The first thing you may want to consider asking yourself is, are you willing to buy into debt and are you willing to haul for the long term repayments. Will you have job security to maintain payments, and are you willing to forgo many freedoms that are accustom to owning a property? As a 25 year old who's spent a lot of time deliberating about purchasing a house, my biggest concern is timing, if I time my purchase wrong and our housing price goes through a major crash I would not be happy (much like shares and buying at peak, you have to hope and wait out a longer period to obtain returns which becomes like a little bit of a trap). You seem to have already done a lot of research and kudos to you - but just keep in mind this is a massive choice, and although many people will suggest that there is little inherent risk with purchasing a house, I beg to differ. Job security isn't what it use to be and neither is the job market. Further to that if we go through another global financial crisis, there are major set backs. I'm not saying sit in fear, and don't buy a house, rather I'm saying take into account all the possibilities that can arise and weight your pros and cons. (realizing that purchasing a house is as risky as buying into a share or ETFS) Do you think you can main a job and forgo certain freedoms to pay back your loan?, will your relationship last?, do you have any forms of financial support if you find yourself income less (which happens a lot more than many care to admit). Where that my 10k I would looking into attempting to let it grow and finding something I'm comfortable to invest it into short term while I assess the health of the housing market (as you have suggested). All the best with your choices, I hope I dont come across too cynically - I hope you make the best choice, that you feel is right for you!