Alternative ways of housing / living

Yeah, location/ move.
We lived in Brighton til 2015. Great fun, but rent was crazy and the likelihood of buying a house was non-existent. We were massively in debt.
We moved to Dundee - cool little city, great creative scene, incredible countryside surrounding it - the main draw was there's work for me there and it's cheap as anything; within 2 years of moving, we bought a lovely victorian 3-bed flat for *at least half* what it would have cost in Brighton (and it was in a more expensive suburb of Dundee).
Couldn't move back now.

Move, join armed forces, clergy or do something where property is provided. Personally, I've moved about here and abroad, renovated houses, rented property out, built new etc There's no short cut, firstly establish budget then get on with it, your finances will determine your initial choice. Best of luck, everyone is in the same position at some point in their lives, fortunately you have options that many others don't.

Yep, move is the way :)

Wales isn’t too far from Gloucestershire and if you look towards the valleys you will probably find some good options.

I thought we would be renting forever but by just changing area we got a lovely house for half the price.

The perennial problem of getting a house where there is work. There has been 40 years of government creating this problem, with no sign of them wanting to solve it. Move to France, there are still very cheap renovation projects there. Oh, Brexit! I look where I grew up, it is a toilet and little work and still the prices are high because it's near a motorway to several big cities.

The house price bubble won't burst anytime soon because there is a housing shortage. Many people might lose their homes because of the economic situation but there are so many people wanting a house, they will snap repossessed houses up. Emigrate if you can, probably the far better option.

Not read all of this thread so forgive me if already mentioned, building materials are now in short supply and the prices have rocketed.  I've heard talk of 40% up so this will impact on the cost of any given project and my Son is now thinking he will have to settle for a one story extension instead of two stories.

My step-daughter bought a 3 bed semi-detached house with her boyfriend when she was 23. She had previously lived at the boyfriend's mother's house for a few years to save up money. She refused to rent a house/flat as that was a waste of money. She works at Tesco and her boyfriend did not have a high paying job. She was frugal with money and saved up enough for a deposit. We also gave her some money which lowered her mortgage and also lowered the mortgage rate.

Dabhand16 said

Not read all of this thread so forgive me if already mentioned, building materials are now in short supply and the prices have rocketed.  I've heard talk of 40% up so this will impact on the cost of any given project and my Son is now thinking he will have to settle for a one story extension instead of two stories.

He'll have more than a couple of stories when the building work is finished.

Tarmoo said

My step-daughter bought a 3 bed semi-detached house with her boyfriend when she was 23. She had previously lived at the boyfriend's mother's house for a few years to save up money. She refused to rent a house/flat as that was a waste of money. She works at Tesco and her boyfriend did not have a high paying job. She was frugal with money and saved up enough for a deposit. We also gave her some money which lowered her mortgage and also lowered the mortgage rate.

Unfortunately I've had to rent since the age of 18 as I had no other option...I would have lived at home if I'd had the opportunity but unfortunately I didn't have the benefit of staying at the family home.

My partner lost his Mum a few years back and she very kindly left him some money (so very thankful for it) so we are just trying to do the most logical thing with it...which seems to be moving out of our area altogether. 

Moving to Warrington is a good move. 10th best place to live according to some. (Look it up).

Handy for everywhere, lots of expansion going on, jobs available in retail mostly. Easy for Wales, Lakes and the Peaks.

Worth checking out.

What are you actually trying to achieve, Emma? Do you want to eventually own a house or carry on renting, as the solutions will be different depending on your desired outcome?

Copeland, County Durham and Ayrshire are the cheapest place to buy in 2022 according to Zoopla. In County Durham you can still get a semi-detached 3 bed property from £ 55K.

I would have previously included Plymouth in Devon but since the pandemic the prices have gone up steeply.

Penzance in Cornwall is also reasonable and parts of North & Mid Wales.

playwithlight said

Copeland, County Durham and Ayrshire are the cheapest place to buy in 2022 according to Zoopla. In County Durham you can still get a semi-detached 3 bed property from £ 55K.

I would have previously included Plymouth in Devon but since the pandemic the prices have gone up steeply.

Penzance in Cornwall is also reasonable and parts of North & Mid Wales.

I'd be a little cautious about north and mid wales, there are pockets where communities are decidedly anti-English. There are also other areas where community events are strictly Gaelic only.

FiL said

playwithlight said

Copeland, County Durham and Ayrshire are the cheapest place to buy in 2022 according to Zoopla. In County Durham you can still get a semi-detached 3 bed property from £ 55K.

I would have previously included Plymouth in Devon but since the pandemic the prices have gone up steeply.

Penzance in Cornwall is also reasonable and parts of North & Mid Wales.

I'd be a little cautious about north and mid wales, there are pockets where communities are decidedly anti-English. There are also other areas where community events are strictly Gaelic only.

Fair comment

FiL said

playwithlight said

Copeland, County Durham and Ayrshire are the cheapest place to buy in 2022 according to Zoopla. In County Durham you can still get a semi-detached 3 bed property from £ 55K.

I would have previously included Plymouth in Devon but since the pandemic the prices have gone up steeply.

Penzance in Cornwall is also reasonable and parts of North & Mid Wales.

I'd be a little cautious about north and mid wales, there are pockets where communities are decidedly anti-English. There are also other areas where community events are strictly Gaelic only.

Suppose racism is fine if everyone is white.....you couldn't make it up.