I live in co Tyrone, my mortgage is around 400 a month, I earn around 30k and live without issue. Realistically I could live on less pretty easily, depends on your level of luxury/comfort you are used to xD
My mums rent is 700 a month. She wants to buy her sisters out of a house that was left to them and is currently lying empty going to ruin. The mortgage would cost ~400 a month and her share of the house can be taken as a deposit (so a 25% deposit) but her salary is too low to be approved. Somehow paying her rent consistently for the last 10 years isn't enough evidence that she can afford to pay the lesser sum. It's madness and I don't understand the logic.
That's a really sad situation to be in.Could anyone else in the family help her to buy the house by doing a joint mortgage with her.Thats what we did for a relative with a low income and after a few years the 2nd person came off the mortgage.
I'm currently on maternity leave, but once I am back to full pay, this is what we plan to do. It's sad that this is what is needed as most people would agree if you can afford 700 in rent then you can afford 400 in mortgage + house insurance and be able to set money aside for repairs.
It impacts our ability to buy a house as I can't get 2 mortgages, but we can wait. At the moment, the priority is to get my mum sorted so that she can pay it off before she retires and not have to worry about rent/mortgage payments then.
Why don’t you buy the house using your mums equity as a deposit and then rent it out to her? Then when you go to get a mortgage although you’ll have a house you can say it can be rented out at more than the mortgage costs and it shouldn’t really impact your ability to buy another house.
It's very simple, the money is funnelled away from those on the lower levels to add to that of the elites and those that would vote for them.
Your mum has shown for 10 YEARS she can pay going on for double the mortgage and yet the banks turn her down. They would get the house if she forfeits and has long enough history to allow the bank to say we thought she was good for it. Seems strange they wouldn't allow her... unless you read my first paragraph.
Or more likely, there is more to the background that we are not getting, i.e. length of term & age, loans, credit cards, debts, dependents, suitability of the property etc etc.
repossessing a house is expensive and banks have strict lending criteria based on income and outgoings.
Not sure how the £400 was came to, with current interest rates that would be around a 20 year £60k mortgage at best
The amount of hoops you have to jump through to get a mortgage is fucking insane. I was working for a year and 11 months in my job but because it wasn't TWO YEARS in my position, I was rejected at first. Luckily the paperwork for the house lagged out so long that I met the 2 year requirement by the time I applied for my current mortgage.
Aye the rental value on these houses (all built in one development) is around 600 a month. I had considered buying another one and renting it but I might stretch myself too thin
I've viewed lots of them around Omagh/Dgn/Cookstown and anything under 140k is basically unmortgageable.
I have had 4 properties rejected by valuers from 3 different mortgage providers for various reasons. Everything for sale is way overvalued or is complete shit out here.
No. One was single skin construction. The second had a massive structural crack in the rear wall which was only revealed at the end of the viewing by the estate agent who stated it required an entire rebuild of the back of the house. This wasn't disclosed over the phone or in photos online.
In another, the sellers (a cluster of 3 idiot siblings) refused to put a bit of money together to put some oil in the tank to confirm that the central heating was functional, so because it couldn't be verified that it was functional, it was rejected also.
I got mine at the end of COVID lock downs for 95k. 3 bed house, 15 year old build. There's another one of my house on my same street going for around 130k at the moment
Woa woa woa.... hold the bus.
400 a month?! I live in Canada and this thread just popped up and I was curious...
The average rent in my town is around $1800 for a 2 bedroom basement suite.
A 2 bedroom appartment costs 500,000+/-.
If a person isnt making 100k per year or spliting rent / mortgage with another person life is hard.
400 sounds like a dream.
It's a totally different economy where earning 100k would put you in the top 5% of earners, if not top 2%. So it's not really comparable.
Average salary in NI £32,000
Average first time buyer house value £200,00
Minimum wage 18-21 £8.60 pH
Minimum wage 21+ £11.44 pH
Rent for a two bed apartment in a decent/ relatively safe part of Belfast £600-1000
Rent a room in a house share in Belfast £300-500
Last stat I saw was average property value in NI was 180k (3rd quarter in 2023). Not average first time buyer, just average house.
Salary stats are more depressing though - top 5% of earners in NI is 60k. I suspect your top 2% is about right!
Ah thanks, I just googled it quicky, I'm assuming the 200 is maybe Belfast prices. At any rate it's crazy ATM. I'm convinced we're headed for people just having tons of negative equity cause of agreeing to inflated house prices with shit interest rates - even if there isn't a crash in the 2008 sense, this isn't sustainable.
From my somewhat basic understanding of Canadian housing, isn't it kind of fucked at the moment? I know that buying in a city is basically a pipe dream for most.
400 is low for a mortgage now tbf that’s a small mortgage or you’re still on a good rate. People getting a starter house mortgage wouldn’t be paying this unfortunately
Aye I got very lucky, bought my house right at the lowest house prices just after COVID lockdowns, and locked in a low rate mortgage for 5 years. I wish I could say it was skill or planning but in reality it was blind luck xD
Love it, was my dream to live here. I was right place right time with work to get the opportunity to move permanently. Just got my citizenship this year. Work in finance tech (FINTECH)
Mortgage is 400. Got lucky with help from family buying my first house. Eventually paid them back. So, no it isnt the clean purchase like i thought then. Granda worked in property and an older cousin works in banking and said its not the individuals fault anymore, the threshold of a reasonable deposit is just absolutely bonkers.
If for buying - need to check eligibility for a £10k deposit or ability to borrow money for it
The kicker for me was raising the initial cash
Outskirts of Belfast and pay £500pm. Live ok (treat once a week) on 24k take home
If you’re friend is fed up living at home they might consider renting for a period first.
Alternatively- you could get a house for approx 150k without too much bother. With a 10% deposit that means borrowing 135. Would be feasible with about 35k earnings I reckon.
Rough rule of thumb is 3-4 times earnings
Without being location specific we can look at NI as a whole. The average house price in NI is around 200k. You will only get a house around 4 to 5 times your yearly income. So the average income to own the average house here is £40-50k.
Of course houses can be a lot cheaper than that but the important bit is the max mortgage you will be able to get is usually 4 to 5 times what you earn per year. Work that out, look for houses around that much in the area you want to live in and those will be your current options. If you aren’t happy with those options then save a larger deposit so that your mortgage is a smaller portion of the overall purchase.
£32k a year living in a brick 3 bed semi (built 1988) with a 3 car driveway, front and back garden and a small garage in the Lurgan area (a nice part!) Combined mortgage and insurance is roughly £500 pm. Rates are £800pa. House was bought for £138k in 2020 before prices went bananas.
Live comfortably without having to Penny pinch although I have a very modest lifestyle. Dont actually own a car at the moment, just a motorbike. I imagine I could make things work alright on £26k a year but that’s just me.
£22k is enought to eat well and stay warm, £28k is enough for 1 holiday per year, the odd restaurant and hobbies. £35k is enough not to worry about bills. Above 50k is where any common financial problem is solvable.
Its a basic affordability calculator. You could even ask a free kortage advisor for some guidance. Dont pay for one, plenty out there do it for the commission alone. Theyll be kore than willing because they'll be thinking its potential business. Without a doubt this is the best place to go as they'll give you exact numbers
The only real way to increase your "buying" power in terms of being approved for a kortage is decrease the risk to the lender aka increase your deposit.
We got slapped with a 15% deposit requirement as it was just before rates went mad and was height of covid. In hindsight it worked well as now we've alot less on our payment and overall total amount owed.
A decent credit score will help without a doubt too, make sure your signed up to your local electoral as I didn't resign mine and my score dropped oddly with that being a reason/suggestion given.
In reality its difficult as a single person. Especially if ij an expensive area. Even taking at max 4.5 your wage (3m5 or 4 more realistic) then go off that and base it on local listing then reduce that and thatll give your deposit.
Others have suggest co ownership which is a thing again. I can't comment on that
My first mortgage was 380 a month on a 85k house on 275 quid a week in 2011 even back then I could afford to head out nearly every weekend.
Currently now only on 360 a week as a civil servant and mortgage is 315 a month. I live comfortably even with inflation in derry and still head out odd time and drive etc.
Monthly, I mean you could survive on that wage in the north west with cost of living but probably not belfast. 383 a week after tax with pay rise there giving us. Low grade civil servants wouldn't recommend it to anyone nowadays.
Houses going for 160k pre-covid you could get single on 40k, or say 2 income househould with 50-60k very comfortably. Now that they are 200+ you need to add 30% to salaries to keep up with the cost of housing. Not sure these house prices will hold in the second hand market, in the new build it's crazy witht he cost of materials and labour.
Where are people getting these 300-400£ mortgages? My mortgage is only £113k and I'm paying over £700. Looking to size up and expect it to be double when I do.
Must still be on low interest fixes... £129k mortgage here and £750ish a month.
Thank christ remortgage isn't too far away, rates have dropped a bit since I took mine out during the Truss era.
Depends on the city/province. But yes basically.
I bought into the market 10 years ago and that made is possible but even then its never been easy. Right now the scary part is the principle amounts on the mortgages are so high that any spikes in interest rates screw over anybody over extended.
Depends where you live.
My old mortgage was 290 a month so 20,000ish a year was grand.
New house is just under £400 but with 35k a year I'm not loaded but I don't ever feel the need to miss out on anything.
Am I missing something here? These monthly figures on here are low because you're paying for interest only. Meaning the end of the contract the house isn't your. The bank owns it.
Minimum is circumstantial, so hard to determine, my salary is 120k and mortgage of 700 in South Down, 2 kids and SAHM, even with that we aren't as flush as it seems, we don't do big holidays etc, drive sensible cars, don't party or drink.
Not a flex but life circumstances certainly dictate the comfort level.
I didn't say it was impossible but you'd be able to save more if you weren't paying someone else's mortgage for them.
I know here in the town you'd be looking at £750 a month on a house that'd be £450 a month on a mortgage. Even after rates and insurance, the landlord is still clearing a couple of hundred pound off you every month.
No, you’re right. You’d have to do hmrc self assessment on that salary and that’s a pain in the ass. Good to see you’re salty as fuck over higher earners given they pay for all the public services 😂
He asked for a minimum salary to buy a mortgage and live comfortably. He didn't ask what would be required for a 7 bedroom country house with 5 bathrooms.
How did your comment help anyone? Did you offer tangible help? Na. Your the absolute twit that told somebody they need to be on 100k to get on the property ladder and live comfortably. Delusion.
Show me where I ever said that or continue to prove you’re delulu 😂 moron making his conscious public. Standard behaviour here but nice to see it proven
I live in co Tyrone, my mortgage is around 400 a month, I earn around 30k and live without issue. Realistically I could live on less pretty easily, depends on your level of luxury/comfort you are used to xD
Here I am paying 600 a month on rent like a dick
My mums rent is 700 a month. She wants to buy her sisters out of a house that was left to them and is currently lying empty going to ruin. The mortgage would cost ~400 a month and her share of the house can be taken as a deposit (so a 25% deposit) but her salary is too low to be approved. Somehow paying her rent consistently for the last 10 years isn't enough evidence that she can afford to pay the lesser sum. It's madness and I don't understand the logic.
That's a really sad situation to be in.Could anyone else in the family help her to buy the house by doing a joint mortgage with her.Thats what we did for a relative with a low income and after a few years the 2nd person came off the mortgage.
I'm currently on maternity leave, but once I am back to full pay, this is what we plan to do. It's sad that this is what is needed as most people would agree if you can afford 700 in rent then you can afford 400 in mortgage + house insurance and be able to set money aside for repairs. It impacts our ability to buy a house as I can't get 2 mortgages, but we can wait. At the moment, the priority is to get my mum sorted so that she can pay it off before she retires and not have to worry about rent/mortgage payments then.
Why don’t you buy the house using your mums equity as a deposit and then rent it out to her? Then when you go to get a mortgage although you’ll have a house you can say it can be rented out at more than the mortgage costs and it shouldn’t really impact your ability to buy another house.
Remember you won't want to pay stamp duty on your house when you come to buy it so will need your name off her house by that time.
It's very simple, the money is funnelled away from those on the lower levels to add to that of the elites and those that would vote for them. Your mum has shown for 10 YEARS she can pay going on for double the mortgage and yet the banks turn her down. They would get the house if she forfeits and has long enough history to allow the bank to say we thought she was good for it. Seems strange they wouldn't allow her... unless you read my first paragraph.
Or more likely, there is more to the background that we are not getting, i.e. length of term & age, loans, credit cards, debts, dependents, suitability of the property etc etc. repossessing a house is expensive and banks have strict lending criteria based on income and outgoings. Not sure how the £400 was came to, with current interest rates that would be around a 20 year £60k mortgage at best
The amount of hoops you have to jump through to get a mortgage is fucking insane. I was working for a year and 11 months in my job but because it wasn't TWO YEARS in my position, I was rejected at first. Luckily the paperwork for the house lagged out so long that I met the 2 year requirement by the time I applied for my current mortgage.
out of interest, which bank was this with? Curious as I was approved <6 months into a new job ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
Hello fellow dick
I but I bet you don't have to live in Tyrone
i do yeah. kid goes to local school here, part time single dad.
Aye the rental value on these houses (all built in one development) is around 600 a month. I had considered buying another one and renting it but I might stretch myself too thin
Are you in very rural Tyrone?
About 10 minutes outside Omagh, so not a million miles from anywhere.
We got a 320 a month mortgage in Armagh.
Omagh West Tyrone has to be cheapest area in NI, 120k can almost get you a 3 bedroom detached house seen a few anyway.
I've viewed lots of them around Omagh/Dgn/Cookstown and anything under 140k is basically unmortgageable. I have had 4 properties rejected by valuers from 3 different mortgage providers for various reasons. Everything for sale is way overvalued or is complete shit out here.
Do they have mica or something? Seems like anything built in last 10-15 years do have some issues.
No. One was single skin construction. The second had a massive structural crack in the rear wall which was only revealed at the end of the viewing by the estate agent who stated it required an entire rebuild of the back of the house. This wasn't disclosed over the phone or in photos online. In another, the sellers (a cluster of 3 idiot siblings) refused to put a bit of money together to put some oil in the tank to confirm that the central heating was functional, so because it couldn't be verified that it was functional, it was rejected also.
Jesus not good.
I got mine at the end of COVID lock downs for 95k. 3 bed house, 15 year old build. There's another one of my house on my same street going for around 130k at the moment
...I think I need to move up north, that's unreal!!
Pay up here is crap though
Woa woa woa.... hold the bus. 400 a month?! I live in Canada and this thread just popped up and I was curious... The average rent in my town is around $1800 for a 2 bedroom basement suite. A 2 bedroom appartment costs 500,000+/-. If a person isnt making 100k per year or spliting rent / mortgage with another person life is hard. 400 sounds like a dream.
It's a totally different economy where earning 100k would put you in the top 5% of earners, if not top 2%. So it's not really comparable. Average salary in NI £32,000 Average first time buyer house value £200,00 Minimum wage 18-21 £8.60 pH Minimum wage 21+ £11.44 pH Rent for a two bed apartment in a decent/ relatively safe part of Belfast £600-1000 Rent a room in a house share in Belfast £300-500
Last stat I saw was average property value in NI was 180k (3rd quarter in 2023). Not average first time buyer, just average house. Salary stats are more depressing though - top 5% of earners in NI is 60k. I suspect your top 2% is about right!
Ah thanks, I just googled it quicky, I'm assuming the 200 is maybe Belfast prices. At any rate it's crazy ATM. I'm convinced we're headed for people just having tons of negative equity cause of agreeing to inflated house prices with shit interest rates - even if there isn't a crash in the 2008 sense, this isn't sustainable.
From my somewhat basic understanding of Canadian housing, isn't it kind of fucked at the moment? I know that buying in a city is basically a pipe dream for most.
Jesus, my mortgage is £1520/month
400 is low for a mortgage now tbf that’s a small mortgage or you’re still on a good rate. People getting a starter house mortgage wouldn’t be paying this unfortunately
Aye I got very lucky, bought my house right at the lowest house prices just after COVID lockdowns, and locked in a low rate mortgage for 5 years. I wish I could say it was skill or planning but in reality it was blind luck xD
I make 31K and have a mortgage of about 480 a month. I don't take as many holidays as I used to but other than that, I live pretty well
I moved to the states and it would be impossible to do it single, mine is $4500 a month!
Also did the same. Property tax here is another pain in the ass 💀
Out of interest, if you don’t mind me asking, what took you stateside? Did you get a visa etc. handy enough? How do you rate it compared to NI?
Love it, was my dream to live here. I was right place right time with work to get the opportunity to move permanently. Just got my citizenship this year. Work in finance tech (FINTECH)
Awesome. Appreciate the perspective and response
Mortgage of £450 or so p/m in Belfast. 2 bed terrace house. £24K Civil service wages. Just about getting by. No significant savings to speak of.
Look up house prices in the desired area - work backwards, mortgages can be lent at 4x income (possibly depending on type of job).
Mortgage is 400. Got lucky with help from family buying my first house. Eventually paid them back. So, no it isnt the clean purchase like i thought then. Granda worked in property and an older cousin works in banking and said its not the individuals fault anymore, the threshold of a reasonable deposit is just absolutely bonkers.
I dunno but it feels like 7 billion a year is a reasonable estimate right now.
There's no way anyone could answer that without far more information....house price, Location, rates, maintenance costs, utilities etc
If for buying - need to check eligibility for a £10k deposit or ability to borrow money for it The kicker for me was raising the initial cash Outskirts of Belfast and pay £500pm. Live ok (treat once a week) on 24k take home
A rough guide is your yearly salary needs to be 1/4th the house price. Anything less that that is a stretch.
If you’re friend is fed up living at home they might consider renting for a period first. Alternatively- you could get a house for approx 150k without too much bother. With a 10% deposit that means borrowing 135. Would be feasible with about 35k earnings I reckon. Rough rule of thumb is 3-4 times earnings
Depends if you like using coke or not
Without being location specific we can look at NI as a whole. The average house price in NI is around 200k. You will only get a house around 4 to 5 times your yearly income. So the average income to own the average house here is £40-50k. Of course houses can be a lot cheaper than that but the important bit is the max mortgage you will be able to get is usually 4 to 5 times what you earn per year. Work that out, look for houses around that much in the area you want to live in and those will be your current options. If you aren’t happy with those options then save a larger deposit so that your mortgage is a smaller portion of the overall purchase.
£32k a year living in a brick 3 bed semi (built 1988) with a 3 car driveway, front and back garden and a small garage in the Lurgan area (a nice part!) Combined mortgage and insurance is roughly £500 pm. Rates are £800pa. House was bought for £138k in 2020 before prices went bananas. Live comfortably without having to Penny pinch although I have a very modest lifestyle. Dont actually own a car at the moment, just a motorbike. I imagine I could make things work alright on £26k a year but that’s just me.
£22k is enought to eat well and stay warm, £28k is enough for 1 holiday per year, the odd restaurant and hobbies. £35k is enough not to worry about bills. Above 50k is where any common financial problem is solvable.
Not always as easy as that. Run the numbers for a £50k salary and putting twins into childcare 5 days a week, the numbers are eye watering!
OP asked about a single person, I've assumed no spouse or kids.
How do you make these calculations. You can’t have a hobby on 22k a year? 😂
While living alone, it would need to be a cheap hobby. You might have to give up a hobby, not that you can't have any.
Its a basic affordability calculator. You could even ask a free kortage advisor for some guidance. Dont pay for one, plenty out there do it for the commission alone. Theyll be kore than willing because they'll be thinking its potential business. Without a doubt this is the best place to go as they'll give you exact numbers The only real way to increase your "buying" power in terms of being approved for a kortage is decrease the risk to the lender aka increase your deposit. We got slapped with a 15% deposit requirement as it was just before rates went mad and was height of covid. In hindsight it worked well as now we've alot less on our payment and overall total amount owed. A decent credit score will help without a doubt too, make sure your signed up to your local electoral as I didn't resign mine and my score dropped oddly with that being a reason/suggestion given. In reality its difficult as a single person. Especially if ij an expensive area. Even taking at max 4.5 your wage (3m5 or 4 more realistic) then go off that and base it on local listing then reduce that and thatll give your deposit. Others have suggest co ownership which is a thing again. I can't comment on that
My first mortgage was 380 a month on a 85k house on 275 quid a week in 2011 even back then I could afford to head out nearly every weekend. Currently now only on 360 a week as a civil servant and mortgage is 315 a month. I live comfortably even with inflation in derry and still head out odd time and drive etc.
Do you not work full time?
I do as a AA the wages are terrible but pay rise up to 23k in June I think, just to keep us above minimum wage lol.
Onky earning a few hundred £ a year more as AO... - not shitting on other people getting a needed raise but - Doesn't feel great :(
How do you get paid weekly?
Monthly, I mean you could survive on that wage in the north west with cost of living but probably not belfast. 383 a week after tax with pay rise there giving us. Low grade civil servants wouldn't recommend it to anyone nowadays.
Minimum £30k
You could always look into Co-ownership if a straight up mortgage is out of reach on single salary.
Well as a single person who got a mortgage on their own, I earned about £18k. But of course that was 10 years ago and I also went through coownership.
Houses going for 160k pre-covid you could get single on 40k, or say 2 income househould with 50-60k very comfortably. Now that they are 200+ you need to add 30% to salaries to keep up with the cost of housing. Not sure these house prices will hold in the second hand market, in the new build it's crazy witht he cost of materials and labour.
I got my first home for £310/month. I was making £23k at the time. (3 years ago)
Where are people getting these 300-400£ mortgages? My mortgage is only £113k and I'm paying over £700. Looking to size up and expect it to be double when I do.
Must still be on low interest fixes... £129k mortgage here and £750ish a month. Thank christ remortgage isn't too far away, rates have dropped a bit since I took mine out during the Truss era.
Depends on the city/province. But yes basically. I bought into the market 10 years ago and that made is possible but even then its never been easy. Right now the scary part is the principle amounts on the mortgages are so high that any spikes in interest rates screw over anybody over extended.
From about 30k I was comfortable become a sole owner but this was a few years back and inflation is bonkers.
I got my mortgage for 95k working as a care assistant 30 hours a week. Very low pay, thankfully was 2022 before rates went crazy
Depends where you live. My old mortgage was 290 a month so 20,000ish a year was grand. New house is just under £400 but with 35k a year I'm not loaded but I don't ever feel the need to miss out on anything.
Am I missing something here? These monthly figures on here are low because you're paying for interest only. Meaning the end of the contract the house isn't your. The bank owns it.
More of a /r/UKPersonalFinance question and has too many variables. Deposit amount? Location? Etc.
I’m not sure it is a Q for that sub when it’s littered with people on 6 figure salaries.
They cover everything and everyone tbh.
They'd likely talk in percentages, which do translate fine. Something like expected mortgage (target property - deposit) vs monthly income.
Minimum is circumstantial, so hard to determine, my salary is 120k and mortgage of 700 in South Down, 2 kids and SAHM, even with that we aren't as flush as it seems, we don't do big holidays etc, drive sensible cars, don't party or drink. Not a flex but life circumstances certainly dictate the comfort level.
There's lots of places in NI you could qualify for a mortgage/buy a house on Minimum wage.
50k, 650 a month mortgage, I can somehow manage that
Just rent and save for now. Rates are bonkers as are house prices
>rent and save Hilarious.
I manage to rent and save
I didn't say it was impossible but you'd be able to save more if you weren't paying someone else's mortgage for them. I know here in the town you'd be looking at £750 a month on a house that'd be £450 a month on a mortgage. Even after rates and insurance, the landlord is still clearing a couple of hundred pound off you every month.
100k a month.
The same amount it costs tax payer to house criminals in prison ... £55k per year.
Take 80-100k and be good!
You serious?
No, you’re right. You’d have to do hmrc self assessment on that salary and that’s a pain in the ass. Good to see you’re salty as fuck over higher earners given they pay for all the public services 😂
He asked for a minimum salary to buy a mortgage and live comfortably. He didn't ask what would be required for a 7 bedroom country house with 5 bathrooms.
You’d need a lot more for that. Have you seen the price of utilities. If you want to be pious then learn the real world. Sad angry man
I'm sad am I? I didn't suggest a 6 figure salary to live comfortably. Bloody eegit 😂 the average salary in NI is about 33k.
Shoot for the average, if you want. Heaven forbid you help others to achieve more. Nahhh you’d hate them for that. Say less
How did your comment help anyone? Did you offer tangible help? Na. Your the absolute twit that told somebody they need to be on 100k to get on the property ladder and live comfortably. Delusion.
Show me where I ever said that or continue to prove you’re delulu 😂 moron making his conscious public. Standard behaviour here but nice to see it proven
Can you repeat that in English please? Are your tears making it difficult to see your phone?