When my husband and I bought our first home, in Wrexham, it was simply that — a home, not a financial asset. Weekends and evenings were spent up ladders, covered in plaster dust and paint, and holidays were sacrificed in favour of DIY. I have a keen interest in interior design, so this was a process I enjoyed.
But then came a strange twist of fortune, when the actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought the local football club, putting Wrexham firmly on the map and inflating house prices. The stars were aligned and we were able to sell at a healthy profit.
Originally from the south of England, we decided to move back there for our next family home. We were faced with a choice familiar to many homeowners: borrow more money and upgrade, or stay within our new-found means. The temptation to remortgage was difficult to resist, but in the end we elected to buy a property that was equal in value to our sale proceeds, leaving us in the rare position of being mortgage-free.
We had taken a decent hit on the size of the property, reflecting the difference in price between the north and south of the UK, and several years later we still live in a house where something is always leaking, and the woodchip wallpaper continues to resist my efforts to be rid of it. However, not having any monthly repayments means that this remains one of the best financial decisions we’ve made.
