‘Mortgage chaos put our shared home on hold’

Interest rates kept them apart last year, but this couple hope easing inflation will make their dream real in 2024, finds Charlotte Duck

Splitting time between North Lambeth and Maida Vale can hardly be classed as a long-distance relationship. But, as a thirty-something couple wanting to live together, finding themselves suddenly priced out of doing so when interest rates spiked last year was still a blow for Kristiane Clear and her partner of four years, Michelle Rowihab.

"We are extremely excited to be able to live together fulltime," says Rowihab. "We can't wait to build a home together." But Clear, 37, a marketing consultant working with Apple, and Rowihab, 38, an architect and founder of a trauma coaching business, found that after Kwasi Kwarteng's mini-budget in October 2022, the mortgage chaos that ensued put their dream of sharing a home on hold, especially since they both work for themselves.

Last year we would have had to significantly lower our budget and compromise on the size of the property

"Getting a mortgage last year would have been too much for us with the interest rates, especially as we're both self-employed. We thought long and hard about it and it didn't make financial sense for us, so we decided to take our time," says Clear.