Renting Vs. Buying (Rochester, Greece, Irondequoit: mortgage, equity, appraise)

[jrouse22]

Hey

Moving to Rochester in the fall. Planning on staying at least 2 years but no more than 5. My wife and I don't have any kids so even if we do have some we'd probely move before school districts became an issue.

After looking at the property/school taxes we would pay. Does it make more since to rent?

I'm working near near HWY 104 and St paul street if that helps. I probably don't want more than a 20 minute commute. I've only visited Rochester once so I am completly unfamilar with the area

thanks

[rochacha]

5 years is tough to know whether you will make money or lose or break even, depending on the short-term housing market. 104 and St. Paul is very close to a bad area to live. Definitely look to live north of there (Irondequoit) if you want to live close by (I'd stay north of Titus Ave.). Other areas to look at definitely within 20 minutes are North Greece and West Webster. The bad news is that the only good place to rent within 20 minutes IMO is the Park Avenue area, which is the "younger, hip" area of the city, and that is probably about 20 minutes away I would think.

[acip]

To rent or to buy, good question First, when going to rent you need first month's rent, one or two month's security deposit and if you use an agent, their fee which is usually equal to the monthly rent. So, let's use 1500 as an example: $1500 for 1stmonth rent,$1500 sec dep, and $1500 agent fee Total $4500 up front to rent Now say you also have some money put away and with that $4500 you can actually put 15-20% down on a home, owning a home has very good tax deductions, with prices on homes now low in 5-7yrs you should actually see your investment turn a profit Will renting turn a profit , No and it does not have any tax deductions But if there is no other money and all you have is enough to rent and can not qualify for a mortgage, then you have no other choice Hope this helped and the best to you

[anotherarmywife]

I lived in Rochester for 30 years, there are no "agent fees" there, only first months plus security in most places. Don't fall for that 'realtor fee" crap, check out craigslist and the rochester renters guide for houses or apts. Stay away from The St. Paul area, it isn't a safe place to be. Webster is safe and nice, but the commute down 104 over the bay bridge in the winter will be long. Greece is right off 104, you are better off buying out there if you are going to buy. Homes are fairly inexpensive, but the yearly taxes will kill you. I am in the process of finally selling my house in Gates and my taxes on a 1200 sq foot home are over 5k a year. Taxes are rediculous in NY state. I would never buy ever again in that area. Waste of money and good luck trying to sell in a few years, I just bought my house 3 years ago and have been trying to sell for a year now. I bought it as a short sale from my ex at 70k, it was appraised at 85k and I finally sold it after 1 year of trying at 69k. Sucks. Rochester is sinking economically since Kodak took off and there really is nothing there anymore. I strongly suggest renting.
The nice thing about Rochester is that everything is pretty much centrally located and the traffic is not too bad compared to metro areas. Pretty much anywhere can be gotten to in 20 minutes. For the Greece area, you would want to live past the mall off 104, it is nicer and more suburban out there. Stay away from Ridgeway ave, most of the Charlotte area and the city. Lake ave will run from the inner city all the way to the lake, they are sketchy areas and some places will have a "good' side of the street and a "bad' side of the same street. You will find plenty of inexpensive houses in the city, but you have to be really careful of the areas, not very safe and resale will be really tough.
If you have any questions about the areas or need advice on areas to live, don't hesitate to ask me. I will be happy to steer you in the right direction.

[jrouse22]

thanks for the help.

[acip]

The question was Renting v Buying The reply given said "IF You use a Realtor" then you would have a fee Down here in the Metro area , the agencies have a fee
If your realtors up there have no fee, how do they make a living?

[Muggy]

Jrouse22, don't buy, rent. Even in good times it can take a while to sell a house in the Rochester area. Don't believe the hype, the housing bubble will hit Rochester hard within the next few years.

Rent somewhere off Park Avenue. You and your wife will enjoy the amenities that that neighborhood has to offer.

[anotherarmywife]

Very few people in Rochester employ a Realtor to rent their homes, apartments etc. When they do, the person who employs the Realtor (usually the person trying to rent out their home) will pay the fees. NOT the person looking to rent. In Jersey it seems that everyone uses a Realtor to rent out their homes for them, that is probably bc they don't have to pay the fees themselves, the renter gets stuck having to pay them, It is a rip off if you ask me. Most people in Rochester put a sign out front or advertise in the Renters Guide.

[deno088]

Do not buy a house in Upstate NY
-Average house in a good neighborhood is 250K
-The interest alone for the first 12 years will be about $1200 per month.
-Tax will be another $700 per month.
-Then depending on the age of the home there might be maintenance/repairs to do.
-And finally lawn and snow removal.

I can understand buying in a another state near a big city where the $250K house will someday be worth 500K (I know that in todays market that sound imposible but things will return to normal) and tax is around $1500 a year. But in Upstate NY that will never happen and you will never get a return on your investment especially with an $8000 tax bill.

[DJ-Uno]

It depends on how much you want to bite off...

I lived in my house in the city for 5 years and sold it for a profit (after taxes and repairs, paid cash so no interest charges) of about $12,000. It was a fixer upper though, so it had sweat equity built in (I could have sold it after 2 years for almost the same price)...

I'm looking to sell my house in Henrietta and should sell it for a "loss" of $12,000 to $17,000 (including repairs, taxes, interest, moving, and closing costs). That's like renting for $500 to $700 a month the last 2 years, probably about half of what the house would rent for. Sometimes "losing" money on a house isn't all that bad.

Of course, I had all the hassles of home ownership in exchange for these deals. That should probably be your biggest concern (are you willing/able to spend a couple of thousand dollars to fix your roof?). And there's no telling what the market will be like if you are forced to sell quickly for a move.