Will I ever be able to afford my own home?

The difficulty of buying a home for first time buyers has been all over the news lately, most recently this article by Ros Renshaw, and this article over on theguardian.com. I must admit, I’d resigned myself to the fact at quite a young age that I probably wouldn’t be able to buy my own house until I was with a long term partner. Now, at 25, as the reality sets in, my prediction in my late teens couldn’t have been more true.

Three of my friends own their own houses, the rest still live with their parents. Two of those three were lucky enough to get a lot, and I mean a lot, of help from their parents, and the other received a large inheritance and is very honest about the fact that he wouldn’t have been able to buy his house had it not been for that money.

It had always been my intention to move out of my parents home by the time I turned 25. By then I figured I’d be a ‘real’ grown up and should probably start fending for myself. Luckily, 6 months before my birthday I was offered this job, and 3 months later I’d put down a deposit on my flat, paid my first months rent up front, and moved out of my family home. But let me be completely honest with you, even gathering the money to be able to afford to move into rented accommodation was a struggle. Admittedly, I’ve never been the most successful saver. I’m a ‘live for the moment, can’t take it with you’ kind of girl, or so is my excuse, so the only way I was able to move out at such short notice was also with a bit of help from my parents.

I’m very lucky to have parents that were in the position to help me move into my flat, but being loaned or given thousands of pounds is a very different matter, involving sums of money that I wouldn’t be happy accepting anyway. I had no idea what I’d be able to afford on my current salary so I took to Google and managed to find the Halifax mortgage calculator, I’m sure there are many more out there just like it, but I merely wanted it for reference purposes. Without giving you a sneaky peak into my financial situation, let’s just say that at this rate, if I weren’t to get a pay rise over the next 5 years, it would take me until I’m 30 years old, on my own, without any help from relatives or inheritances, to raise a 10% deposit. To be frank, that leaves me a little speechless. In fact, when I had the conversation with my Mother and we came to that conclusion I probably sat there with my mouth hanging open and just shrugged a few times in disbelief. I could save that much in half the time, but that would mean not having a life and I’m a firm believer that to be happy a person needs a well rounded life.

After a little bit of research I now know what my financial aim is, I know how long it should roughly take me, so all that’s left to do is start putting the money away. The saving isn’t the difficult part, although every part of my body is screaming otherwise, it’s how long it will realistically take me to raise the money I need, if at all. Housing prices are always fluctuating, more often than not they’re on the increase, my financial goal post for a deposit today will not be the same by the time I’m 30. All I can do is consistently save, keep an eye on house prices and keep my fingers crossed that I luck out somewhere down the line.

 

 

 

 

Alex Evans

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Time is running out’ for property industry to take web accessibility seriously

Leading expert ahead of June 2025 regulation overhaul says ‘Time is running out’ for the property industry to take web accessibility seriously. Leading digital accessibility expert urges property sector to ‘act now’ ahead of June 2025 regulation overhaul He warns that web accessibility and inclusivity should be part of a long-term strategy and shouldn’t be…
Read More
Breaking News

Renters’ Rights Bill parliamentary progress

The Renters’ Rights Bill has completed its Committee Stage in the House of Lords and will move on to the Report Stage imminently. Allison Thompson, National Lettings Managing Director of LRG, comments on the progress of the Bill: “As the Renters’ Rights Bill completes its committee stage in the House of Lords, it is disappointing…
Read More
Kerb appeal
Breaking News

Housing Market Surges as Stamp Duty Changes Drive Buyer Activity

UK Finance today releases its latest Household Finance Review for Q1 2025, which explores trends in household spending, saving, and borrowing. Mortgage lending surged in the first quarter of 2025, driven by homebuyers seeking to complete purchases before changes to Stamp Duty took effect in April. Household savings continued to grow, particularly in notice accounts…
Read More
Breaking News

Mortgage Approvals Down in April

The latest figures show that: – Mortgage approvals on house purchases for April sat at 60,463 down (-4.9%) from 63,603 in March. This signals four consecutive months of decline. Approvals are also lower (-2.1%) than the 61,740 seen in April 2024. Despite the decline, there is still optimism for growth in the coming months, especially…
Read More
New Builds 2020
Breaking News

Build to rent completions up, but sector has seen slowdown in construction

New research by Inventory Base reveals that the number of build to rent completions has increased by almost 16% in the past year, however, there has been a significant dip in the number of BTR buildings currently under construction. Inventory Base has analysed UK build to rent (BTR) construction planning data* and found that in…
Read More
Breaking News

Response to latest Nationwide House Price Index

Comment on latest Nationwide data showing a 3.5% increase in house prices from the Industry. Nathan Emerson, CEO at Propertymark: “It is reassuring to witness consistent house price growth and a strong appetite as people continue to approach the homebuying and selling process, especially when the UK economy continues to adapt to both domestic and…
Read More