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If you choose to have both you & your spouse working in order to afford the high end price home that you chose to buy, and then complain about the high cost of living here in Huntsville, that is your prerogative. But don't criticize others for making a different choice.
You have a good day now.
BTW, if you read the posts, you'd note, that we are a single income family, not dual income. Our choices were made years ago. So the complaints made are comparing high cost of living here as a single income homeowner to where we transplanted from. And who is criticizing? If someone wants to buy a cardboard shack for 200K or less in, yes, even a decent school district (but mind the neighbors and Elem schools), then go for it.
BTW, if you read the posts, you'd note, that we are a single income family, not dual income. Our choices were made years ago. So the complaints made are comparing high cost of living here as a single income homeowner to where we transplanted from. And who is criticizing? If someone wants to buy a cardboard shack for 200K or less in, yes, even a decent school district (but mind the neighbors and Elem schools), then go for it.
Who am I to judge?
Have a good day.
You absolutely can get a nice, well built 3 bed/2 bath home in some of the best school districts for $200K or less. The average $/sqft in the nicest areas is $100-150. Do the math, you can get a decent sized home. Is it ia mansion? No. Will it have granite counter tops, a glamour bath and 1/2 acre lot. No. But you can get a nice house an a 1/4 acre lot. You can even get new construction in some areas or you could get a home in a nicer established neighborhood. A good friend of mine bought a 2000sqft home 2 years ago in Madison, brand new, all brick construction, 3 bedrooms + an office, gorgeous kitchen, incredible master suite, on about 1/5 of an acre...for $215K. And this was before the market started dropping. In Blossomwood or Jones Valley, you'll be looking at a fixer-upper but in Madison, Monrovia, even some of the neighborhoods around Hampton Cove you can find a nice home in the $200K range...
Did someone tell you that "move to Huntsville, they'll just give you a mansion and you'll be SO happy!"
Did someone tell you that "move to Huntsville, they'll just give you a mansion and you'll be SO happy!"
No. Low cost of living was touted. The cost of buying a new home is cheaper than DC, but the overall day to day costs are not. Groceries are the same, going out to eat is the same cost, and gas was, for a time, mysteriously the same dollar amount as DC (after last year's storms--I believe the state investigated price gauging on that one).
I'm happy wherever I am planted. However, I am not pleased with the non-disclosure laws and CC&R being used to create income streams. I would be a lot happier if the CC&R were turned over to our HOA Board.
Do I love it here? No. This is not the mecca some posters try to make it out to be and I think the purpose of this forum is to inform people considering a move here about all the aspects of living here. Not just the pros. The pros are there... and I have touted them. However the CC&R, the aesthetically unappealing curbsides, and the lack of variety of restaurants are also part of the picture.
No. Low cost of living was touted. The cost of buying a new home is cheaper than DC, but the overall day to day costs are not. Groceries are the same, going out to eat is the same cost, and gas was, for a time, mysteriously the same dollar amount as DC (after last year's storms--I believe the state investigated price gauging on that one).
I'm happy wherever I am planted. However, I am not pleased with the non-disclosure laws and CC&R being used to create income streams. I would be a lot happier if the CC&R were turned over to our HOA Board.
Do I love it here? No. This is not the mecca some posters try to make it out to be and I think the purpose of this forum is to inform people considering a move here about all the aspects of living here. Not just the pros. The pros are there... and I have touted them. However the CC&R, the aesthetically unappealing curbsides, and the lack of variety of restaurants are also part of the picture.
The big ticket items are cheaper, namely: housing costs, property taxes, state income taxes, utilities... Yes, groceries and restaurants are about the same as anywhere else in the country. Grocery prices are set by national chains with distribution centers all over the country. Overall, the cost of living is much, much less than DC, CA, Boston, Seattle...ie other places that have a robust high tech job market. Of course, a prospective resident will have to sacrifice some amenities for that lower cost of living.
Everywhere that I've lived, I've found that your circle of friends is what makes it an enjoyable place or not. We have a wonderful group of friends. Maybe it is because this area is so family oriented and we are in that stage of our lives with young children. I like that all of our friends live within 15-20 minutes of us. Where we lived before, everyone was so spread out. It might be an hour to go over to a friends house for dinner because they lived on the other side of the metro area. Therefore, you don't go very often.
I think the people in this forum have discussed the pros and cons of Huntsville with prospective newcomers very candidly. We do not seem to have the "homers" that other forums have.
Everywhere that I've lived, I've found that your circle of friends is what makes it an enjoyable place or not. We have a wonderful group of friends. Maybe it is because this area is so family oriented and we are in that stage of our lives with young children. I like that all of our friends live within 15-20 minutes of us. Where we lived before, everyone was so spread out. It might be an hour to go over to a friends house for dinner because they lived on the other side of the metro area. Therefore, you don't go very often.
I think this is a great place to raise young children. Everything is very accessible and it is a perfect environment for people with kids. We also love the fact that we can spend more time getting to know our colleagues. That was not the case in DC.
We were fortunate in DC to not let the driving distances and traffic impede our enjoyment of the area. We did avail ourselves of many of the amenities it provided both in the city and out in the country.
We are the kind of people who plant roots wherever we live and we make friends quickly and easily. Altho' we are unhappy with the CC&R situation and the non-disclosure, good old boy attitudes we don't regret the move.
However, as parents of an older child, ready to graduate HS, we don't see ourselves staying for more than 7 more years. It simply doesn't provide the bigger city amenities we enjoyed in DC and around the world. The main one is the lack of affordable flights to Europe and across the USA--we can drive to B'ham and Nville for city life if we desire.
Hi Elizabeth, when we were looking a year ago we could not find any decent resales that were NOT overpriced and needed alot of work. I think at the time and wonder if it still is that most homeowners have no clue what the market is really and real estate agents believed all the hype that Huntsville market was insulated from what happened elsewhere. We got so disgusted with the resale market we went new and found a builder who was willing even last year to work with us. Those big number builder/developers and even our old builder in MAdison wouldn't work with us or give on price. Now I bet they would but in the end we got what we wanted (no slab) and alot of upgrades from the builder and a developer that did give us the C&R when I asked for them before signing. In the end we also made a calculated decision to trust the situation and hope that the developement goes as planned. We saw a vision that no one else had at the time for green space galore and trails and it was convenient to hubby's work. We took a chance and we still feel ok about the decision in the long run. But, our experience with the Huntsville real estate market was not pleasant or fun. Just so glad to not be looking for a home right now.
You're talking OLIVE HOMES, HUNTER HOMES, BRELAND HOMES and other substandard builders. I would rather rent than buy those homes and be stuck in them.
My questions is what happens with the aforementioned-built houses as RESALES? ARe the subsequent buyers asking the seller "who built this?", say 10 yr and 5 owners later? There are mixed-builder communities mind you. How can you tell? What is substandard with these builders? The structural part or the finishes (vinyl tile vs. ceramic, laminate vs granite counter)? These upgrades could be done by a previous owner.
At the price you're talking you're looking at cheap products in iffy school districts; or a bit more expensive in a slightly better school district. You're talking OLIVE HOMES, HUNTER HOMES, BRELAND HOMES and other substandard builders. I would rather rent than buy those homes and be stuck in them.
But, hey, mortgage free is nice.
And staying home is a nice idea.
But: be careful what you wish for... you may find, after being in the real world with adults and financial rewards, that staying home with kidlets and the whole crazy uber stay at home mom world might not be your cup of tea.
As Erma Bombeck said: the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence OR if life is a bowl of cherries, why am i living in the pits?
SAHM is not for the faint of heart...
Heh... No worries.
Sorry I wasn't clear. If we wanted to get into a 200k home, we could have no mortgage. BUT, we'll likely take a mortgage to get into something more, or to get into a cheap house that we can fix up. We're not timid in that aspect. We live in a big new house right now, but we've both lived in older homes, and we're leaning towards an older, more established and walkable neighborhood.
But even with a mortgage, we're talking maybe 100k-150k (give or take 50k). I know people, not us, luckily, in the DC area with 300k-400k mortgages, no joke. Even if restaurants and flights are going to be more expensive, that's a big difference in monthly payments. This is why some people think that they're going to have a different quality of life. But you're right - I haven't actually lived it yet. I do know that I'd love to get rid of my hour and 20 commute each way...
Schools... we'd be coming from a slightly different situation than a lot of NoVA families. There are few schools in Huntsville with *lower* ratings than the schools in our particular area. So really, there's nowhere to go but up. When the time comes, I also won't just be looking at bare scores, because I know that it's possible for a kid to get a good education in a school with lower test scores if the programs and attitudes are right.
Are you a SAHM right now? I have been there - I stayed home with my first son for just over a year, and I loved it (and know how tough it can be). He'd be in pre-k or kindergarten (depending on timing), and my younger son will be starting pre-k next year. Within a year, I'd be part time mom, half time student. That's the grandiose plan, that is.
Back to the topic of the thread - I looked up info on these neighborhoods, and I wish there was more. If we can't find an older neighborhood, I'd like to find one built more on traditional neighborhood principles (access alleys and the like) - those are harder to find without being terribly expensive, though. Chances are these will be cul-de-sac-laden, more garage than house typical neighborhood. *sigh* A girl can hope.
These boards *have* been helpful to read. We know we won't make any decisions either way until we drive around and visit, but it's been nice to read a variety of viewpoints.
Friday13--I would guess the non-disclosure laws would help the sales, and I'm sure there will be a market for the cheaper houses. We wanted quality and we did pay for it.
Mawoods: We experienced a similar fountain of denial when we first started looking. Fortunately, our real estate agent did negotiate a great price for us, but I agree. I am glad we're through looking. I know of another gal who got up and walked away from a new home sale because the developer's rep wouldn't negotiate with them or their realtor.
Maybe he would now that the realities of the market have come to haunt the area. There are a lot of foreclosures here--auctions--etc. I hope that the market stabilizes and we get our money out of this investment when we resell. But much will depend on the ebb and flow of demand.
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When the time comes, I also won't just be looking at bare scores, because I know that it's possible for a kid to get a good education in a school with lower test scores if the programs and attitudes are right.
