Maximum loan amount based on our monthly burden

I personally find €2350 (repayment + interest + your planned additional costs) really steep.

If your wife is unable to work due to illness,... I'll just say it as it is... then after 2-3 months, you guys are in deep trouble. Although with your equity you would come out of it with a scratch. But the equity would probably be gone after the foreclosure.

Personally, I have planned so that my wife can barely hold onto the house, should something happen to my job or me due to illness (longer than 3 months). This would also only feel feasible for about 1 year on top of unemployment benefits or burnout or slipped disc, etc. But this "basic security" is there.

We don't have this imbalance in income. But it's also not split 50/50.

Hello everyone,
we are currently working on purchasing a property and financing. We have been keeping a very detailed household budget for over three years now (that’s how long we have been searching for a property), even recording things like parking tickets and counting wallet money at the end of the month. Overall, without special payments, we have slightly less income (I am still at home due to parental leave). We have now decided that we can comfortably pay back €1500. We already pay €1000 in cold rent at the moment. This also fits with the house costs, which we estimate at around €350,000 (all inclusive) plus land at about €200,000. We have set our equity at €100,000 (we have quite a bit more, but we don’t want to allocate all of it as equity because we want things like a kitchen and partially new furniture). Last week, we were told independently by four different institutions/agents that financing is no problem accordingly, and we have received concrete offers that also look realistic for us. So I think €500,000 should not be a problem for you either.

First of all, congratulations on the pregnancy!

Then: If you start planning now, you probably won't manage to begin construction before March 2018. Most companies have waiting times of half a year before they even start the construction application, and then the building authority interferes. Therefore, it could already be tight in terms of time.

Then something else: Your wife should consider very carefully whether she CAN actually do without the months with the child. I know many mothers who also wanted to get back to work quickly, but when the baby was in their arms, they just couldn't bring themselves to do it. And 2 months is very little. Better take 10k from your equity and use it to compensate for her missing salary. Maybe you can still save it until the child arrives. We were in a similar situation. I am the main earner and my husband couldn’t maintain the apartment on his own. So we saved like crazy knowing about the pregnancy. That way, I could comfortably stay with the child for 10 months and my husband took parental leave with me and also one month after me. At 10 months, the little one was in daycare. He felt comfortable there from the start and it was exactly the right thing for him.

: I think it’s nice that a man admits that once. Most always jump on the indignant "men can do it just as well" horse. Most fathers I know love their children and manage 2/3 days quite well. But completely taking care of the child wears on the nerves, and after 4 days, mom is desperately called because the nerves are at their limit.

@ infors. Don’t do that,- no 500. Don’t let realtors confuse you. Finance so that you are finished in 25 years. Finance so that the child can study. Finance so that you and your wife sleep peacefully. Build smaller, but solidly paid. Karsten

Thank you for your honest opinions. Many thanks. Thanks to you, I can assess everything a bit better. [emoji106] The real estate agent ultimately also earns their commission...

Many thanks for your assessments. A loan of up to 400,000 euros would be acceptable from your point of view.

The costs for a child, which you mentioned several times, I have taken into account in the above calculation, but only with just over 600 euros per month as an average value.

Yesterday I was at a broker who told me that we could also get a loan amount of up to 500,000 euros at an effective annual interest rate of 1.97% and with 2.5% repayment, which would correspond to a monthly rate of 1800 euros, with a 5% special repayment option and free adjustment of the repayment rate. The remaining debt after 20 years without special repayment would be 188,000 euros. To me, that sounds plausible in itself.
Do you perhaps have an opinion on the broker’s statement? It is not about going into debt at all costs.

Well, if you are really 41 and at 61 years old still have 188k in debt, then I don’t know whether to congratulate you or the broker on the financing....

A bank will never draw up a life plan for you. But if I had to pay 1800 € for 20 years and still wouldn’t be done...

In the end, everyone has to decide that for themselves.