Hi, I have been thinking about this for quite some time and am now ready to consult Reddit.
I (F30) currently live in a 2 bed 1 bath about 800sq feet, with my partner (M29), our 18mo son, dog, and two cats. To say we have outgrown it is an understatement. I bought this home by myself in 2021 and you guessed it, have an amazing interest rate of 2.8%, and a mortgage payment of about $1100. I know how lucky I am to have this and be a homeowner and I am not discrediting that at all.
We live on about 1 acre on a road that has cars regularly flying down it, so I am constantly worried about that in regards to my child.
We have been house hunting and to afford anything that would be worth it to move would be cutting it TIGHT with finances. My partner has an extremely flexible job but it doesn’t pay much. He would definitely need a new job for us to be able to afford something better.
I make about 5k a month, partner makes 3k. Our total expenses make up about 6k a month.
I hate not being able to host events. I want to have my child’s birthday parties at our house. I want to host holidays at our house. We don’t even have a dining table that we can all fit at. I want to have another child but that would make space even tighter.
We have discussed taking equity out of the house and using it to build an addition, but with how small everything is, I don’t see how that would fix the problem unless we completely remodel the entire house, and I don’t want to have to find somewhere else to live with a child and pets while that’s being completed.
Xx
We need more space. I can’t take it anymore. Any advice appreciated.
Outgrown house but can’t afford another – what to do?
byu/debstrashclaw inpersonalfinance
Posted by debstrashclaw
2 Comments
An acre of land is something hard to come by in most places.
Owning 3/4 lot myself here is what I would consider……
Fencing around the property. Help keep animals and children away from roads.
Build a “in-law” condo/barn/apartment; whatever you want to call it. And use as general gathering space. Living room kitchenette, small full bath; small bedroom.
It can be the party space when needed or play-room / adult escape for most of the year
You provided nothing to give meaningful feedback. How much how are you looking to buy? How much is your house worth? How much do you owe? What the cost of the addition? How much cash reserves do you have? You don’t have a dining table…Do you have a fully funded emergency fund? What’s your retirement contributions like? Are you hitting 10% of your gross annually?