Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Crunch time for the Bronco, his filly and foals...... I'm in my 40s with two young kids. House big enough but we have the ability to upgrade.... So do I? 1. Take much bigger mortgage for bigger house/garden. Holidays will be UK or cheap Spain etc. 2. Keep house (which is big enough but small garden and no garage) and take kids travelling each year -e.g. safaris and Australia etc. Probably retire 3/4 years earlier too Thoughts? Anyone in same boat? Any oldies who already went one way or t'other? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Evans Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Travel experience every time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damien Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Its funny because I'm having similar thoughts and the same kinds of decisions and am swaying heavily towards number 2. I'm definitely getting to the stage where I want to enjoy life more and have more holidays etc rather than forking out a large percentage of income on a mortgage and loans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graveyard johnny Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 plans can fall through-as so often they do see you later undertaker - in a while necrophile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Evans Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 The memories of the enjoyment we have had as a family, and later as a couple when kids left home have been fabulous. I have lots of really positive memories and have grown so fond of France in particular often going 4 times/year. Taking the the Travel option have given me an opportunity for such experiences and is worth us remaining living in the sheeitehole that is Rovrum rather than spending loads and moving to the country as we might have done 30+ years ago..... That equation is quite a personal subjective calculation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 57 minutes ago, graveyard johnny said: plans can fall through-as so often they do Cryptic.... Example/explain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 54 minutes ago, Robin Evans said: That equation is quite a personal subjective calculation Indeed. Hence I'm canvassing opinion from all ends... even Northerners We are erring to the second. On our death bed we don't think we'd be remembering about our newer car or bigger bathroom we had....hoping to remember things like snorkeling in some sunny corner of the world with the kids or seeing Victoria falls etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 1 hour ago, Damien said: Its funny because I'm having similar thoughts and the same kinds of decisions and am swaying heavily towards number 2. I'm definitely getting to the stage where I want to enjoy life more and have more holidays etc rather than forking out a large percentage of income on a mortgage and loans. Let's see what the sage RLF contributors advice is! We are just about getting sorted financially.... Small mortgage, no other debts and we'll paid job. Other thing to consider is... Her indoors works 3 days.... Would prefer to keep it that way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverback Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Enjoy it all while you can fella,i ran my own garage for 35 years,fancy house with 4 car garage and pond, mortgage on garage and house ment working every day to keep up,overheads were £1.000 a week before opening gates and paying staff but we had a good do, Dont let the mortgage hold you back as a bind, familys grown up and we moved to a little bungalow and bought a little motorhome and get all over place now,think ahead and were you want to be in say 10 years for an answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Copa Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 I chose number 2. I own my house with zero debt and my kids have lots of opportunities and experiences because of that. We’re in a high income bracket and we bought a small home in a cheaper area. I’ve never been materialistic anyway. I’m also heading for a mid-50s retirement. There’s no way I’d ever want to go into my 50s with a big mortgage. Quite a few of my friends have done this and each time they hear a story about someone getting ill or worse, they start to wonder if they’ve done the right thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen-Y-Bont Crusader Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Do you still want all the stresses of being a head on top of having to pay a bigger mortgage and working longer ? You’d be a statistic in no time. Number two all the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Evans Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 There's a big diverse world out there full of fab stuff and groovy folk.... You'd be nuts to compromise..... Go get em tiger!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 2 hours ago, Copa said: I chose number 2. I own my house with zero debt and my kids have lots of opportunities and experiences because of that. We’re in a high income bracket and we bought a small home in a cheaper area. I’ve never been materialistic anyway. I’m also heading for a mid-50s retirement. There’s no way I’d ever want to go into my 50s with a big mortgage. Quite a few of my friends have done this and each time they hear a story about someone getting ill or worse, they start to wonder if they’ve done the right thing. Good to hear I'm not alone. Most of our friends going for / have gone for option 1 Tricky thing to resist though.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Option 2! Worked hard when I was young, achieved highly in my field (same as yours) but never changed my lifestyle. Middle of the road car, decent but average semi. Am now 57, retired at 55, go on decent hols when I want where I want while peers are still working and looking to downsize. Am starting a doctorate this year because I want to and think I can. Best thing I ever did was pay off my mortgage early by overpaying when times were good! Children had plenty of great experiences due to where I worked. Life is short, enjoy as much of it as you can. Bigger house means more time cleaning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bedfordshire Bronco Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 2 hours ago, Pen-Y-Bont Crusader said: Do you still want all the stresses of being a head on top of having to pay a bigger mortgage and working longer ? You’d be a statistic in no time. Number two all the way. Yep and that is part of the equation too. I worry about the effect of a stressful job.... They call stress the silent killer. 55 seems like a nice end point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 1 minute ago, Bedfordshire Bronco said: Yep and that is part of the equation too. I worry about the effect of a stressful job.... They call stress the silent killer. 55 seems like a nice end point It is. Keep paying that pension. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Evans Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 1 minute ago, distantdog said: All of the above! Worked hard when I was young, achieved highly in my field (same as yours) but never changed my lifestyle. Middle of the road car, decent but average semi. Am now 57, retired at 55, go on decent hols when I want where I want while peers are still working and looking to downsize. Am starting a doctorate this year because I want to and think I can. Best thing I ever did was pay off my mortgage early by overpaying when times were good! Children had plenty of great experiences due to where I worked. Life is short, enjoy as much of it as you can. Bigger house means more time cleaning! Dr Dog..... I'm considering something similar but want to do some study in something I enjoy.... History..... perhaps mining history.... All these things are only possible to me for choosing the second option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob8 Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 8 hours ago, Bedfordshire Bronco said: Crunch time for the Bronco, his filly and foals...... I'm in my 40s with two young kids. House big enough but we have the ability to upgrade.... So do I? 1. Take much bigger mortgage for bigger house/garden. Holidays will be UK or cheap Spain etc. 2. Keep house (which is big enough but small garden and no garage) and take kids travelling each year -e.g. safaris and Australia etc. Probably retire 3/4 years earlier too Thoughts? Anyone in same boat? Any oldies who already went one way or t'other? If your house is big enough (and at some point those kids will start to disappear), then a bigger house seems a terrible idea. But, it is a false question. This is not a voucher with two options. Other things include invest, have a bigger amount to spend and have the security. Invest in the kids' future (I would go for the bigger house first ) Generally, you do not know what will make you happy, so spend on security and what will make you grow as a person. "You clearly have never met Bob8 then, he's like a veritable Bryan Ferry of RL." - Johnoco 19 Jul 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 8 minutes ago, Robin Evans said: Dr Dog..... I'm considering something similar but want to do some study in something I enjoy.... History..... perhaps mining history.... All these things are only possible to me for choosing the second option. Go for it. My doctorate will be in my professional field, but in a specific aspect I have chosen, so am happy. And as you quite rightly say, only possible both financially and available time due to choosing option 2! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob8 Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Further to this, we have Covid-19 going around. Lots of people are going to be redundant, the economy is buggered, but the money to ease the pain is being applied for a bit yet. This is not a time to upgrade your house. Prices will go down significantly next year, but more importantly you might not be as secure as it seems. The financial crisis of 2008 started in 2007 and people thought it would be over by 2008. This is different, but in a way more serious, the world is actually poorer rather than realising it is not as rich as it thought. Furthermore, the UK will have brexit too, making it worse off. If you are earning a saving good money, spend money on destressing and not much else. We are likely to need a bigger house, so we are looking to buy in the new year when prices drop ad buy a cheap one in the sticks. We have a place in central Copenhagen, so we plan let it out. This is a terrible time to upgrade. "You clearly have never met Bob8 then, he's like a veritable Bryan Ferry of RL." - Johnoco 19 Jul 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
distantdog Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 6 minutes ago, Bob8 said: Generally, you do not know what will make you happy, so spend on security and what will make you grow as a person. Much wisdom here. I would add, put yourself in the position where you have options with which to discover what you want and what will make you happy. I spent 30 years working at 100mph, long hours, stress but good pay. Then I woke up and didn't want it anymore, so planned for a time when I didn't have to do it anymore, facilitated by my wife's creative and optimistic thinking! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Padge Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 If the house is big enough now with the kids at home it will be plenty big enough when they eventually leave. You move to something bigger they will still leave and you have a house that is too big. Plus always keep your mortgage manageable in bad times. Travel comes out tops for me. Visit my photography site www.padge.smugmug.com Radio 5 Live: Saturday 14 April 2007 Dave Whelan "In Wigan rugby will always be king" This country's wealth was created by men in overalls, it was destroyed by men in suits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Willow Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 A house is never too big, you just fill it with more stuff. If the house is OK I'd go for experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Copa Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 4 hours ago, Bedfordshire Bronco said: Good to hear I'm not alone. Most of our friends going for / have gone for option 1 Tricky thing to resist though.... Once you’ve made the most of a no/low debt lifestyle, it’s easy to resist the temptation of a bigger mortgage because you don’t want your lifestyle to worsen. A good lifestyle beats a bigger home every time. My kids now have access to concerts, live theatre, sporting events, overseas holidays/student exchanges, music lessons, sports coaching, school tutoring etc. Most of my friends put all that money into their home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUBRATS Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 Don't buy the bigger house , invest in a RL club instead , I did , you know it makes sense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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