Buying a house as a young disabled adult

I suppose this post is more of a life update, I’m buying my first house! Yet I hope sharing my own experiences will help others who are at the same stage of their life.

Currently I live in my family home. I graduated university nearly 3 years ago but, despite living away in halls and a shared house, it made sense to move back home. Not only did this make sense from a practical point of view, it meant I could contribute board and save money. I also am fortunate enough to get on well with my family!

Thinking about moving out

Getting my own place was always the end goal. However, I wasn’t actively looking. The plan at the time was to wait until I was in a relationship, and then move out with them. Due to my own needs, living by myself before I had a guide dog was out of the question. I cannot leave the house independently so I’d be isolated. Despite knowing this deep down, I did occasionally look at rented flats in my area — a girl can dream!

Read more: Getting a guide dog: I’m on the waiting list!

Then we had a global pandemic. Luckily I already worked from home and was able to get everything I needed due to others in the household getting shopping. In a way, it made the prospect of moving out more daunting when we were faced with the possibility of future lockdowns.

Towards the end of last year I was registered blind. This obviously made me stop and think. One element of this was independence. I’ve lived in this family home for about 10 years. When we moved in I could see. It would be a fair assessment to say that my level of impairment can be hidden when I’m in the comfort of the family home. I know where everything is. I’ve memorised the washing machine settings and the steps have become second nature.

Yet that’ll all disappear when I move out. Safe to say, it’s going to be a challenge!

Finding my little home

My brother had just moved back from university. One Tuesday eveining in November we were talking about our future plans. Obviously we mentioned moving out. I said that there wasn’t much availability to rent in our local area. It tends to be bigger family houses or flats above shops — both of which would not be suitable for me at the moment. Until then…

A small 2 bed apartment, available to buy, had just been listed. Surely this was too good to be true? It was perfect:

• 2 small bedrooms
• wet room style bathroom
• grab rails around the property (from the previous owner)
• space for an office
• small patio area that made it suitable for a guide dog
• round the corner from my family home

Accessible, local and Chloe-sized!

I rang up the estate agents and secured a viewing for Wednesday morning. By the end of the week my offer had accepted, I’d applied for a mortgage and had a solicitor. Things were moving so quickly.

Preparing to move

You might wonder how I’ve been able to get a mortgage. Luckily I’ve been saving as much money as possible since the age of 16. I also have worked full-time since graduating university and have limited outgoings once I’ve paid board to my parents.

I set up a Help to Buy ISA which allowed me to save for a house deposit. It also means I can claim money from the government when buying my first house. Unfortunately, you can no longer start a Help to Buy ISA, but there are other government schemes for first time buyers. These are known as affordable home ownership schemes.

Affordable home ownership schemes (GOV.UK)

Mortgage affordability and benefits for disabled people (Scope)

When you’re moving house there’s a lot of prep work to do. However, this can often be more so when you’re disabled. Here are some of the things I have done or will do as a disabled person moving house:

• life insurance (more complicated when you’re disabled!)
• social services needs assessment
• have the house approved by Guide Dogs, meaning it’s a suitable place for a guide dog
• think about any adaptions I might need
• sign up to the Priority Service Register for gas, electric and water

For me, I’m unsure about the exact adaptions I need. This is mainly in relation to my sightloss and having to adapt to a new house layout and appliances. I know it’ll take some time to adjust and figure things out, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. That being said, I’m aware this is a big leap and that does come with some apprehension.

Getting home adaptations (Scope)

Time to make it my own

I can assure you, my IKEA wish list is something else! I cannot wait to make the space my own. I’m probably getting ahead of myself, but I have the colour schemes all sorted. Over the last few months I’ve started buying small bits of furniture and accessories. I just need the keys so I can see where bigger pieces of furniture will fit!

If I was to sum up my desired look, it’d say accessible, colourful and cosy. It’s odd to think about owning a house and I realise how lucky I am — even if it has be years of hard work to get to this point. I hope to have a dedicated reading space, a statement mustard yellow chair and an office for work. What more do I need?!

I’ll keep you updated. In the meantime, if you want to know more I have a new Instagram page which is dedicated to my little home journey.

Little_Home_Journey (Instagram profile)

~ Chloe x