Showings dropping off in 2nd/3rd week. How can I improve showings in this market? (house, buyer)

[lh_newbie]

Originally Posted by DWong

Well actually my wife and I have pensions, which are very pricy. Try 15k a year which thank goodness are paid by the employer. We do have a 401k but contribute little (less than 5k a year)

Keep in mind that pensions are not guaranteed... have you read about all the pension defaults over the last several years? Also, less than $5K per year is ~ $400 per month... if you invest that for 30 years @ 10% returns - you'll end up with $708K, which after inflation at 3% average would be today's equivalent of $319K. How long will that pay your rent? Keep in mind that your rent after 30 years, assuming it only goes up 4% per year will be over $3,000 per month.

[KantLockeMeIn]

Originally Posted by unexpected

Again, there are lots of "cheap" apts, and if you look, I'm sure you can skew the numbers depending on what you want.

To come up with the housing I used, I tried to find things that were identical to each other: A 1 BR apartment in the Post Apartments in Shops and Legacy, and the 1 BR Condos in Shops at Legacy that are being sold by KV Hovanian.

Where did you find the townhouse "down the road"? I'm curious, if it's still in Plano, I might be interested....

As there are a lot of inexpensive homes as well. $1200 was the cheapest 3 bedroom that I could find near Legacy. You can purchase a home in Frisco just down the road for $125-$150k.

Condo/Townhouse/Co-Op - 6637 Federal Hall Street, Plano, TX, 75023 - Realtor.com

[galore]

Originally Posted by lh_newbie

Keep in mind that pensions are not guaranteed...

And neither is the 10% return on your investment in a 401k. Ask Enron employees.

[unexpected]

Originally Posted by twojciac

As there are a lot of inexpensive homes as well. $1200 was the cheapest 3 bedroom that I could find near Legacy. You can purchase a home in Frisco just down the road for $125-$150k.

Condo/Townhouse/Co-Op - 6637 Federal Hall Street, Plano, TX, 75023 - Realtor.com

I tried looking this up in Google maps, and it says the address does not exist! The closest thing it has is a Federal street in Allen, at the 75013.

Also, 75023 zip code is not West Plano, and definitely not an apples to apples comparison. 150k- that's what, a $650-750 a month mortgage?

You can get 2 BR apartments in that area for $500.

[KantLockeMeIn]

Originally Posted by galore

And neither is the 10% return on your investment in a 401k. Ask Enron employees.

Your Enron statement is a huge red herring. Some employees chose to invest their entire savings into company stock within their 401k, but by no means is this indicitive of the risk involved in mutual funds or even better index funds.

A 10% return can not be expected on single stocks, or a small basket of stocks, but rather a diverse portfolio. Even then it's averaged over a long period.

[unexpected]

Originally Posted by galore

And neither is the 10% return on your investment in a 401k. Ask Enron employees.

Enron employees lost their shirts b/c all of their 401(k)'s were in Enron stock. If they had a well-diversified portfolio, balanced for risk and their age, I don't think it's unreasonable to assume they could have hit an "average" return.

At least you can control the allocation of money in your 401(k) or brokerage account. To move in and out of stocks requires $10 - to sell your house requires a lot of investment (in both time and money).

buying vs. renting can be argued both ways, multiple times- no one is right. It's a very complex issue- I'm just trying to get people to see that it's not black or white, that it's cloudy, and that instead of blindly saying "we must build equity!" you should do what's best for you and your personal situation.

[Lakewooder]

Agreed - you are not going to build equity living your life as a corporate nomad. I don't understand why these people always buy a home for just a few years. From what I have heard company relocation benefits are diminishing.

[KantLockeMeIn]

Originally Posted by unexpected

I tried looking this up in Google maps, and it says the address does not exist! The closest thing it has is a Federal street in Allen, at the 75013.

Also, 75023 zip code is not West Plano, and definitely not an apples to apples comparison. 150k- that's what, a $650-750 a month mortgage?

You can get 2 BR apartments in that area for $500.

It's the same zipcode as the apartments on Legacy that I found, hence the search parameters. Collin CAD has it as a Plano address, with Plano city taxes, and Plano ISD taxes.

[DWong]

Originally Posted by lh_newbie

Keep in mind that pensions are not guaranteed... have you read about all the pension defaults over the last several years? Also, less than $5K per year is ~ $400 per month... if you invest that for 30 years @ 10% returns - you'll end up with $708K, which after inflation at 3% average would be today's equivalent of $319K. How long will that pay your rent? Keep in mind that your rent after 30 years, assuming it only goes up 4% per year will be over $3,000 per month.

I come from a family of teacher's and gov pensions.. none have NEVER not paid what we were suppossed to get.

[Ballyhigh]

also consider the cost of major repairs. Things like HVAC and roofs. You could be out 5 grand in a snap. And the cheap whiteboard fences that only last 7-8 years. 3 grand there!