What about people selling a house in Hsv?

[Charles]

Originally Posted by HB2HSV

In this case, it appears that the HSV area real estate market is not a "perfect" market in that buyers have all the information .

Very good point. In most markets, sellers can review the comps themselves in advance to get a sense of reality. Of course, their realtor has these comps too and can recommend initial starting points but I would think most people would be doing a lot of up front research, reviewing comps, looking at trends, becoming familiar with their neighbors' homes which have sold, etc before coming up with a realistic expectation for what their home would sell for. The way things are in Huntsville and with the lack of easily obtainable resale data, the seller has to deal with too many unknowns before meeting with their realtor.

Bummer.

[grlygrl]

I purchased a home without the intention of living there more than five years. My though was that I was spending over $8000 dollars a year in rent, but wasn't able to paint, decorate, etc the way I wanted. So I figured if I sold my house after a couple of years of living in a space that was mine, and lost a little, it was okay. As long as I didn't lose more than the $8000 a year I would have spent on rent. I think its all a matter of perspective. Making $0 on a house is still making money when you compare it to rent

[MadHaus]

I think that grlygrl has an excellent point: " Making $0 on a house is still making money when you compare it to rent" as we've taken that position several times. I like having my own space with a yard, a large garage, and no noise through the walls, floor or ceiling. It's worthwhile to me to pay a bit extra for those features.

We've owned a dozen houses in the last three decades, some simultaneously. The house we owned in Madison I had built primarily as housing for my then-college student children. After RE comm. & closing costs, we about broke even on the sale last year. The operating costs of the house were approx. equal to the cost of dorm rooms for the academic year. However, we had the added benefits of the house being available year-round (nice when they took summer classes & had a summer internship), a large garage for the kids' cars, a nice kitchen (they like to cook), and comfortable space for us when we visited (very helpful during a couple of medical emergencies.) We listed with a terrific agent, after prepping the house to look like new, and priced it to sell quickly. Had we been ready to sell a year earlier, before the economic meltdown began, we probably would have gotten more for the house.

I like HSV well enough that we're considering retiring and becoming home owners there again one day. Housing prices are very reasonable and taxes are still quite low, compared to most places where we've lived. One of our kids became a first time homeowner there last year, and expects to move up to a larger house in the area in about five years. That's another reason for us to build a house there again, since we'd like to be near future grandkids.

[HB2HSV]

Originally Posted by grlygrl

I purchased a home without the intention of living there more than five years. My though was that I was spending over $8000 dollars a year in rent, but wasn't able to paint, decorate, etc the way I wanted. So I figured if I sold my house after a couple of years of living in a space that was mine, and lost a little, it was okay. As long as I didn't lose more than the $8000 a year I would have spent on rent. I think its all a matter of perspective. Making $0 on a house is still making money when you compare it to rent

You have a good attitude and know what you were getting into.

Your own house brings more personal ownership, pride & care you'll put into it.

Just about the only assumption that I have a difficulty with is that assuming a house monthly expenses will be approximately the same as rent. That has not been my experience.

In addition to monthly mortgage, HOA, insurance, property tax (allocated), we spend significant amount of time & money on the house, both inside and outside. It is the pride of ownership. We don't put them in a pure financial term but it is a consideration when you trade buy vs. rent.

When we buy we intend to stay for at least 5 years, but if for some unforeseen event that we need to relocate (someone offers me a CEO position and a 7-figure salary ), we understand if we need to take a loss at selling the house. We may consider to turn it into a rental as investment property at that point.

[HB2HSV]

Originally Posted by MadHaus

One of our kids became a first time homeowner there last year, and expects to move up to a larger house in the area in about five years. That's another reason for us to build a house there again, since we'd like to be near future grandkids.

Beverly Hills, California?

[ionlife]

At least we still have the deduction on our income taxes which is a huge incentive to buy vs. rent for me. However, in Canada, where they have nationalized socialized medicine, that is NOT an option. So.... hang tight and hope things don't swing that way. In addition to not having the mortgage deduction, Canadians have to pay a GST on their new homes as they get to a certain price point. Frankly, home ownership is a HUGE privilege and undertaking as they don't get any breaks for it -- heck if you can afford a home in Canada, you can afford to pay more taxes too...

So that is our consolation prize in Hville/Madison for the over priced homes due to the BIG WAVE of ANTICIPATED BRAC coming here....

news for the ones wanting a dose of reality and willing to accept it... we are the wave... a wave of a few ...not too many more coming down....