“What’s that? You want to buy a house in 2016? Well dream on because you’ll never be able to afford it at your age, on your pay, in the city you live in.”
If there is one message being flung at millennials currently, it’s that their dreams of owning their own home are silly at best, ludicrous at worst. Brexit and the aftermath of the recession may have sent interest rates tumbling so we are seeing some of the most attractive mortgage rates in a long time at the moment, but wages are low, rent and bills are high and job security is not a certainty.
Me and my partner first started thinking about buying a house late last year. We decided on this a couple of months after he had moved into my mum’s house with me. Us living with my mum was meant to be a short term measure to save a bit of money before making the plunge. Things most definitely did not go to plan but there are definitely some positives to come from that.
Firstly, in October last year, my boyfriend found out that he was to be made redundant in the coming months after his work had been taken over by another company. This was the first in a series of hits to set us back especially when it took four agonising months for a job offer to come along for him.
When February came along with a new job for him and myself entering my third month in my job we thought we were back on track. Give it a couple of months and by late Spring we could start looking for our house. Then come the end of February, I got made redundant.
It was yet another setback in what had already been a difficult 8-9 months for both of us personally and it caused some tense months which tested both of us and to a point, it tested our relationship too.
The best thing to come out of the four months between me losing my job and starting a new role was the strength we somehow found, we came out of that year up to June 2016 stronger and more determined than ever.
It’s not all been sunshine and roses since I started my new job (which I absolutely love by the way!) for either of us but if one thing is certain, it is that we both know how to deal with difficult situations and take them in our stride. After months upon months of bad news, spoiling any little glimmer of hope we got, we finally got to the point we’d been aiming for at the end of September.
Around mid-September we decided we couldn’t live in a tiny room in my mum’s house any longer and we booked that first appointment with a mortgage advisor. To our surprise, we were accepted for a loan and a very good one at that. So with a mortgage approval in our hands, we quickly became much more positive about our outlook for the future.
The hard work and bad times were paying off, the sacrifices we had made in our personal lives to save every penny may actually have been worth it. We had the approval and we were going to find our very first home that we would own together. Yes, naysayers, we were going to do it!
The very next weekend, we booked in six viewings(!), we saw two awful houses, two ok houses, one lovely house and one house so beautiful I wanted it so much even though I knew it wasn’t quite right for us. The next weekend we were on holiday and that break cemented a few things in place and gave us the opportunity to rest, reflect and make the changes that needed making.
My boyfriend decided to leave his job, after nine months in the role he knew he had to leave the role that had zapped all his enthusiasm and confidence. The day before he planned to resign, he had an interview with a wonderful charity in Sheffield and was offered the job later that day. His decision to resign was now a decision to leave because he was moving on to something better.
I can’t tell you how happy and relieved we both were that day, it was another piece in the puzzle of what we had been waiting so long for. Four days after getting his new job and handing in his notice, we were back out there house hunting. I had a good feeling about the six viewings we had planned that weekend, I wasn’t sure why but I thought we may find a real gem.
Our third viewing on Saturday, at 2pm, saw us entering the house that we are currently so close to calling our own. The lovely owner and her gorgeous little boy showed us around a house, that although it had been emptied out, gave us that warming, family home vibe. At one point, we both looked at each other and we both knew that this was the one.
When people tell you that you will know the minute you walk into a home you will end up living in and they tell you about that feeling, you’ll never believe them but it truly exists! It’s like butterflies, nerves, excitement and falling in love all rolled into one, it’s weird and wonderful and leaves you thinking about a house for days afterwards.
After viewing the most beautiful house on the most perfect and quiet street, we booked in another viewing for the day after. We were still in love after inspecting every inch of the house for anything at fault. Monday morning came and we put in that offer which was expected a few hours later.
It was the most amazing moment! I’ve never been as happy and elated about a house before, the fact that in a couple of months the house (all being well) will be mine is utterly mind blowing and wonderful!
There is still so much to do and in a way this is only the beginning but for now, I’m just relishing this moment! The moment of having a house that is so near to being ours, managing to fulfil our dream and show that it can be possible to succeed in 2016 as a person in your mid-twenties with dreams, ambitions and aspirations.