To the realtors out there.....convince me to buy a home. (Dallas: for sale, real estate)

[Exiled Texan]

We are moving to Austin in Nov/December.

I work in finance, literally in ground zero of the mortgage crisis, securitization, fannie mae, freddie mae mess, so I have a rather pessimistic view of mortgage rates......especially jumbo loans. As a result, I think the downward pressure on higher price point homes will be significant. I also think the drastic drop in California homes will have a ripple effect on Austin.

So, I think what I am looking for will take at least a 10% hit over the next year. Convince me otherwise.

What am I looking for? Willing to spend around $800K -900K on a home. Willing to buy lower than that a do a gut reno.....actually prefer that. Either a 4 bedroom or 3 bedroom with a guest house. 2400 square feet min. NO McMansion, typical suburbanesque cookie cutter home, or front loaders. Central Austin only. Good public school for elementary. Not too hilly (have a daughter with severe motion sickness. IMHO, the areas that fit this definition seem to be the most likely to have downward pressure.

Realistically, what is selling. Everything that I seem interested in and put in my favorites folder has been sitting unsold for months. Go for it, convince me otherwise, or I think we will rent.

[AustinTraveler]

Not a realtor but I'll chime in anyway. Honestly, I think you should rent first. The only way to get to know the many neighborhoods is to rent and explore. That said, here are some neighborhoods to consider: Allendale, Rosedale, Brykerwoods, Pemberton. Personally, I love these neighborhoods and they are all central, just north of downtown. And if you're worried about appreciation, our house has gone up over $100K in value over the past three years (less than three actually).

Also, I agree on the not too hilly aspect. At first, I thought I wanted to live in this hills. Then I realized that walking and bike riding would be really, really difficult. Also, the huge, mature trees in these neighborhoods are just awesome, especially in the hot summer months!

[Exiled Texan]

Thanks Travelor-

We have very particular taste. A gut reno home is probably best for us and we'd want to rent during the reno. Usually hate how the custom builder flip homes. (not a fan of brown tile in kitchens or bathrooms....even if it is expensive travertine) The environmentalist in me won't let me buy a home where I'd have to rip out all the brand new tiles in the kitchen and bathroom.

[centralaustinite]

At your price range, sounds like it is NW Hills or Tarrytown. Maybe Pemberton, if you can spend 800K and then do a redo. Right now the market above $400,000 in Austin seems a bit frozen. But above 800K there is some movement.

Remember, our sky high property tax kept home prices more in line with income. No burger flippers in Austin bought half million dollar homes -- because you can't get a loan for the 9K property tax every year. So, there's no huge bubble here to deflate. Tarrytown does seem a little bubbly -- I don't know how those prices stay at that level.

Volume of sales has fallen but and prices are pressured but they aren't falling like other areas of the country. You will be able to bargin but I wouldn't expect fire sale prices any time soon.

[readymade]

If you're an environmentalist, you might think about hiring a "green" builder and building your house from scratch. If I had $900K to spend on a house, that's what I would do. I would work with an architect and build a crazy house with hidden rooms, heh. You can also look into building a dome home (Timberline Geodesic Domes for examples). I think they're awesome.

[HappyTexan]

For domes there's also the monolithic dome home..located up near Dallas.

Imgage: For Sale: Beautiful Monolithic Dome Home in the Texas Hill Country

[austin-steve]

You should buy a home only if you think it makes sense to do so for you and your family, not based on what a Realtor tells you.

If you think you can effectively predict and time the market such that you know that the homes that interest you will be cheaper in the future, and that interest rates won't be higher, then it might make more sense to you to wait.

Frankly, your accountant can answer the question for you better than a Realtor.

It sounds like Tarrytown would be your best choice.

Steve

[txgal78]

Here's another plug for Rosedale - my husband and I have bought 2 1930s homes and done gut renos on both. Today, the market, although slower, is still strong. Anytime you can do a reno for $100-$150/sf and get it appraised for $300/sf, those are the neighborhoods that can handle the downward pressure. I also think Rosedale's location is unbeatable. It has one of the highest "walkability" scores of any neighborhood in Austin.

[Exiled Texan]

Thanks for your thoughts.

Where is Rosedale?

As someone who is selling their place, I can appreciate the uncertainty of this market on both ends. Real estate agents wanting to list my place are all over the board on listing price I don't know what to believe. It makes you rather skeptical about this process.

[MJinAustin]

Originally Posted by Exiled Texan

Real estate agents wanting to list my place are all over the board on listing price I don't know what to believe. It makes you rather skeptical about this process.

Make them explain to you how/where they got their price.