LOADS but have you tried the app that rounds your purchases up? So, for example if you spend 55p on some crisps it will put 45p into savings? Sorry I can't remember the name.

I know it's not a lot but you'll be saving without even realising it

 

[LLJ]

Doesn't save LOADS but have you tried the app that rounds your purchases up? So, for example if you spend 55p on some crisps it will put 45p into savings? Sorry I can't remember the name.

I know it's not a lot but you'll be saving without even realising it

My boyfriend has this and its so good! Barclays don't do this but they have a "blue rewards scheme". I put £4 a month and they put £3. Doesn't seem a lot but adds up!

 

[Takinginthetea]

When it comes to doing a food shop as well I have definitely realised that if I go without a list my food shop basically doubles in price

 

[Yel]

Great video from the Economist about why the housing obsession is ruining the country, anyone that thought my scepticism comes from being a "bitter renter" should watch it

 

[Lynseyp]

You sound very bitter and seeing as you know nothing about me and the career I have I don’t think it’s your business to say what’s perfect or not but I’m sorry you have the view you have.

It’s a choice millions of people seem to make happily every day and I’ve not encountered many people that have said they regret buying property but thank you for your input!

Fair play to you for wanting to be on the property ladder as to be honest renting is dead money - we rent and would love to buy and im sure we will when the time is right.
Have you thought about the part buy scheme, from where im from in South West you pay for say 70% of the property value and every year you pay for a bigger percentage then in time you will own 100% of property. There are government backed schemes too for affordable housing.
Good luck

 

[EvieBaby]

You'll be debt holders and have a huge mortgage to service for several decades.

All these schemes are just props to keep the housing bubble inflated. Only help bankers and housebuilders.

I find it pretty depressing people are told to live their young years like they're impoverished just to buy an overpriced house. Go without everything for a few years, then you can take on a huge debt

House prices are so out of sync with wages it won't last forever. Then you have automation coming in at a rapid pace, the future is very shaky. Enjoy your life, there's a whole world out there and in a blink it'll be over.

What would you suggest instead? Renting?

 

[Laur91]

Great video from the Economist about why the housing obsession is ruining the country, anyone that thought my scepticism comes from being a "bitter renter" should watch it

okay, we get it, you think people wanting to buy a house is bad. good lord....

 

[Laur91]

Well if you watched it why don't you share what you thought?

I'm having an opinion on an advice forum, you seem to be taking it a bit personally. Saying something about me making a decision on someone else's behalf.

I think a very big point made in the video was that different circumstances suit different people? For some renting is more suitable, for others buying is the best choice. Everyone has their own reasons for wanting to buy. I also understand the NIMBY concept and the issues that cause but at the end of the day it’s every individuals choice and the point has already been made that we pay more in rent than we do in mortgage repayments and with every repayment we own more and more of an asset.

And yes, I take it personally because you replied to my message further up saying that my choice of a 5% deposit ‘wasn’t perfect’ -so why wouldn’t I? :/