FTB affordability sense check before reserving tomorrow — am I stretching too thin?
First-time buyer in Northern Ireland, planning to call the developer tomorrow to reserve a turn-key new build around £250k (timber frame construction, corner plot, last available in current phase, ~9 months until completion). Wanted a sense check before committing.
Take-home is roughly £3,100/month averaged across the year. At completion I’ll have £25k for the deposit (10%) plus £5k set aside for legal fees, survey, and move-in costs, with a separate £5k emergency fund in investments I’m not touching. No other debt, stable employment.
The mortgage I’m planning around is £1,180/month on a 2-year fix at ~5.17%, 36-year term. Current quote is in that range but rates could move either way before application time. That’s roughly 38% of my average net pay on the mortgage alone, and around 51% once you add rates, insurance, utilities and the rest. There’s a reasonable chance my salary moves to around £60k within the first year of moving in which would drop those ratios significantly, but it’s not guaranteed.
Am I stretching too thin at current take-home, or is this in the realm of “tight first year, fine after that”? Appreciate any input before I make the call tomorrow.