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I have been renting after I started my current job five years ago. Security or stability of my job (either because of myself or the employer) and unstable personal relationship made me hesitate to buy a house or condo.
I don’t see my situation will change in the next one or two years. Since the house price is still very low, I am thinking maybe I should invest my money in buying a place. My savings allows me to pay off a condo all by once or more than half of the price of a single family house.
However, if I buy a house/condo, I don’t know how long I am going to live there or even live in the city. It can be a year, two years…who knows. But I think if I don’t live there later on or if I relocate to a different city, I can rent it before it is sold.
Condos that are allowed for renting are not easily found, and there is an association fee every month. Single family houses cost more, but they can be rented whenever you want, and easier to resale than condos. So I prefer buying a single family house to buying a condo.
Any suggestions? Based on my situation, should I buy a house/condo? Or should I keep renting?
Buy a smaller, newer single family house in an area where rentals are desirable. Do not spend all your money to pay it off immediately, keep at least one years expenses for yourself, property tax and some emergency fund. Rest you can spend on house, it is a good time to buy so go ahead. Enjoy being a home owner. Don't buy at your max budget, leave some room and find a monthly that leaves you enough to enjoy life. Good luck!
Buy a smaller, newer single family house in an area where rentals are desirable. Do not spend all your money to pay it off immediately, keep at least one years expenses for yourself, property tax and some emergency fund. Rest you can spend on house, it is a good time to buy so go ahead. Enjoy being a home owner. Don't buy at your max budget, leave some room and find a monthly that leaves you enough to enjoy life. Good luck!
...unstable personal relationship made me hesitate to buy a house or condo.
I don’t see my situation will change in the next one or two years.
Any suggestions?
Keep renting until your personal life has you wanting/needing to buy...
and your "situation won't change" for no less than 5 years.
Don't but a personal home (house or condo) as an investment vehicle.
Some sort of rental property... where the tenant is paying the mortgage and leaves you with enough private
space (a MIL apt?) to have your home in -at little or no cost to you- is a compromise worth looking for.
I agree that you should NOT buy until you have good reason to believe you will live there at least five years.
If you take a job in another city, you will find it difficult and/or expensive (if you pay a management company) to be an out-of-town landlord/landlady. In our part of the country, at this point properties do not cash flow--they are cheaper to rent than to buy.
You should definitely look at online calculators before buying (there is a good one on the NYTimes website) and research actual rents being paid now for properties like those that interest you, and make sure you understand ALL the costs of ownership and compare the real total with that for renting. First time buyers typically underestimate repairs/upgrade costs, along with maintenance (e.g., lawn and garden care, window cleaning).
Buying in your situation is unduly risky and could be very costly.
We have owned a home for more than 35 years and I don't think there is a hill of beans difference between owning and renting. If you own the home, you have to repair and redo on a regular basis. If you rent, you can move to another place that is newer with maybe higher rent, but hopefully your salary has gone up too.
I heard it described on a talk show today as the difference between being engaged and being married. It is a matter of choice so you will have to decide which type of person you want to be. Do you want to be totally in control of your residence or are you all right with someone else having the risk and the responsibility of maintaining your home and you just pay monthly.
as the difference between being engaged and being married.
LOL...
Thanks.
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