Buy a house before or after second baby?

A question about : Buy a house before or after second baby?

Hi, I would like some advice on whether we should take a risk or not...I know there are no guarantees but it would be a calculated risk!

So my husband and I have enough money saved for a 10% deposit and the costs of buying a three bed house. We currently rent a two bed for us and our two year old. The baby is due in October.

My husband is on a permanent contract and my job is fixed term till the end of August which is unlikely to be renewed as it's maternity cover and she's been off having her second baby.

We both would really like the security of owning our own home for our family, having already had to move twice since our first has been born.

Buying a three bed house means the mortgage would cost Ј162 a month more than renting our two bed at the moment. I have done the financial calculations based on our current spending over the last year and the savings we would have left minus the house buying costs and have worked out that we would have enough money for me to take 9 months of maternity leave (maternity allowance) plus savings to cover costs for 18 months should I not find a job straight after the end of maternity leave.

So do we take the risk of buying a house based on our current income knowing that I won't have a job to go back to after maternity leave? I feel that 18 months is a reasonable cushion to take that risk. It took me 8 months to find another job after my last lot of maternity leave ended.

My concern is that if we don't take the risk then our income will be even less after the second baby with two lots of childcare and so we are less likely to be loaned the money. We know we can afford the monthly repayments it's just the combination of our two salaries minus childcare that I think will work against us, in terms of being lent the money. But maybe I'm wrong?

What would you do?!

Thanks

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