Getting on the property ladder in the current climate is intimidating enough, but it's particularly hard for those trying to do it alone. With half the buying power of a couple, single first-time buyers have to rely on their sole income, deposit and credit history being good enough to land them a mortgage - otherwise it can be a disaster.
Solo homeowner Sabiha Khan, 37, bought her first home earlier this year, and spoke to us as part of our Where I Live series. Each week we hear from a different homeowner across the north west to find out about their home-buying process, the costs involved and see how they've made their house a home.
Sabiha was born and raised in Cheetham Hill and had never planned to move out of the area until tragedy struck. The media sales manager lived with her mum at their family home up until last year when Sabiha's mum suddenly took ill and passed away.
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After the family home was put on the market, Sabiha decided to rent in Crumpsall for a year before trying to get on the property ladder. It was only when she began applying for a mortgage that she realised just how difficult it might be.
“I’ve always wanted to buy my own place because owning a property is usually always a good investment," Sabiha told the Manchester Evening News.
"After my mum passed away I rented for a year and then when I got my inheritance from my mum, I had enough for a deposit.
"I rang my bank because I knew I didn’t have the best credit history. I had an old parking ticket that I hadn't paid. I was in-between addresses at the time and apparently I was sent a bailiff letter, but as I never got it it became a CCJ which stays on your file for six years.
"Because of this the bank said they could only offer me £54,000 and I knew that wasn’t going to buy me a house. I thought ‘this is crazy,' I've been working at my current job for nearly 10 years with a stable income.
"It was just a default that happened when I hadn’t paid attention."
It was only through speaking with a friend that Sabiha discovered there may be a way around it.
"My friend was surprised that the banks turned me down because I've got a good job. But she said her sister used a specialist broker, so I went online and found a mortgage broker who helped me and I then got a mortgage in principle," Sabiha said.
Sabiha was looking to buy a house with a £150,000 budget and a 10% deposit, but she faced another hurdle when she began looking at house prices.
“Trying to find something within my budget was quite difficult. I found that a lot of people were putting offers in over the asking price and even sometimes without going to view the house. It was very competitive," she said.
“I wanted to stay around Cheetham or Crumpsall but houses were too expensive there and as a single person, my mortgage just wasn't big enough.
"I realised I needed to move areas but distance wise, I didn’t want to be too far away from Manchester city centre because that’s where I work and I still wanted to be close to my family."
Sabiha set her sights on buying a two-bed house and eventually found one within her price range, a mid terraced house in Oldham.
"In my head I was hoping to find a semi-detached house but that wasn’t achievable because of the house prices," she said.
"I came to view this house and I just felt like I could see myself living here. I could see the changes that I could make to it straight away.
"It wasn't exactly how I pictured my dream house, but I had to compromise because of my budget as I knew I wasn't going to get something that would tick every single box.
"I did view quite a few houses but my heart was set on this because I just walked in and thought ‘yeah I can do this’."
After two viewings the 37-year-old put an offer in for the asking price of £150,000 - but there was another interested buyer.
"It was on a weekend and I got a call from the estate agent to say that myself and someone else had put the same offer in for the asking price, and he asked if I increase it," Sabiha said.
"That’s when I got worried because I thought if they have more money to spare than I do, then I’ll lose it. But I was honest with the estate agent and told him I could only go an extra £2,000 above my budget and that’s it.
"He said to leave it with him whilst he spoke to the seller, then he came back to me on the Monday and said that they had accepted my offer. I had the mortgage in principle and I wasn’t in a chain so they probably knew it would be a quick sale."
Sabiha got the keys in July this year and began renovating straight away as it needed 'a lot of work'
"I took a week off work and I was here every day from 7 in the morning till 7 in the evening working on the house," she said.
“It needed decorating throughout as it was all very mismatched. I’m no expert but I did the majority of renovating myself which took a lot of time and effort but it helped to cut costs.
"If I got a decorator in it all would have cost a lot more and I think the key was looking on Facebook Marketplace to buy furniture.
"It’s still a bit of a work in progress but I’ve got it looking a lot better than what it was."
Taking us through the layout of her home, Sabiha said: "As soon as you walk in on the right you've got the stairs with a small hallway. The living room is on the left and then straight ahead you’ve got the kitchen which leads into a small sunroom.
"Then if you go upstairs you come to the landing and on your right you’ve got the bathroom, which is quite spacious, straight ahead down the landing is the second bedroom which is a decent size. The main bedroom at the front is massive, it’s got a big bay window and a second smaller window."
Sabiha describes her interior style as 'colourful and chic'.
“Each room has got a different theme and personality to it," she said. “My favourite part of the house definitely has to be the living room because I knew that's where my friends and family would sit, so I put a lot of focus on that.
"I wanted to make the living room really warm and welcoming so I painted it blue with different coloured velvet sofas. I’ve got a green sofa which is a three seater and a two seater which is a light pink with different colours cushions to match.
“I found my inspiration for furniture and interior through Pinterest and home accounts on Instagram. There's an actual picture that I saw of a living room that is pretty much exactly how I wanted mine.
"I like to be different and bold with colours, people might be scared to do a coloured feature wall but I just went for it and painted the entire room navy blue."
Sabiha wants to continue renovating her home, and doesn't plan on moving any time soon.
"There's a few big projects that I want to do so it's going to be a couple of years 'til it’s completely done I think," she said,
"I would love a bigger garden and there’s a garage at the back so eventually I’m going to demolish that. From the kitchen there is a sunroom and ideally it needs plasterboarding and new patio doors put on.
"Moving and renovating is such hard work so if I was ever to move it would be because I’d met a partner and we wanted to buy a house together, or if I found something that was affordable back where I used to live.
"But to be honest, I am happy where I am. I want to do it up to the best that I can do as I go along over the next few years and get it exactly how I want it.
"Moving here on my own I was a bit anxious, but the neighbours are amazing. We have a WhatsApp group so if you need anything, people are always on hand to help each other out. There's a great community spirit."
Giving advice to other single first-time buyers, Sabiha advised: “Getting on the property ladder on your own is daunting, especially in my experience with not having the best credit history. But it is still doable.
"There are mortgage providers out there and specialists who can help, even if your bank says no or aren’t offering you much like mine did.
She added: "Just save as much as you can and the best thing I can say is don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty yourself because it can save you a lot of money. Getting a decorator can cost £400 to £500 just to paint one room, so it’s definitely worth going on YouTube to teach yourself and looking for inspiration on Instagram and Pinterest to see what other people have done.
"As a single person it can be hard to get on the property ladder - but it's not impossible."
Want to get involved in Where I Live? If you are interested in featuring in our weekly series, please email your name and details to phoebe.jobling@reachplc.com.
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