Housing options for my low income senior mom.

[Taynxtlvl]

She could also buy something now, and plan to rent it out later with your help. This is a very good question and I imagine one many people will be asking themselves before long.

[IC_deLight]

Originally Posted by aggie972

My mom is selling her house (not by choice) that she lives in and inherited from her parents, and she is splitting the proceeds with her brother. Her half of the proceeds will be around $110,000, and I've gotten her preapproved for a $50,000 FHA mortgage. Which means she could purchase a condo for about $150,000 or less. She's looking in less expensive but still safe areas of North Dallas and East Dallas. Now I am trying to determine if she should buy a 1 BR condo or if she should rent an apartment. She receives a modest income from social security and has less than $30,000 in her 401k (no pension). She does some side jobs that provide her a little extra income, but nothing substantial.

The pros of renting are: more predictable costs, maintenance is covered, she'll have more liquid cash from the sale of her house for other expenses (this could also be a con if she spends frivolously), and finding a rental before the end of the year will be much easier than finding a home. The biggest downside is that she will eventually run out of money before she dies if she lives another 25 years. At this point, I would be interested in getting her into a complex that takes housing vouchers or into a low income senior complex. Public housing for people of all ages would not be an option due to safety concerns. My main question is whether the housing voucher/low income senior apartments are "decent" and actually available, or if they are mostly unsafe and/or very difficult to actually get into because of long waits. I sense private landlords also don't love taking housing vouchers (and I know some of you on this board are landlords, so I'd appreciate your input); I wonder how much difference it would make if I guaranteed the payment of the private-pay portion of the rent, and if the landlord were able to meet with my mom and she could pass the "eyeball test" to alleviate any concerns that she's going to trash the place.

The pros of buying are: Forced savings (I don't say this as someone worried about inheritance, just that her money last as long as possible for her), probably a better investment if she stays there for 20 years (although she isn't great with home maintenance), more stability in terms of not potentially having to move as often, and maybe a better play when it comes to means tested public benefits (although I'm not sure this really applies with her being on social security. I haven't fully explored what else she could qualify for and what the asset based means tests are). It may be a moot point if all the condos in her $150,000 price range are too unappealing to her or if that price proves to be too difficult for us to actually grab anything before she has to get out of her current house.

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Not in the case of a condo. It is not "an apartment that you own". You can't see the ugly legal entanglement, liabilities, and exposure to manufactured loss. Tenants have more rights and protections than condo owners. The law is really heavily biased against condo owners. Do not operate on the belief that condo ownership is "forced savings".

Originally Posted by bmccormick71

Do not a buy a condo. There will be monthly condo fees that increase every year, and special assessments any time the condo complex needs maintenance that they can't afford (which is all the time, because condos are chronically underfunded).

Not to mention "fining" or unscrupulous management companies and condo attorneys.