Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,585 posts, read 81,186,228 times
Reputation: 57821
Advertisements
Quote:
Originally Posted by warren zee
I'm not a professional realtor, however, I have been literally shocked about the affordable homes that are available in this country.
Since I am from NYS, that area interests me. After leaving the NYC burbs, I have noticed houses in very nice neighborhoods for $100 - $200 thousand. Same good schools. Same NYS university system that offers FREE TUITION to all NYS residents who are accepted.
So, if an upstate NY state house is listed for 250 - and it's a pretty house you are in luck.
Now I live in Ohio. There are 3 bedroom older houses NOT IN SLUMS o dangerous areas - that go for $20-75 K.
87.7% more crime than the rest of the country. There are always reasons for homes being really cheap. Whether crime, poor schools, bad weather, no jobs, or out in the middle of nowhere.
Again, it's regional. No one expects Silicon Valley to have cheap prices.
However, there are similar homes in GA, NC, SC, IA, and other areas in other parts of the country. Every area of the country isn't Silicon Valley, NYC, or DC. Everyone always quote the most expensive places in America and then acts like they are the universal norm.
You actually have a partial point. Many people choose not to move out of expensive areas because of ties with family and friends. Pure inertia. But they could actually make new friends in these areas. And most people really don't see their families all that often and could easily fly or drive in several times a year with the money saved by reducing their overall cost of living. It comes down to psychological cowardice. People are resistant to change, even when it might be a benefit. I know many people who stay in New Jersey to be close to kids and grandkids that they really don't see all that often. Not true for everyone of course, some people are intimately involved with their progeny. But many, if not most, are not. They see their progeny "now and then". Well, they could fly or drive in for these occasions, and save tens of thousands per year and live a better life in a less expensive area. But inertia is a powerful force.
They do not exist 'all over America' Come to the outer suburbs of the Baltimore/Washington Metro area and see what you get for $200,000 It sure isn't going to be that. It is going to be a 2 bedroom condo in a fairly nice multistory building or a townhouse/row home in lass desirable neighborhood. It is all based on the local economy, the length of the commute to decent jobs and how much land is available for development. In other words Location, Location, Location.
This EXACTLY!!
We live in the Chicagoland area and there are many homes under $200k, but not in the greatest of neighborhoods, definitely not with good schools and probably need a lot of work. Plus in Illinois the property taxes are high! We are in Indiana so our property taxes are less but still close to Chicago so same still applies to home prices. You MIGHT get lucky and find a decent home under $200k here but it’s rare IMHO!
Also, you can’t just look at home prices, how’s the job market in these areas? Who cares if homes are cheap if you can’t find a job that pays more than $10hr!
What exactly is the problem with living there? I've never been, but I have been to Toledo and Cincinnati.
Dayton is located in Montgomery County, currently the second highest taxed county of 88 in the state. Property taxes here are ridiculous, and the county just increased sales tax another .25% to 7.50%. Dayton also tacks on its own income tax on top of that (currently 2.25%). OH taxes pensions, too.
Dayton Public Schools are ranked second to the bottom out of all school districts in OH. Only Trotwood is worse, and they are facing state takeover. State takeover of DPS would actually be a blessing.
Rust-belt former manufacturing city with a declining population since the 1970s. Of course, that hasn't stopped the local politicians (Dayton mayor and all three County commissioners are all D's) from steadily raising taxes on the few gainfully employed people who remain. Local voters never met a tax levy they didn't love. Only decent jobs left are in eds, meds and feds. The large local USAF base keeps the entire region afloat. If that ever downsizes or closes, you can kiss Dayton good bye. Helps that one of our Congressman is chair of the House Armed Services Committee. He keeps the money flowing.
Every night on the news - arsons, robberies, shootings. Dayton is officially classified as a food desert because all of the grocery chains have closed up and moved to the suburbs. High thefts and other property crimes due to high poverty rates and poor education. Look at the CD crime index for Dayton: 590.8 in 2015 versus an average of 280.5 for the US.
Dayton is at the intersection of two major interstates, creating a distribution hub which drug sellers and users both love. The state has achieved national attention for being the epicenter of the opioid crisis in the midwest and probably the nation. Dayton's coroner had to get more freezers because bodies were stacking up.
A very low COL in the area is a double-edged sword. You can own real estate for 20 years and not sell for 10% more than you paid for it. This traps a lot of people here because of the severe sticker shock they experience when they start shopping for houses in other states. That ranch house I posted the Zillow link to last sold for $82,000 16 years ago. Now it's listed for $45,000.
I live in an inner ring suburb about 7 miles from the center of Dayton. I pray every night that property values hold in my little town for a few more years until I can sell and get the hell out of OH altogether. My oldest graduated from college in May, was home for one day to pack up his room, and then drove himself to CO to start a new job and a better life about as far away from OH as he could possibly get.
People who like Dayton seem to be those who have never lived anywhere else. I'm not from here. If you think I am a Dayton hater, you're absolutely correct.
We live in the Chicagoland area and there are many homes under $200k, but not in the greatest of neighborhoods, definitely not with good schools and probably need a lot of work. Plus in Illinois the property taxes are high! We are in Indiana so our property taxes are less but still close to Chicago so same still applies to home prices. You MIGHT get lucky and find a decent home under $200k here but it’s rare IMHO!
Also, you can’t just look at home prices, how’s the job market in these areas? Who cares if homes are cheap if you can’t find a job that pays more than $10hr!
Again, we all know that there are some expensive cities in the US. For the same of argument, let's not include the top 10 most expensive cities.
There's a whole lot more of America than Silicon Valley, NYC, DC, LA, Chicago, Seattle, Miami, etc. There are good, decent places outside of the big few.
As far as salaries, there are $75-$100k jobs even in places like Kansas City. You just have to have the right background.
I love where I live! I have a beautiful historic home in a historic district that hasn't been remuddled with updates. PITI is less than 15% of my net income. Of course, the schools are poor, (apparently not the lowest ranked in the state, though) and the crime rate is above average. (but it's not something I worry much about).
There are houses in the area that are in good school districts, and have low crime, for $200k or less. And, with an unemployment rate of 4.5%, it probably isn't that hard to find a job in Ohio.
Our state of Montana is not even listed due to our city populations being so low. Here in our small town and surrounding country housing tracts, the county issued the median house increased considerably by 12.5% to $328,000 last year alone. Difficult to find a house for sale, in town ones you can count on your hands.
In areas that are loosing population prices are declining. Areas with population growth are seeing prices increasing. Those two factors are what effects property values decreasing or increasing. Availability of employment is the main driving force of population shifts in this country.
Maine has many properties priced under $200,000. I still see houses priced under $100,000 there.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
