Hourly pay rate of...

[Kwacky]

That's pretty much spot on. Both of you have to be earning and you have to have a decent income.

When my son was born it wasn't worth my wife going to work and paying for two lots of nursery fees. She's now back at work and only working part time so there's very little money coming into the house from her. But we made a choice and decided to put the kids before everything else. We could have a larger house, bigger and newer cars but we prefer having the time and money available to spend with the kids.

[Cav]

That's exactly what I would like to do..

We want 3 kids and a 3 bed detached or semi with a garage and space for a dining room table. It needs a big enough garden for the kids but doesn't need to be massive. That's all. Within 1 mile of where I live I can get that for between £130k or £250k. Even at the bottom of that price bracket I cannot afford it.

Currently I can borrow £15k on a 40 year mortage. What's that going to get me? I earn nearly £20k as an apprentice, I work full time, I study part time on top of that and I can't afford a place. It's depressing and unrelenting

[Kwacky]

I think once I've paid off my mortgage I'm going to have to start saving so I can give my kids a deposit for a house when they're old enough. It's the only way I can see them being able to afford anything.

[Cav]

It's nice you think like that. My dad earns £80k a year, his partner earns about £20k, they have no kids of their own or any particularly large outgoings besides the mortgage.

The most he has ever offered me for anything was £500 for my first car - and it was a loan. I didn't take it because he was always telling me about how he was going to spend £6k on a car for his wife. He will never offer me money towards a house despite putting more than 2x my monthly wage into savings every month. It's frustrating that he is in a position to help me but won't even though everything I own is paid for with my own money and never his.

[Kwacky]

That sounds very familiar.

I've had nothing from my dad. He and his step wife live in an expensive house. I know that they've given lots of cash to my eldest step sister. They sold the mother's house yet they say they've got no money. That house was worth about £150k and was mortgage free.

I once asked if I could borrow a car for a week when they were on holiday, because mine needed a new clutch. I offered to pay the insurance and for a full car valet. I was told in no uncertain terms that the answer was no because they didn't want to set a precedent of people looking to borrow a car from them. So I hired a car for a week from Enterprise.

2 days later the eldest step sister comes over from France to stay in the house while my dad and step mum were away. Guess who was on the insurance for both cars?

They've told me that the will they've drawn up splits everything equally between the grandchildren. My old man is older than his wife. As soon as my dad pops his clogs I know that step mum will amend the will and give everything to her 3 daughters and there's nothing I can do about it, so I need to make sure my kids are looked after when they start their adult life.

[Cav]

It brings a whole new dimension to "under the thumb" doesn't it...

I've just had to accept that's how it is but my dad has health issues which his wife is making worse. That said, he could man up and sort it out himself but she certainly doesn't help.

My dad is spineless and self-centred towards. Those two live their lifestyle and heaven forbid anyone who gets in the way!!

I would love to be financially stable enough to have a sizeable figure in my future kids bank accounts when they turn 21 (I don't believe that many people are actually mature enough at 18 to have a sizeble sum) but seeing as I can't even afford a house for myself that won't be happening

[C00kiemonster]

I think once I've paid off my mortgage I'm going to have to start saving so I can give my kids a deposit for a house when they're old enough. It's the only way I can see them being able to afford anything.

That's partly our thinking, I don't know how they will do it otherwise.

[Kwacky]

I would love to be financially stable enough to have a sizeable figure in my future kids bank accounts when they turn 21 (I don't believe that many people are actually mature enough at 18 to have a sizeble sum) but seeing as I can't even afford a house for myself that won't be happening

You're young. I'm 44. I won't be thinking about saving for my kids until I'm in my early 50s. I won't be able to give them a big sum but if I can sort out enough for a deposit for them both then I'll be pleased with that.

[Monty]

We started saving when they were born, each kid gets 100 quid a month paid into a child trust fund. These schemes seem to be doing pretty well compared to a saving accounts, around 6 to 10%.

Even my three year old twins are richer than me

[Cav]

Nice.. over £21k for each of them by the time they are 18!!

[Rossgo]

We started saving when they were born, each kid gets 100 quid a month paid into a child trust fund. These schemes seem to be doing pretty well compared to a saving accounts, around 6 to 10%.

Even my three year old twins are richer than me

That's the way to do it Monty. Your kids will thank you for it when their older

[Rossgo]

Me and my partner have looked into mortages before, it's silly how much money it is for just a flat around here. 200k for a 1 bed is standard price with just enough room to let a cat strut her stuff and play tug of war with your dog, unless you move out further of course but them at what expense, getting up and leaving at 5am in the morning to get to work for just before 6, leaving work at 6PM just to get home at 8 due to rush hour. My mate says to me put all savings into a flat and your get profit. He did it but he paid off his £200+k mortage within 4 years I am nowhere near able to pay that size within anywhere near that time scale. Unless your earning mega bucks it's not something I'm thinking about, well certainly not yet. I want a life first!!

[duke63]

£21k will probably buy a shed for the garden by the time they are 18, Monty. You would need that for a deposit now.

Property wealth will i suspect have created a wholly unpleasant society by 50 years time.

I can genuinely foresee a time for revolution against the wealthiest again then because the gap between those who have and those who have not will be completely untenable. We already have some very unpleasant gaps in wealth in London now.

[Blade]

I can relate to a lot of the previously made comments. My mum gave me £400 when I was eighteen and I got a loan of my dad for a car but paid every penny back and have been given nothing since.

Tbh in a way I m glad. Every single thing I own I have earned and saved up for myself. I owe nobody nothing and feel a lot more satisfaction from knowing I earned it as opposed to was given it.

Like others we have regular investments for our children and hope to give them a good start in life but also don't want to spoil them but rather show them the value of hard work and saving.

[C00kiemonster]

Problem with London is foreign money, I suspect some of it may be very dirty money too. Some of the gains in property are incredible and we have family in London sitting on some big sums. The key is cashing it in before the bubble bursts (which it will).

The media are a lot to blame, constantly winding up the population saying there are not enough houses, huge demand, get in quick etc etc.

The money has to come from somewhere and it's all from debt. I really thought we would have learnt something from 2008, but clearly not. Most cars are bought on credit, houses on credit, furniture on credit, holidays on credit. At the back of my mind I do think there may be an even bigger bang than in 2008/9.

I don't have any debt but I do wonder if I do the right thing sometimes, if I borrowed to the level some do I'd live like a king! But frankly I don't want to go through life borrowing. I wasn't brought up that way. Thankfully my parents didn't have a bean to rub together and still don't but saved when they could and taught me that.

We've put some investments in place for both kids and I do hope they work, otherwise they will be like everyone else, up to their eyeballs in debt

[Perkles]

To be honest it is so easy to get in trouble with credit cards,I did years ago and was flipping my debt from card to card.I worked hard and paid it all off and have never done it again.The only debt I have now is my mortgage which i have been paying off with my end of year bonuses.I feel so sorry for the younger generation,everybody has the right to buy a decent house and get on the property ladder.I suspect like others have said that many new properties are just being bought for buy to let

[Kwacky]

I've not used a credit card for years. I took a small loan out to buy the SX. Otherwise I buy what I can afford.

[duke63]

The Labour Party are already looking at buy to let and ways of taxing it more.

As that is becoming a bigger way of more people making an income, its inevitable that politicians will look to that as a way of raising more revenue as PAYE tax revenue declines.

[Binno]

That's exactly what I would like to do..

We want 3 kids and a 3 bed detached or semi with a garage and space for a dining room table. It needs a big enough garden for the kids but doesn't need to be massive. That's all. Within 1 mile of where I live I can get that for between £130k or £250k. Even at the bottom of that price bracket I cannot afford it.

Currently I can borrow £15k on a 40 year mortage. What's that going to get me? I earn nearly £20k as an apprentice, I work full time, I study part time on top of that and I can't afford a place. It's depressing and unrelenting

With the greatest of respect bud you are still an apprentice what do you expect ? I don't know what you are serving your time for but once that is done your earings will shoot up.
When I started my first year I was on 96 pence an hour.........it's nothing. You are doing it the opposite way round to people who go to uni. They borrow to train. You subsidise your training with low wages.

Stick with it. It'll come good

[Blade]

Credit cards are very good if you have discipline with finance. They have some very good loyalty and cashback schemes as well as offering buyers alot of protection on purchases for free.

Personally I buy everything I can on credit cards but buy nothing on credit. And that's credit of any kind.

What goes on the card I can afford. I have an standing direct debit every month to settle the balance in full. Sounds difficult and requires planning it doesn't I just live within my means.

Alot of the young people I know want everything yesterday. If you don't want to pay credit card company's and banks for the privilege of loaning an item simply have patients and save for things you want and live within your means is the best advice I was ever given or in return could give.