lose the house to fly, should I?

[jobsworth]

I do know that what I ask has been asked a great deal of times but please bear with me. I have been a regular reader and have seen a great deal of the options that are on offer. But I would like to ask for opinions.

My situation is that I am 30 years old, single with my own house. I have several years of aircraft engineering experience with the RAF and have recently moved to an office job, which by all accounts does not float my boat.

Now if I were to sell my house I could walk away with 50 thousand or there about. If I wanted to get into flying, namely multi engined jets what would be the best course of action? Is the money enough and what are the prospects upon getting a job?

If there is an opportunity then I am willing to sell up and chase the dream, it would mean I am without house and I would leave the job, but there are courses out there and any advice would be greatly appreciated.

One other point is that I need mild correction for my eyesight, low prescription for extended work in front of the computer monitor, apart from that I am medically fit and able.

Above all what do you think would be the best course of action in this situation?

Many thanks.

[cabdriver]

Hi Jobsworth,

The 50k question!

I think it can only be you who makes that decision! How much do you want to do it?

There are probably thousands of people in the UK who have fATPL's all fighting for the same jobs! BUT, the outlook to the future is looking better. Next year is looking better, lots of rumours of jobs coming up in the new year.

If you are going to do it, you need to be doing it now - your not getting any younger!

Regards,

cabdriver

[jobsworth]

Thanks for that,

If i decide to go for it, there is no doubt of the level of determination I would have. It is a big decision and one that should not be taken lightly, hence me asking and reading all the information I can get.

I am getting on a bit and am having one of those moments where you ponder, do I do something I love or do I take the easy life?

My dad does a job he loves and has never regretted a day, he passed on the boring well paid job and followed his heart, which does inspire me, mind you he would think me mad if I flogged the house.:}

[EGBKFLYER]

When you say you could walk away from selling your house with £50k, is that because your mortgage is £50k less than the house is worth?

If so, have you considered extending your mortgage instead of selling? Downside is mortgage payments would go up but the upside is you could borrow in chunks of cash as you need it and keep your property...

[jobsworth]

I have about 50 in equity,

I could downsize in house size and then use a chunk to strart the ball rolling. but in the long run i would take the longer motrgage and the prospect of being in debt to do somthing that i would love as opposed to the run of the mill comfortable life i could have if i follow the path i am on.

Getting rid of a nice house and living in digs for example with no certainty of getting a job should i pass all the qualifications is a massive gamble but one that i would be prepared to take depending how the odds are stacked.

I might tell my mum i could be moving back to her:E

[Sans Anoraque]

what do you think would be the best course of action in this situation? Pretty strange question, jobsworth. At the end of the day, it's easy for me to say 'yes, do it', because it's your money, not mine.

I think you already know the answer to your question, but looking for anonymous posters to justify/reinforce it won't actually make it easier.

Still, I'll have a go - in your position would I sell up and go for it? Yes, I would.

PS I'm assuming you've already got a Class One?

[markflyer6580]

I would get that class one first.

I have been training since may time and was in the same situation,however I could not sell up as The wife and kids would be less than impressed! I do have approx £60k equity,so I got proffesional studies loan from HSBC secured on house equity,that way I do not need to make any payments until 2007,at which point I shall re-mortgage the house to add the £4ok borrowed on to it,as the increased mortgage payment will be about £400 per month less than the loan repayments are going to be.
May sound a bit of a gamble but if my first job (he says confidently!) is f/o on small turboprops for instance there is no way I could afford the payments on the loan and eat!
This way I may have fooled the bank but at least I will be able to pay my debts (unlike some),and not be a great deal worse off,especially If I have to re-locate to the south,the chances of getting a mortgage again with a £600 per month loan repayment factored in would be slim to none.

Hope this helps,good luck with your training.
:ok:

[jobsworth]

I would like to say that i am not looking for justification/reinforcement, merely looking for people opinions.

I find that if you chuck an idea out and let people thrash it around you can maybe find an angle to look at a problem you might not have considered before.

At the end of the day i know i would like to fly, I know that i will never be happy chasing the pound sign and would rather do something that i enjoy. To what level i end up flying is still one for deliberation.

I have allways been impressed by people who go out and achieve through adversity. If someone were to come and say dont do it unless you have a hundred grand i would listen. I would also want to hear from people who said they had done it on a shoe string and lost the wife/kids/car/house/cat in the process.

So Sans Anoraque, i appreciate your opinion, you stated above all that has been said that you would do it in a very short response that to me says your are confident in your decision. Which in one way answers my question.:ok:

Sorry, didnt get to see the last reply as i was still writing.

Thanks for that, another man in a similar position. The banks will allways get money from you, but it sounds like a good approach. I recentley borrowed on my property to carry out work to increase the value of the property all with the banks money. They win, I win.

Now if age were not a factor i would be doing this six or seven times and having the house and paying my way through flight school:cool:

As for the class one, i need to get it done, no class 1 no job, at which point i sell up, buy a caravan and live on a beach doing odd jobs to get me by. I have had a lot of medicals in my time so i dont fore see a problem.:uhoh:

[Linda Mollison]

You wanted some ideas. How about this one?

You do not have to give up work immediately if you choose the modular route.

You could carry on working and do your PPL evenings/weekends.

Once you have your PPL you can start on the ATPL ground studies by distance learning and carry on your hours building at weekends/evenings or even with the occasional holiday trip to sunnier climes.

You could then give up work for your CPL and IR training. Or you could even do your CPL and IR training at the weekends with a couple of consolidation weeks at the end of each course.

We have had students who have done this and still achieved a first time pass in close to minimum hours.

This all may take slightly longer than doing it all full time, but it does not need to take that much longer, particularly if you are fully committed to it.

Linda

[jobsworth]

Thanks, another route to consider;)

[powdermonkey]

Hi,
Good approach from Linda Mollison.
Try hold on to your house and go modular IF you are not too concerned about the time scale. 30 is not that bad, I'm 36 and only on my 2nd ATPL module and not in the least bit worried.
Do your PPL and work at same time, no problem! If you like it and I have no doubt you will love it, you can take 7months and do full time ATPL( giving up job) or go distance learning with Bristol/Oxford, hard with a full-time job, could you work part-time?
Then whith PPl and ATPL theory inhand, you can still CPL/ME/IR whilst working or go full-time at that point. Maybe rent your house out, move in with family for a year or so etc. Lots of possibilities which are not as risky...remember there are so few guaranties at this point and all the way through that you may feel better if you still have the house.
Good luck

[Turkish777]

Go for it jobsworth..you know you won't be happy stuck in that office...

For the rest of your life you will be thinking 'if only' and 'what if' if you don't...I was in the same boat as you exactly and made the decision when I was 31...I wasted 2 years as I had been humming and harring for a couple of years prior to that....and no regrets...yet...:ok:

[Andy_R]

One advantage you have, a major one, is that you are single. I wasn't but I am now (and only halfway there!). It gives you the freedom to do as you want, but also to work as hard as you want, without being got at about taking the kids/girlfriend/wife out, or why haven't you done the gardening.
You will need to become VERY selfish with your time and your money. Try not to lose the roof over your head though.

Is it a 2 bedroom house/flat? If it is, then take in a lodger. If it isn't then do as suggested above and take it one step at a time. You will end up a more rounded pilot at the end of it (IMHO), rather than a product of a sausage machine. By working your arse off you could well find that you have paid for the PPL without digging into your reserves. Again, you could probably afford to do the ATPL theory distance learning without touching your reserves. At the same time, you can build a few hours as a reward for completing each module/frame. Again, with the right mindset, you still have not touched your reserves and you still have a roof over your head and some security if it al goes tits up and you don't secure a job at the end of it all.

Once you are at the stage of wanting to take the CPL/ME/IR, then approach your mortgage lender and get the money you need (by this time not much more than £20000) and hey presto - you still have somewhere to live AND some security.

All this just requires a little bit of hard nosed-ness on your part. You are single so you can afford to be selfish for 2 years - just forgoe your social life for the long term gain.

Good luck (from someone doing it the poverty route :ok: )

[jobsworth]

Thanks for the views,

I definatly have some thought and planning to put into this.

its got to be better than screeding a floor at 8.30pm

[NDB]

Go and get yourself a Class One medical; then decide!!!!!!

When you pass, it'll be one less thing 2 do! If something comes up, you have cut your losses!

Good luck,

NDB

[Andy_R]

And it will be something else you have paid for without selling the house :ok: