30 year old professional considering a move to Pittsburgh

[sabdjb123]

I don't happen to think that rent is always the best financial decision.....everyone is in a different situation, and I was just giving my opinion... btw....the 8,000 does not have to be paid back.......

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by creepsinc

So for (up to) $8k (that must be paid back), somebody should dive in and buy in a city they don't even live in yet? In this market? Sounds like a plan.

Read sabdjb123's other posts where sabdjb123 tries to drum up real estate clients on City-Data.

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by sabdjb123

I don't happen to think that rent is always the best financial decision.....everyone is in a different situation, and I was just giving my opinion... btw....the 8,000 does not have to be paid back.......

$8,000 First-time Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance

• The $8,000 tax credit is for first-time home buyers only. For the tax credit program, the IRS defines a first-time home buyer as someone who has not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase.
• The tax credit does not have to be repaid.
• The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000.
• The tax credit applies only to homes priced at $800,000 or less.

If I were only living in Pgh for a 2-3 period no way would I buy unless I was working corporate and they would take care of the sale. Very few homes appreciate enough in 3 years to make it worth your while.

[fleetiebelle]

To be fair, lots of people buy houses when they move to new city. My brother and his family moved from SLC to Tampa without renting there first.

[Fiddlehead]

I guess I would weigh in with the hold off on buying crowd. Seems like a 30 something guy might love or hate the job or neighborhood or nightlife or..all of the above.

Seems like an unnecessary risk.

[TelecasterBlues]

This appears to be a good time for me to cut-in...sorry to interrupt anything here.

But I'm a 24 year old teacher who's looking to get out from under my family and get my own place. In terms of rent vs own, would it be wise for me to buy a 120K-140K condo or townhouse with say...10K-15K down and a 30 year mortgage, yet with a possible intent to sell the condo in 6-10 years when I'm in my early 30s? I mean, how long would I have to hold on to the property to be able to at least pull even and not be upside down on a mortgage when selling? Does it make sense for me to buy right away, with little down, if it may only be a 5 year residence?

[Chichappens]

Originally Posted by TelecasterBlues

This appears to be a good time for me to cut-in...sorry to interrupt anything here.

But I'm a 24 year old teacher who's looking to get out from under my family and get my own place. In terms of rent vs own, would it be wise for me to buy a 120K-140K condo or townhouse with say...10K-15K down and a 30 year mortgage, yet with a possible intent to sell the condo in 6-10 years when I'm in my early 30s? I mean, how long would I have to hold on to the property to be able to at least pull even and not be upside down on a mortgage when selling? Does it make sense for me to buy right away, with little down, if it may only be a 5 year residence?

No one knows what the future holds so my advise don;t assume. Buy to live for the moment and hope the future like you talk about, your property will be worth much more for you to sell it an by something bigger or better. Make sure you can afford the mortage ALONE......this is what many people learnt from this past recession. They had 2 income family one month and next thing one income an that bread winner was not able to handle all the bills alone. for the amount you speak of 120k ---- 140k buy a house...you buy a condo you are still looking at monthy maintainance fees an hire taxes for residental buildings vs prive homes..........make sure you have the 20 percent to put down other wise this means you really can not afford this property...........dont cut your self short where you find yourself in financial danger of losing it all and wind up back at moma an papa's home

[BrianTH]

On buying when first coming to town: I think it can make sense if you are moving a large household and know pretty much what you are looking for and where to find it in Pittsburgh. But the bottomline is that first-time credit or no, in the long run most of your return on owning a home will come from the benefit of living there, so that is something you want to make sure you get right (buying a place that really is suitable for you).

On time horizons: under ordinary circumstances I would say you are likely to at least break even with renting after five years in Pittsburgh buying and then selling. Given the current economic certainties I might push that out to ten to be sure, but it is really a sliding scale in that range and in that sense you are not necessarily doing anything crazy with a 6-10 year possible time horizon.

[Copanut]

As to monthly condo fees, they are usually less than what you'll pay for a detached single family residence.

[robrobrob]

I personally would never expect to make money on a condo. You also usually have a lot of competition when you want to sell it.