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.
I would avoid buying a house in this country, they are endless money drainers, because poorly build from cheap materials, unless you can find decent pre-war brick house in good condition.
Condo seems like a better idea, much less maintenance issues, and you can buy top floor to minimize noise from neighbors.
With condo you can also be much closer to work locations, usually, and can pay them off much quicker. It's nice not to have a mortgage rather than feeding usurers all your life.
lol......ok thanks pal. Now run off to bed little one!
And this is where you are wrong, I bought in 02, the height was in 08, I was easily qualified for my loan and had minimal upgrades, rent was roughly what the mortgage was in my area. At the end of the day a 50k loss really doesn't do much harm to my balance sheet.
I only listed my example to show the OP that not everyone makes money buying a home. You yourself said earlier in the thread they should get feedback from people that have actually been home owners, so I provided an example, you just want to jump on it because it doesn't rubber stamp your belief.
And as you have provided your experience, so have we. One bad experience doesn't trump one good one. And as I have stated before there are a lot of factors and variables that go into home buying that determine if it is the right decision for that specific person. You seem to want to ignore that part.
It isn't universally a good or bad decision. It depends on your needs, HOW you buy, HOW you maintain it, and HOW the market is doing.
What you are comparing doesn't make any sense to me. You are assuming all renters do not have a next egg and all homeowners have equity in their homes, as you have presented them your examples do make sense.
Lets take an example of someone with 50k, if they want to put it into a house it is more difficult to get at than if they rent and then have 50k in liquidity.
At the end of the day none of that is a problem for me, I rent and have a gigantic nest egg, I just prefer to deploy it in the market rather than in a home.
It isn't that simple. You are assuming everyone has assets outside of a home. I merely pointed out that many may not.
Let's look at your 50k example. If you put that 50k into a house with equity it may be more difficult to get but it doesn't get diminished as quickly as someone who has to pay rent every month that might dip into that 50k. Again, too many variables at play. I was presenting scenarios and options where owning a home may be better than renting one.
If you are happy where you are, good for you. For my situation it isn't practical to rent. I can't justify a perpetual rental payment every month until the end of my life when I can eventually own the roof over my head and use it as a piggy bank if times ever got tough.
I would avoid buying a house in this country, they are endless money drainers, because poorly build from cheap materials, unless you can find decent pre-war brick house in good condition.
Condo seems like a better idea, much less maintenance issues, and you can buy top floor to minimize noise from neighbors.
With condo you can also be much closer to work locations, usually, and can pay them off much quicker. It's nice not to have a mortgage rather than feeding usurers all your life.
Not one word of this is true and this statement is full of holes.
Housing regulations are much more strict than 50 years ago. Material quality and building techniques have improved. The finishes can be "cheaper" looking, but that doesn't make the quality worse. The structure will be improved. Those are two different animals altogether.
Homes are not endless money drainers. A home kept in good condition rarely needs maintenance unless after so many years something has reached the end of its useful life. (Mechanical items, roof, etc..)
When you rent you are at the mercy of the landlord's schedule and choice of materials. Some landlords use the cheapest materials available to save money. And as soon as the market supports a cost increase, you are charged for it with increased rental premiums at your next lease renewal.
If you purchase a condo, you often have to pay membership dues that cover grounds maintenance and building maintenance. And if something expensive needs to be fixed such as a complete roof replacement, the condo owners can sometimes be stuck with footing the bill. So don't think a condo is going to get you out scott free.
You can be as close to work with a home as a condo in many areas. So that plays zero part in it. And some condos cost more than homes so again that plays zero part in the discussion. That is area dependent.
I don't know what you mean by feeding usurers all your life, but rest assured you are spending money somewhere regardless. If you meant insurers, then you will pay that bill no matter if you rent or own.
You can choose to rent and never see a dime of that money again, or buy and at least be putting it into something that you have the potential to sell in the future and get it back. That depends on your long term situation and what works best for you. But there is no universal truth.
Housing regulations are much more strict than 50 years ago. Material quality and building techniques have improved.
Homes are not endless money drainers. A home kept in good condition rarely needs maintenance unless after so many years something has reached the end of its useful life. (Mechanical items, roof, etc..)
.
You don't seem to even understand your own statements: " home kept in good condition rarely needs maintenance " - what's that even mean? To keep a house in good condition you need to invest money, that's called "maintenance".
US houses are built from cheapest material available, artificial wood panels, subject to mold, rot, water damage etc., roofs don't even last 10 years, majority of appliances need constant maintenance or repair, then you get landscaping cost on top of that, pest control, exterior maintenance and so and so.
The best part is mortgage though - they start with charging you on average $10-15K in closing costs, then hit you with atrocious payment schedule where 80-90% of your payment goes to usurer's pockets for first 10 years, so in 5 years you pay off let's say $40K (half of which you will spend on repairs and maintenance) and your usurer will make $100K sitting on his hands watching you working your ass off.
Enjoy.
The desire to own has to come from within. I've always wanted to be an owner rather than a renter and now that I've been a homeowner for 19+ years (bought first condo at 21), there's no going back for me. Hasn't been the easiest journey but nonetheless, I won't have it any other way.
You don't seem to even understand your own statements: " home kept in good condition rarely needs maintenance " - what's that even mean? To keep a house in good condition you need to invest money, that's called "maintenance".
Have you ever owned a house? Preventative maintenance is a fraction of the cost of maintenance after the fact. If you don't keep your gutters cleaned out, water can back up and rot out the roof decking, fascia, etc... If you don't stop a leaky sink drain, it will eventually rot out the cabinet and floor and you will then be replacing an entire floor. If you don't keep your HVAC filters clean and keep the HVAC serviced you can reduce the life of the unit.
Things like that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by civis
US houses are built from cheapest material available, artificial wood panels, subject to mold, rot, water damage etc., roofs don't even last 10 years, majority of appliances need constant maintenance or repair, then you get landscaping cost on top of that, pest control, exterior maintenance and so and so.
Please, provide hard data to back up the accusations that homes are built with subpar materials. That depends on the builder and the budget of the homeowner. The more you spend, the lower maintenance items you can buy. If you buy the cheapest of everything, you get what you pay for. Even the cheapest materials have to pass regulation.
This just proves you have never owned a home.
Today's shingles are on average 30 year shingles. Unless you get a major storm that damages them, you can expect at LEAST 20-25 years from them. In my area a 2,500 sq.ft. home can have the roofing replaced for an average cost of $6,000. If they last 25 years it would have cost me a whopping $20 per month.
Appliances don't need constant maintenance unless you consider changing the water filter on your refrigerator "constant" maintenance. Landscaping can be as simple as keeping your grass cut. Pest control is a given ANYWHERE and you pay for it whether you realize it or not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by civis
The best part is mortgage though - they start with charging you on average $10-15K in closing costs, then hit you with atrocious payment schedule where 80-90% of your payment goes to usurer's pockets for first 10 years, so in 5 years you pay off let's say $40K (half of which you will spend on repairs and maintenance) and your usurer will make $100K sitting on his hands watching you working your ass off.
Enjoy.
Just keep telling yourself that. You can close on a home with an attorney (for sale by owner) in my area for less than $4,000. You only pay closing costs if you use a Realtor and you are not required to do so. That is a convenience not a necessity.
Most loans pay interest first. That isn't relegated to housing only. Do you finance anything? Cars, use credit cards, etc? Guess what? You do the same thing with them. That is a risk payback for loaning you the money. You minimize their risks up front. As you pay in, the balance shifts and you begin paying more towards principle and less towards interest.
If you spend $20k in maintenance on your home every 5 years you are doing something wrong. Again, you are showing complete ignorance of home ownership.
Today's shingles are on average 30 year shingles. Unless you get a major storm that damages them, you can expect at LEAST 20-25 years from them. In my area a 2,500 sq.ft. home can have the roofing replaced for an average cost of $6,000. I
30 years is just a marketing gimmick, anyone who ever bought a house knows it.
US is the only country in the world who puts this crap called "asphalt shingles" on roofs, which start to deteriorate within first 3 years from sun, wind etc. If you don't replace this crap every 10 years you are risking sudden and big water damage, which will screw up your artificial wood house big time, and will cost $$$$ to fix.
You probably live in area with lot of poverty, I have never seen a roof replaced for less than $10K, even in deep south, forget about north east or west.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nlambert
If you spend $20k in maintenance on your home every 5 years you are doing something wrong
That's the deal with US built houses and US contractors - you never know when next big item needs repair and how much they will rip you off for it. Just to replace some windows/doors which suddenly lost thermal seal can run $5K+, then your AC stops cooling due to freon leak, another $2K to fix, and so on.
American contractors is another thing I would never want to deal with again - 95% have no skills, very low to no moral, and never want to compete and give you a reasonable price.
30 years is just a marketing gimmick, anyone who ever bought a house knows it.
US is the only country in the world who puts this crap called "asphalt shingles" on roofs, which start to deteriorate within first 3 years from sun, wind etc. If you don't replace this crap every 10 years you are risking sudden and big water damage, which will screw up your artificial wood house big time, and will cost $$$$ to fix.
You probably live in area with lot of poverty, I have never seen a roof replaced for less than $10K, even in deep south, forget about north east or west.
That's the deal with US built houses and US contractors - you never know when next big item needs repair and how much they will rip you off for it. Just to replace some windows/doors which suddenly lost thermal seal can run $5K+, then your AC stops cooling due to freon leak, another $2K to fix, and so on.
American contractors is another thing I would never want to deal with again - 95% have no skills, very low to no moral, and never want to compete and give you a reasonable price.
If you don't like how the US works you should leave and move to whichever country you prefer.
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.
