Moving family from ca. need advice on buying house in cobb area (Atlanta: extended stay)

[ckwheeler]

HI everyone! My family is going to be moving to Georgia from california on orders and I'm trying to figure out if we should be buying or not in this market. We have never bought before, and have been looking so much forward to buying our first home in Georgia. Just now I'm wondering if we'd be okay to sell in 4 years or not. We may be staying in georgia or we may not be.. I know no one knows the future, but has anyone gotten any awesome advice on buying right now in the northern atlanta area (acworth, kennesaw, marietta, cobb county areas).. Thats where we're looking to buy..

Would you recommend just renting the whole time, or buying? I just hate to waste the money and rent again!

If you think buying is a good solution, which area would you recommend?
We're looking for a 4+Bed home and would like 1/2-1 acre min. I also am moving my Photography business so I want to be in a market that can make my business grow as well.

Thanks!!
Katrina Wheeler

[scgraham]

Katrina, though no one knows the future, save God only, but a 4-year time frame might not allow enough time to build equity. There would have to be a quick turn around in the housing market; however, anything is possible.

[mezzogirl]

I live in Kennesaw and I am in the wedding industry. Your photography business will do well here (if you do weddings). If I were in your position, I would buy. There are soooo many bargains here right now. In many situations, the monthly mortgage note is less than a rent payment. The interest rates are very low too. Sellers are also willing to wheel and deal. There are a small handful of houses in my neighborhood that fit your description with lot size and amount of bedrooms- I have watched prices drop, not because they are undesirable, but because the limited amount of people moving to the area due to lack of job openings.
Who knows what will happen in four years? No one can really predict that.

[ckwheeler]

thank you mezzogirl! I am thinking we will end up buying. I talked to hubby today(deployed) and he said he just would rather buy then rent, so I hope we can find something and close fast, cause when we get there I have no idea where we'll be staying until we find something. We dont want to move twice, so my goal is to get there stay somewhere, then get into a house in one month or less.. Just don't know where we'll stay the first month or so. The extended stays are too high for that long, and apartments that do short term rentals aren't furnished or there super high for furnished ones. i need to stay under 1300 and probably need one months rent. we'll see..

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by ckwheeler

Just don't know where we'll stay the first month or so. The extended stays are too high for that long, and apartments that do short term rentals aren't furnished or there super high for furnished ones. i need to stay under 1300 and probably need one months rent. we'll see..

The average price of an extended stay motel/hotel here is around $160 per week, so if you can afford $1,300.00 I don't see where that would be a problem if you need to stay in one of those for a while. However, some of them have time limits as to how long you can stay.

Promove.com is an apartment service that I believe also lists corporate housing (furnished). A lot of people on city-data use them in this area and say they're great, so maybe they can help you.

[northatlbroker]

I recommend you consider buying. I believe that 4 years is more than enough time for this market to turn around. When you rent, you spend after tax dollars and get nothing in return (except a roof). Even if you bought and wound up selling for break even, you will have also received the benefit of the interest deduction on you taxes (check with your CPA first) and have the opportunity to possibly sell for a profit. Renting is a guaranteed expense.

As an agent in Cobb, all the areas you mentioned have excellent buying opportunities. If your military, you could use your VA for a 100% loan (need to get approved by a lender to confirm this) or you could go FHA or conventional if you have some money to put down.

Atlanta is and will be a growing market. The current downturn is an opportunity and you should seriously consider it.

Good luck and let me know if I can be of any further help.

[Westward]

A good example of what you can get in GA (for an apartment/condo) can be found by googling "Ridenour Barrett Kennesaw" to see the newer Ridenour apartments and condos. They start around $700/mo. They're heaven compared to California standards, and would provide a nice place to live while getting to know the area. You'd definitely want to do that before buying.

I would be very careful about buying a home in GA right off the bat. I took a year to choose my location carefully when I moved here from CA, and would do no less today. Buying a home in GA is much more risky than CA where you can offload it easily, due to lack of space and new homes, which GA has tons of. Also, GA is not as plainly laid out as CA, and it can be difficult to assess the true nature of an area, and therefore, your ability to resell.

There are a lot of good deals right now, but things are probably going to get worse this year, making more good deals to choose from. You'll want to have a chance to research thoroughly before buying. Perhaps you can get a 6 mos lease. But I wouldn't let a year's lease bother me if it meant being able to choose the best location.

It's really easy to find a 4br on 1/2 acre. People can help you more if they know what price range you'd be looking to buy, and whether you need job access vs working out of your home.

[biajones]

You should definitely buy if you can! My husband and I bought in Marietta, Cobb County 4 months ago. You can get really good deals now. Our agent really helped us and was excellent. I'm sure she won't mind me giving out her info. (Her name is Monique,Direct Realty Group) I'm sure she can help you too!

Good Luck!

[graywolf73]

I hate to go against the grain here, but I would definitely rent first. Even if it's for only 6 months. It is NOT wasted money if you consider it a trial period. You may find that you absolutely hate living in Kennesaw and would rather live in Marietta (just for an example) Home prices are still going down, and will most likely continue to do so for a very long time. If you miss out on 1 house there will be 100 more in it's place. Do yourself a favor and rent first. We rented for a year just to make sure that we liked the area, the schools were good, no gangs and drug problems, etc. I promise you, you will not think you wasted any money to give yourself peace of mind that you made the right decision.