Renting vs. buying (renters, homes, payment)

[squires74]

Whatever you decide, please do not base your decision on CareCare7 or LAWomans imput. CareCare7 says "Rent. It is a buyer's market and contrary to what you may have heard". I am not sure, but in a Buyer's Market you want to BUY. Appently CareCare7 would wait until it is a Sells market and have no negotiating leverage whatsoever. The only thing I agree with her on, is doing your home work on the pricing.

[diecastcarguy]

OK...... whats the GIS website. Or exactly how is it spelled. IM renting and want to buy but want to know exactly what the owner has in the place since its a down market in this spot. He dropped the price 90K upon my moving in to see if I would just buy now. I would like to buy but not at some of the (IMHO) inflated prices in this subdivision. Plus a very simular home 2 blocks away (same subdivision) recently sold for what I would like to pay for this house.

Since im new to AZ.... I say rent then buy.... you will learn alot in a short amount of time and DO NOT listen to what realtors tell you , some still think thats its a boom time.

[m1ndless]

I think your best bet is to rent for a year, get to know the city, and then decide where you want to live. It wouldnt be too good if you commited to a house and didn't like the area or the traffic. I would suggest North Phoenix/North Glendale. I-17 and Happy Valley Area is really nice, and low cost for renting and buying, since we are just north of the city, but in 10 years, I am sure anthem will be a part of phoenix at the rate we are expanding north.

You can find a nice 4br house for 1300/month.

[EDnurse]

Rent first. Find out if you really like your job, the schools, the traffic, the neighborhood, or the heat for that matter. It's better to research the area while you're here. Realtors must be optimistic even in bad times because otherwise, they'd sell less. It's not like there is a scarcity of homes, or developments out here. Put your money in a CD or whatever until you find something you really like.

[carecare7]

The county GIS is the website that shows a property location, parcel number, owner, most recent taxes, recent improvements, the owner's physical address, how much the owner paid for the property and what year it was bought. Google "(insert county name here) GIS" and you will find the websites that allow access to that info. Typically, the GIS database allows you to locate a property's info by the address, parcel number, or owner's name. If I recall, GIS stands for Global Information System.

[mortimer]

EDnurse said it right.

Unless you are intimately familiar with an area and know
exactly what you want and where you are working, then
buying is just dumb.

If you are patient, you can always get a good deal on a home
later on. Getting a good deal on a home makes up for any
movement in interest rates.

It's real easy to lose money on real estate and your losses
can be almost open-ended. It's also very easy to get trapped
into a terrible commute. If you are renting, you know up-front
how much you need to budget.

LVGAZ sounds like they have a property they are trying to unload
in Val Vista Lakes. I have nothing against Gilbert, but people should
do the exploring for themselves and ASK QUESTIONS.

I'm trying to sell a home in the Phoenix area, but it's in a secret location.

[ws_sisu]

Originally Posted by carecare7

The county GIS is the website that shows a property location, parcel number, owner, most recent taxes, recent improvements, the owner's physical address, how much the owner paid for the property and what year it was bought. Google "(insert county name here) GIS" and you will find the websites that allow access to that info. Typically, the GIS database allows you to locate a property's info by the address, parcel number, or owner's name. If I recall, GIS stands for Global Information System.

Thanks for the info, carecare. The only GIS I can find has a fee. Is this the one you're talking about?

[diecastcarguy]

Pinal County Assessor's Office - [GIS: Main]

Here ya go 100% free......... ive used it well lately and found out some interesting information about the area I live in. Oh for the record, realtors are LIARS...... least thats what ive found so far. What they tell you and what the truth is are 2 different things. Looks like I will be able to purchase a 500K home (in 05) for low 300's. Good luck to you.

[SunLizzard]

I've read posts that suggest renting is the way to go over buying right now. Reasons range from a saturated and unpredictable market to the interest rates are rising. Something to remember was the mid 1980's interest rates. 16% was very common. Anything under 7% sounds pretty good to me. Next the market is always unpredictable; if we could predict the market I presume a lot more of us would be millionairs. ;-)
Finally, most americans overall monitary value is in the equity of their own home. They appreciate. The market goes up and down but one thing is for certain, if you ride it out your home will increase in value at an average of 3% anually.

[AzDreamer]

I read yesterday that the 3% yearly gain has only been since the 80's. Going back to the earliest data the gain per year is equal to the inflation rate, so it's a net zero gain. The best gains are going to come from the riskiest assets, a house isn't in that category.