how does one do it??

[1MOREPLZ]

we have some STUPID debt....(about $40k) and we are renting...
we would desperatly love to be in our own home BUT saving & paying off debt aswell as paying rent is sooo damn hard!!!
IF we could get a home loan with all our stupid debt consolidated into it we would be laughing!!! BUT no one will do that!!!
I am in tears just thinking about it.... any ideas peoples??? cause i am just over everything right now... thank god i am going back to work soon...not that i earn much.

[Isadora]

Hmmm have you shopped around with various banks? A few years back we had a $20,000 loan for stamp duty, once we had settled the property & started paying the mortgage, the bank let us consolidate it - we put it on top of the mortgage & just had the one payment. That was with westpac, so it can be done. As for renting & saving a deposit etc, yes its hard but keep at it. I suggest you speak to a finance broker, they will help you find a home loan thats right for you & will more than likely be able to help you with your personal loan debt. There are some great offers from the govt. at the moment for first home buyers.

[Mama2two]

Hey.
Honestly you should just speak to a lender/broker. You may not think you are even qualify for a loan (we certainly didn't think we did) but with the first home owners grant used as a deposit you might not have to come up with as much as you thought. As for your loan, you could refinance it to a lower rate therefore making your repayments less, then maybe doing something like Madsmum suggested with adding it onto your mortgage. Your bank will be able to tell you what you need to do and how you may be able to do it to get into your own home sooner.

[Kitt3n]

yep, shop aroud hun - dont take a big banks no for an answer, chances are you will get a big fat yes and more from a non bank lender.

find a good broker and or call places directly to talk to a loans manager to explain your situation. ING direct are good. resi is another

stay away from wizard, a holes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Snacks]

Aw, babes, I'm so sorry that you're down. Finances really suck.
I don't know how much help I'm going to be, so feel free to take or leave what I have to say (of course!).
I honestly don't think you'd be "laughing" with a mortgage. I think you're much better off just gradually getting rid of your debt. You might be able to find a lender who'll offer you a personal loan with a lower interest rate than what you're paying now, and that'd definitely be valuable (particularly if your debt is credit card debt - those interest rates are rediculous).
The way the market is at the moment, it is quite expensive to get a home loan when you don't have a decent deposit (at least 10%). Certainly the banks are tightening up on this and the other non-banks will follow. (Or else they will charge you unseemly amounts of money.)
I am in the same boat - we are renting, DH's work is slowing down which is stressing him out, we have some credit card debt and no real savings and I'm about to finish up at work and have a baby
But the reality is that we are not in a position to manage a mortgage. One day, we will be in a better place financially - I have to believe that - and that will be the time to get ourselves a mortgage and our own home.
Hang in there. Things are depressing now, but as you've said, you're going back to work and you can steadily work on reducing that debt. You WILL be in a better place soon.

[westy]

Have you tried a credit union darl?

[Amy_jellybean]

Hi there,
I'm not sure if this will help you but I thought i'd share how my husband and I did it and we are only 20 (21 this year) and just got married so there is hope out there!

We started looking at houses when we were 19, found the home of our dreams (or so we thought) after rams home loans told us we were pre-approved for $585k...alarm bells should have rang when we didnt get anything in writing. To cut a long story short, we had about $2k on credit cards, I had a $20k car loan, DH had a $20k car loan and we didnt get the home loan approved. We sat tight for a while (about 6 months) and decided to move out into a rental (bad move) In the mean time DH wrote his car off and we got about $40 back from the insurance after they paid the loan out.

One day on our way home from the city, we stopped into a display home to dream a little and a week later we signed the dotted line to build a house, at the time we had about $300 in the bank. On pay day we bought DH a $2k excel to get him to work and back, we cosolidated $10k over 4 credit cards into one personal loan, and we moved back home with my parents to save money.

We have now paid for a $40k wedding ontop of that as well.

The point to my story is cut corners where ever you can! If you have flashy cars, why not consider selling them and getting something else still nice but maybe a little older and get rid of some of the debt, make an appointment with the bank to discuss a personal loan and try and consolidate your debt into one monthly payment. If you have the option to move home or get a border in for some extra money then maybe consider that as well? We are lucky that in WA we have a company called Keystart which is a government backed bank that help first home buyers. Your dont pay any stamp duty or morgage insurance but the interest rate is a little higher (but not by much). Maybe have a look around your state to see if there is anything similar???

My best advice is to keep sticking your money in the bank and trust me you will reap the rewards!!!

[1MOREPLZ]

well after me getting down in the dumps and hubby aswell!! hubby spoke to me and we worked out a plan (which i might add has put my mind at ease!!!) he said if we stick to paying off our debt probably up until next Jan...we should be able to then go ahead with a home loan as the 2 HUGE debts will be paid off..and only CC debt will be left... so it has made me feel ALOT better...

[Snacks]

I'm glad you're feeling better about things. It really helps to talk about it and have a plan in place, doesn't it? I hate finances - they stress me out so much. At times it feels like the only thing I think about is money, and that's depressing!
Anyhoo, I am glad things are looking up for you.

[Counting Days]

sorry I don't understand the whole home ownership thing

we rent a brand new house pay 1/2 the amount it would cost of we had a mortgage(rented it from the bank) and invest the difference. We still have an investment and have a great house as well we don't struggle with mortgage repayments. When the rented house gets a little tired we move into a new one again. When we want a holiday we take one just cut back on the amount we invest that month.

Buying a house why you never OWN it anyway the bank does, and as far as rent money being dead money what is interest?

[briggsy's girl]

Counting Days - EVERYONE has different priorities in life and for some, having a home they own is a huge priority. it's not a necessity by any means, but it is something many of us choose to do. i think it's reasonable for Katones to ask how others have gone about owning their home. some of us don't live for the newest or most pretty home - just something that IS our home. i've been at the mercy of landlords that decided to sell up and left me essentially out in the street. i've seen a friend in a VERY similar situation this year after the birth of her son. that kind of uncertainty simply doesn't appeal

if you want to buy, you are entitled to want that. my home isn't the newest or flashiest in the street. it needs a new coat of paint, to finish the fencing - but it's MY HOME - i CAN change the color way. i CAN do the gardens the way i want. i CAN have as many pets as i want. yes, we have a mortgage, so if we don't pay that mortgage, they technically have claims - but i'm paying back my mortgage more rapidly than i need to - and one day, this WILL be an asset that DH and I own together. and this home has more of OUR history to it than any rental ever could - when we inherited the house, we inherited a lot of debt from DH's parents and his brother (all passed on) but we also inherited my husbands history all tied up in a block of land - that's not something you get with a rental


plus, where i live - i pay less on my mortgage than any of my renting friends do. my home is larger, has twice the land around it, is newer (it's less than 30 years old - not new new, but newer) and eventually we'll own it outright as part of our estate for our children

[Counting Days]

at which point did I say she was not entitled to want a home

I was merely offering an opinion one of which you obviously did not agree with
is this not the point of forums for people to offer different ideas or must we all just agree all the time like you mentioned everyone is different

[briggsy's girl]

at which point did I say she was not entitled to want a home

ummm let me just reference your other post and show why i replied as i did

sorry I don't understand the whole home ownership thing

now, you may not have meant it to come across as demeaning to those that have the dream of home ownership, but it did. it comes across like it makes no logical sense to want to own a home

Buying a house why you never OWN it anyway the bank does, and as far as rent money being dead money what is interest?

says who?? yes, the majority of us in the child bearing age group that frequent BB have mortgages or pay rent - but, after x number of years paying a mortgage, you DO own your home - you will never own a rental property

When the rented house gets a little tired we move into a new one again.

all great for you in your circumstances - you don't sound like you have emotional ties to the home in which you live. you sound like you're able to up and leave your current home and life for greener pastures whenever you like. if you have job flexibility that allows you to do that, fantastic! but many of us have settled lives, ties to the community in which we live, and don't see the superficiality of living in the prettiest house as a priority

is this not the point of forums for people to offer different ideas or must we all just agree all the time like you mentioned everyone is different

when a question is posed as to how people manage to save or pay of debt to save for a mortgage, i don't think it's necessary to downplay their desire to have a home of their own by pushing what YOU think is right. yes, we're here to offer opinions and advice - but not to basically tell someone their choice is wrong because it's not the same as yours (and whether that was your intention or not, the tone of your post implied it)

[Nelle]

Katones, that's GREAT that you have a plan! I agree that it sounds wise to pay off some of your debt before accumulating a big one like a mortgage. And if you have a plan, then sitting tight while you pay off the debt won't seem so depressing! Looking forward to following your story!

CD, there's a thread I recall in the past that is about buying vs renting, it's worth checking out. I used to be all in favour of renting, but now we are about to buy our first home (wheeee!), which one day I imagine we will own, and I am loving the idea of doing whatever I want to the insides and outsides, planting trees that I know will grow and grow until my children can climb them, or eat fruit off them, painting a wall or putting hooks wherever I like, and having the peace of mind that I can sit put for the next 20 or 30 years if I choose with no landlord to kick us out. For some people renting is clearly their best option, but for others buying is best. Sounds like renting works really well for you though and that's great!

[mitzy81]

Also remember that house prices are dropping, and by the time you are ready to buy something, you will more than likely get a great bargain and great interest rates! Keep saving and paying off debt, you will get there!

[Beautitude]

Also remember that house prices are dropping, and by the time you are ready to buy something, you will more than likely get a great bargain and great interest rates! Keep saving and paying off debt, you will get there!

:yeahthat:

Keep an eye on the property prices in the area that you want to buy as alot of houses are going down in value so if you hold out a bit and pay off some debt you may actually find that you can get a house a bit cheaper with an awesome interest rate that you can fix for a few years. That is what we are doing at the moment, we have a small house but really need something a bit bigger (who knew babies could take up so much room!!!) With interest rates as they are at the moment we couldn't rent a house cheaper than the mortgage that we pay.

What some people do too (and you may already be doing this or know this) is to put whatever they would spend for a mortage into savings or pay off debt. That way you are already getting used to mortgage payments and how it will affect your income and the money is being put to good use and the banks can see that you can save etc.