The Beech Tree community in Upper Marlboro

[Zimar]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

I'm a he. Do I write that feminine? I need to reflect.







The last two are teasing you.

I meant the universal "her" as in, uh...

Ok I totally thought you were a lady because I agree with your posts most of the time and I tend to think smart people on this board are ladies. Hooray for bias!

Originally Posted by slowlane3

until they're 16 years old ? Really ?

Obviously I was joking but if you have been shopping for convertible carseats/booster seats lately you would notice that they boast the ability to hold a child up to 100 pounds. 100 pounds!! How old is a kid who is 100 pounds? 12? 13? If I had to sit in a booster seat in a car when I was 13 years old I would have DIED of embarrassment. My mother cheerfully informed me the other day that she never had a carseat for me period and I just sat on her lap in the car. Oh how times have changed!

***

Anyway, back to topic, is trying to buy a house with an eye towards its "future" value or appreciation really very wise at all? I thought of all the lessons from the housing apocalypse we recently had, that would be it. Attempting to speculate that someone in Arlington is going to profit 200k when they sell their house but you're in PG so you'll probably make nothing seems incredibly silly to me. When you buy a house, there are more than enough present-day factors to consider, like the location, commute, schools, crime, quality of the house, prices of the surrounding communities, etc. I personally am impressed with the positive developments that are occurring in the county since I have moved here. Other posters here have been watching the county for so long that these things seem overdue, but to me it's all sunshine and puppy dogs.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by Zimar

I meant the universal "her" as in, uh...

Ok I totally thought you were a lady because I agree with your posts most of the time and I tend to think smart people on this board are ladies. Hooray for bias!

Booooooo!

My mother cheerfully informed me the other day that she never had a carseat for me period and I just sat on her lap in the car. Oh how times have changed!

I didn't have a car seat either. I just slid around in the back seat.

***

Anyway, back to topic, is trying to buy a house with an eye towards its "future" value or appreciation really very wise at all? I thought of all the lessons from the housing apocalypse we recently had, that would be it. Attempting to speculate that someone in Arlington is going to profit 200k when they sell their house but you're in PG so you'll probably make nothing seems incredibly silly to me. When you buy a house, there are more than enough present-day factors to consider, like the location, commute, schools, crime, quality of the house, prices of the surrounding communities, etc. I personally am impressed with the positive developments that are occurring in the county since I have moved here. Other posters here have been watching the county for so long that these things seem overdue, but to me it's all sunshine and puppy dogs.

I can't speak for others of course, but the way I see it is that there are two types of value seekers. Those who seek a quick profit or return within 5-10 years, and those who purchased their home to raise a family and look forward to the value they can use in retirement. Hopefully the house would be paid off by then. I lean towards the latter. I would hope my home gains a little value so that I can use it to fund a pretty decent retirement home or, if I'm doing better than expected, pass it down to my children so that they can take the profits and be able to live in a comparably priced home wherever they decide to live. Or to help their children go to college, etc. Does the value need to triple? No. But any appreciation over 10-30 years is hoped for.

Having said that, different neighborhoods appreciate at different rates. And of course this depends on changes in amenities, transportation access, crime rates, schools, etc. All can shift certain ways in 30 years. Personally I'm glad I'm a homeowner during my area's upswing in Northern PG.

Back then when I was 24, my main reason for purchasing the house was that it was close to the university where I could go to school. Profit and value were the last things on my mind at the time.

[Missingatlanta]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

Booooooo!



I didn't have a car seat either. I just slid around in the back seat.

***



I can't speak for others of course, but the way I see it is that there are two types of value seekers. Those who seek a quick profit or return within 5-10 years, and those who purchased their home to raise a family and look forward to the value they can use in retirement. Hopefully the house would be paid off by then. I lean towards the latter. I would hope my home gains a little value so that I can use it to fund a pretty decent retirement home or, if I'm doing better than expected, pass it down to my children so that they can take the profits and be able to live in a comparably priced home wherever they decide to live. Or to help their children go to college, etc. Does the value need to triple? No. But any appreciation over 10-30 years is hoped for.

Having said that, different neighborhoods appreciate at different rates. And of course this depends on changes in amenities, transportation access, crime rates, schools, etc. All can shift certain ways in 30 years. Personally I'm glad I'm a homeowner during my area's upswing in Northern PG.

Back then when I was 24, my main reason for purchasing the house was that it was close to the university where I could go to school. Profit and value were the last things on my mind at the time.

This is true, anything can happen with home values. I have older family members who owned homes in DC that they sold for an insane amount of money. They never expected the return they got because these areas were a bit questionable back in the day. I would love to get a return like that someday.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by Missingatlanta

This is true, anything can happen with home values. I have older family members who owned homes in DC that they sold for an insane amount of money. They never expected the return they got because these areas were a bit questionable back in the day. I would love to get a return like that someday.

This reminds me of the Trinidad neighborhood in DC just a few years back where shootings were the norm. Now it is becoming the place to live for young professionals who can't afford higher prices elsewhere in DC. I saw an article in the post last week or the week before and how it discussed the quick turnaround of that neighborhood. For a homeowner, it's almost like hitting the lottery. One year your neighborhood is filled with crime and abandoned properties. A few years later it's the place to live. The dynamics of the metro area's growth is something to see. So many people are moving to the DC area, neighborhoods are being transformed in years instead of decades. This is true mostly for DC and the inner-beltway suburbs though.

I imagine that neighborhoods like Beech Tree will not see such dramatic swings in character or value being so far removed from the DC's core of transformation.

Which makes me think that some people may prefer Beech Tree because they may not be able to grasp such seismic shifts going on in the DC metro area.

[beenaroundtheworldn_i_i_i]

Hello all! I'm so glad I found this thread on here. Ok where do I start. I am from PG county born and raised and bought my first home in PG county, so I know the county well. I also know beech tree well and have looked for homes there during my home search recently. I see a lot of you attempting to explain the 'benefit' of PG county developers cramming houses on .25 acres in the middle of 301 (not walking distance from virtually anything unless you want to "walk" on 301 and end up like a deer [obliterated]) and trying to describe it as some sort of supply to a new generational demand. That's hilarious. It's none of that. It's waaaay more insulting than that. I read some of you saying that it's about "status". You all are FAR more correct. There is no deep reason why developers are selling houses that are 700k and neck-n-neck with other houses and no deep reason why people are buying them. They are selling those houses because it is cheaper to cram 4 houses on an acre than to put 1 house on an acre or 2, and they know that some of us African Americans buy for "status"/to impress someone else. They know that some of us will buy a house there JUST to say "I live in Beech Tree". Just like it used to be a status symbol to say "I live in Woodmore" or "I live in Perrywood" or "I have a gucci belt". They know black people will spend A LOT of money just to be a part of a trend/status symbol. Those houses are trash. No front or backyards whatsoever, and for those of you saying things like "the millennials don't have the cushy salary of their parents", lies. Inflation and higher college graduation rates in younger generations have made their salaries much higher than former generations. It's WAY more simple than that - stop buying homes for other people and buy a house that's for YOU and you're family. If you are thinking of buying a house/car/clothes or anything else, first ask yourself if you would still want to buy that thing if nobody will see it but you and your loved ones. If the answer is yes, they you're buying for the right reason. If you feel like part of the thrill of the purchase is others being aware of the possessions then you're living your life for other people (which is wack af.). I bought in another county in MD way better schools, 2 acres of land, 10,000 square feet and 5 miles from everything. PG is some trash. Run.