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There are plenty of places on the east coast where it's cheaper to own a house than rent. There are places where it's cheaper to rent than own as well even on the same coast. There are limits in what you can do when renting and finding what you need. I've lived in many places on the east coast where it was far cheaper to own a house than rent.
Depends on the house's ultimate problems. Depends on how many monthly repairs the house requires. It depends on a lot of math most people don't think about doing.
Most only look at the amount the bank says they need to pay $1400/a month or whatever. They don't factor in roof repair, plumbing repair -- everything required to keep a house functional. Not to mention sell-able.
And don't get me started on Realtor commissions.
Smarter people than me -- the Khan Academy guy for one -- are doing the math and saying it doesn't make sense in today's economy.
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
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For the OP. Keep you current housr, or move into a rental. Fix up and flip this house for a profit before it stresses you out and destroys your marriage.
Partially. Partially it was because I had two things I hate.. traffic noise and HOAs. The first house we offered and got accepted had an amazing forest setting kinda away from the world, but still in a nice neighborhood. It was our favorite of all house design. But the house needed tons of work including converting one room to a 4th bedroom, removing newly installed carpet and pad to seal the floors from cat urine, replacing the kitchen floor, repairing the fence etc... We felt it would be hard to do all those things on our budget at the time. Plus the yard while a gorgeous forest had little room to grow anything (mainly because of the shade) and a large portion of the yard was sloped. The HOA will not allow the removal of trees without permission so it wasn't like you could yank trees out. What really ended the deal for us is we had both our parents come out and look and they hated it. We don't know why, but they did. That was the point my wife said okay lets move on.
So a year later I buy a house that has a worse layout, with traffic noise. And a curved wall ( )
My first house was a renovation from hell......one of the joys of DIY and pay for what you can when you can. It took 8 years to complete. I NEVER saw it completed let alone lived in it. I was moved out and living in our brand new custom built home in another state while my husband spent 3 back breaking weeks trying to get everything finished so we could sell that house. That curved wall sounds like a dream! Hey I built a brand new house and had a wall that was so crooked, it looked drunk! Would have cost thousands to fix it. We sold the house with the crooked wall and it didn't stop someone from buying it.
Depends on the house's ultimate problems. Depends on how many monthly repairs the house requires. It depends on a lot of math most people don't think about doing.
Most only look at the amount the bank says they need to pay $1400/a month or whatever. They don't factor in roof repair, plumbing repair -- everything required to keep a house functional. Not to mention sell-able.
And don't get me started on Realtor commissions.
Smarter people than me -- the Khan Academy guy for one -- are doing the math and saying it doesn't make sense in today's economy.
Alley
Many houses don't require monthly repairs. If there are problems, you know what most of them are from the home inspection.
Again, it depends on where you are located if it makes sense to rent vs buy. Where I live, most of the houses for rent are vacation homes on a lake. They are rented for thousands a week....forget a month or a year long lease. It's not happening. You can buy a few houses here for what the rent is for a month! I don't live on the lake.....less than a mile from it as the crow flies...and my monthly mortgage is still significantly less than a week's rent in those houses. Location location location!
Realtor commissions are negotiable. Don't like paying them, then do a FSBO and don't complain if it goes poorly.
Being a renter isn't a party either. You're at the mercy of the landlord to fix things and keep things up. Easier said than done. You can also lose your home at the end of your lease. The landlord can walk through your rental unit pretty much when he wants to....not much you can do about it. Most places won't let you hang up pictures....no holes in the walls. You can't paint the colors you want. Pets are always an issue. The list goes on and on.
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Originally Posted by otterhere
To think that we can take home a shirt and return it a week later, test drive and take a car to our mechanic, but are supposed to base the biggest purchase of our lives on a five-minute walk through a house with a realtor standing there impatiently (or on the recommendation of dubious home inspectors)...
A 5 minute walk thru? Maybe your first walk thru, but I've never spent only 5 minutes in any of the 3 houses I've owned! First one I bought, I spent an hour there and then went back a few days later to sign papers and walked around for about 30 minutes. The second house we built and toured a model.....took us about 2 hours. The house I'm sitting in right, I was here for an hour and a half. I took about 300 photos. I thoroughly investigate and see what our needs our versus what the house offers....what works...what doesn't....what can we easily change to suit our needs....lots of mental work and I take TONS of notes.
Err.. I will assume this idea seems ludicrous to you, but I grew up in one home that my parents have lived in now for 36 years. They moved twice. I thought I would be the same.
On a lighter note three of four bedrooms are painted, one more to go tomorrow. New dishwasher ordered and carpet will be installed early next week.
For the OP. Keep you current housr, or move into a rental. Fix up and flip this house for a profit before it stresses you out and destroys your marriage.
LOL, the OP took months and months to find the current house. And you're recommending he start the process all over again? Not to mention that he's the only one in the family who doesn't like the house.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarick
Err.. I will assume this idea seems ludicrous to you, but I grew up in one home that my parents have lived in now for 36 years. They moved twice. I thought I would be the same.
Then why did you move? I guess it's because your circumstances, needs and wants are different from your parents'?
Quote:
On a lighter note three of four bedrooms are painted, one more to go tomorrow. New dishwasher ordered and carpet will be installed early next week.
Good. Now fix the damn wall that's bugging you so much. You'll be so much happier.
Err.. I will assume this idea seems ludicrous to you, but I grew up in one home that my parents have lived in now for 36 years. They moved twice. I thought I would be the same.
One thing to remember is that a house that suits you perfectly when you're younger may not work for you at all when you are older and can no longer drive and are finding ladders, stairs, and heavy physical work harder to manage.
Err.. I will assume this idea seems ludicrous to you, but I grew up in one home that my parents have lived in now for 36 years. They moved twice. I thought I would be the same.
On a lighter note three of four bedrooms are painted, one more to go tomorrow. New dishwasher ordered and carpet will be installed early next week.
Excellent! Get some new curtains/drapes...window hardware...decorations and it will be home in no time!
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