# Just want some advice from some sensible people :0)



## Han2275 (Oct 3, 2010)

I hope you don't mind ladies, but this thread is not baby related, I just wanted some thoughts from people about our current situation 

Our current plan:
Put house on the market at the end of the month
Join nursing agencies in Northern Ireland
Hopefully be ready to move to Northern Ireland by the summer 
Live in rental property for a year, keep our mortgage on hold and then buy again when when we know the area better. Our rental would be half our current mortgage so we could spend the year paying off our IVF debts 

*BUT*

In her usual style, DP has heard what she wants to hear when ringing the mortgage company. I spoke to them again and we can only keep our mortgage on hold for 3 months, not a year as she told me . Our redemption fees are nearly £5000 

I guess we have 3 choices now:
1) We pay the fees and stick to our original plans - but I hate the thought of throwing away all that money that we really need.
2) We buy in Ireland pretty much straight away - We do know the area quite well and know the villages we would like to live in but would need to do a lot more investigation re schools etc. Whatever we buy will be our family home for a long time so we need to get it right. DP's family live about 40 minutes from the area so we could have a good 2 week holiday with them and spend our time house hunting.
3) We hold off our move until March next year when our fixed rate ends - I think that would break DPs heart as it has taken me years to agree to this move. Also, house prices are going to drop again this year, and we really want to be settled before DS1 starts school in 2012

Why does something always get in the way of our dreams 

What would you guys do in our situation?
Thanks in advance for you help


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## ♥JJ1♥ (Feb 11, 2006)

re your house, would you be able to keep it and rent it for a while and sell at a later date so you are still keeping your mortgage - would it pay for itself if rented? and hope that prices increase/pick up or you escape your redemption fees when the period would be up. It is hard sell now as the market is tough and you will get less than before, but equally everything you buy will also be cheaper. Could you 

I am also a nurse but have no experience of NI and agencies, but I do know in the UK that Trusts are doing everything they can not to use Ag nurses due to the cost and cuts in budgets- have you researched if there is plenty work for youwould you not look to get a substantive post or also join a hospital Bank as then you also have more employment rights/sick levae/mat leave.

I think renting is a good option in an new area where you don't know where you want to live, could you rent for less than a year?

wishing you lots of luck
Lx


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## Han2275 (Oct 3, 2010)

Thanks for your reply L

We have looked into both the sale and rental market. If we rented the property we have been told that 4 beds are quite difficult to rent out and we would end up about £250 short of our mortgage. Apparently, renting property prior to selling can really devalue the property and we would have to spend money on new carpets and painting etc so it's all swings and roundabouts really  
Friends in the know have told me that house prices are going to fall again this year but I am hoping we sell quickly as we live in a Close of family homes and 3 sold last year within 2 weeks of going on the market  . We have been in the house 5 years and it has been valued a good deal more than when bought it  

We have done our homework on the job front. They are currently building a new hospital in the area we plan to move to. This will be 3 times bigger than the current one and due to be completed in spring 2012. We obviously hope to get jobs there especially coming from a much bigger hospital here in england and DP is a nurse prescriber and will finish her masters soon so I think she's a pretty good asset to any hospital  . She has also registered with the Southern Irish nursing board so she can work over the boarder too. We have joined the agencies that all the local hospitals use.


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## wishing4miracle (Sep 7, 2006)

I know im not really much help but rentin a property is generally more expensive then havin a mortage.id personally buy a house if i sold a house iykwim.we pay 725 a month just on rent for a3 bedr.i think its cheaper havin a mortage but we arent lucky enough to be able to gt one


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## Han2275 (Oct 3, 2010)

It's totally the other way round in NI. We can rent a 4 bed detached for £500!!! hence our plan to save some money in that rental year. Our mortgage is over twice that!


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## nismat (Mar 7, 2005)

I think that you should go with either option 2 or 3. Losing £5000 in redemption fees would be crazy! The most "sensible" option is probably to wait it out until your fixed fee ends, and spend the time researching schools/getting everything set in place, but I can see that you (and clearly DP!) might well not want to do that having taken the decision to make the big move. My inclination would be to go for it now, especially if you already know the area and have a good idea of where you want to live. Also, if house prices are going to fall again this year, that's another reason for getting on with it. Are schools in Northern Ireland covered by Ofsted, or something similar, so that you could do a certain amount of the research into schools online?
Have you talked to your mortgage company to see if you would be able to carry over your deal and avoid the redemption fees, if you bought in Northern Ireland? I just wondered if the location would make any difference. 
Good luck, it certainly sounds like you've put a lot of thought into the whole process already


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## ♥JJ1♥ (Feb 11, 2006)

When I was thinking of moving my mortgage company would permit me to sell & transfer it to another property when in a locked in product


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## Han2275 (Oct 3, 2010)

Nismat - NI schools are covered by Ofsted as it is still the UK. It's just such a mine field!!!

JJ - We CAN port our mortgage but that's exactly what has put a spanner in the works - we can only do it for 3 months  . Once this house is sold, we have to find another one and tell the mortgage company we want the money again, within a 3 month period. DP initially told me it was a year but she misunderstood. She is terrible for switching off when people start talking about finances


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## Han2275 (Oct 3, 2010)

Thanks for all your advice and thoughts ladies  . Well we have decided to go for it and the For Sale sign was hammered in this morning  . Wish us luck


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## nismat (Mar 7, 2005)

Oooh, good luck with it all!


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