Long Island- out of reach for first time home buyers? (Levittown: apartment, rental)

[gmagg]

HOT TOPIC- Now that we know Long Island is the third most expensive place to live in the country, thanks to another poster's contribution, is Long Island really out of reach for first time home buyers. I hear lots of young folk still living with their parents into their late 20's. For the age group 20-34, first time home buyers leaving your parents home or rental apartment in search of your own place, are you having difficulty affording the housing? What are you doing in order to afford a condo, townhouse, single family, etc. Did you decide it was best to relocate? If so, where to?

[modmondays]

Young people in this area (20-34) have ALWAYS struggeled with housing in our area....it is not a reflection of today's environment. It is a reflection of low entry-level salaries in most sectors - - coupled with traditionally high housing costs. This goes back at least to the early 1970's.

[Crookhaven]

With starter houses in the 2s, I dont think its out of reach at all.

Gen Y just wont start out small, the Boomers created their own needy basement dwellers by making everyone a winner everytime.

If you had a modest wedding (which has all but vanished) youd most likely net half a downpayment on small house or Condo.

Start saving.
This is your window opportunity to buy in

crooks

[sassieskier]

I think with the current state of the market, LI homeownership it's not so out of reach anymore.

We moved here from the Midwest almost four years ago and it was apparent to us that you either needed a high-paying job, save money by living with parents, or monetary help from your parents to get a house. We moved here to further our careers and in doing so increased our modest salaries by an average of 30% but with the increase in rent, transportation costs, it was almost a wash. Add in student loans (because we paid for college ourselves) and it was next to impossible to save a lot of money for a down payment on a "starter" home that costs $450k and needed a ton of work. (Starter homes in our hometowns were about $180k during the boom years.) Obviously we didn't have the option of living with parents and receiving monetary gifts from them was not going to happen.

Now, because of the downturn in the housing market, we are in contract for a 4bdrm, 2 bath home in a LI suburb with a nice sized lot for much less than the $450k starter home. It's further out East than we'd like, but if one of us loses our job, we can still afford it. We can afford a smaller place in a suburb closer to the city now too but we have started our family and we want to sit tight in a bigger home now instead of buying small and upgrading later. Most condos/coops were out of question for us since we are not willing to part with our large canine family member but they are much more affordable now.

I hope this economy gets my age group into homes on LI and not relocating elsewhere. The problem I still see is being able to save the essential 20% down payment if you aren't so fortunate to get money from parents or to live with them. I agree with Crooks that if you have a modest wedding and start out small, and are smart with your money, you can achieve home ownership on LI now.

[Crookhaven]

Originally Posted by sassieskier

I think with the current state of the market, LI homeownership it's not so out of reach anymore.

We moved here from the Midwest almost four years ago and it was apparent to us that you either needed a high-paying job, save money by living with parents, or monetary help from your parents to get a house. We moved here to further our careers and in doing so increased our modest salaries by an average of 30% but with the increase in rent, transportation costs, it was almost a wash. Add in student loans (because we paid for college ourselves) and it was next to impossible to save a lot of money for a down payment on a "starter" home that costs $450k and needed a ton of work. (Starter homes in our hometowns were about $180k during the boom years.) Obviously we didn't have the option of living with parents and receiving monetary gifts from them was not going to happen.

Now, because of the downturn in the housing market, we are in contract for a 4bdrm, 2 bath home in a LI suburb with a nice sized lot for much less than the $450k starter home. It's further out East than we'd like, but if one of us loses our job, we can still afford it. We can afford a smaller place in a suburb closer to the city now too but we have started our family and we want to sit tight in a bigger home now instead of buying small and upgrading later. Most condos/coops were out of question for us since we are not willing to part with our large canine family member but they are much more affordable now.

I hope this economy gets my age group into homes on LI and not relocating elsewhere. The problem I still see is being able to save the essential 20% down payment if you aren't so fortunate to get money from parents or to live with them. I agree with Crooks that if you have a modest wedding and start out small, and are smart with your money, you can achieve home ownership on LI now.

Exactly.

Gen Y needs to realize that there's no such thing as a starter McMansion on LI.
(Levittown didn't have em either back in the day)

We started out in a nice little beach cottage in Rocky Point and traded up in here town and LOVE IT.
(They're out there and easily expandable ,from Northport to Greenport if you look hard enough)

I always knew if the the economy tanked I may have to commute from Ronkonkoma, but at the end of the day if you love what your coming home to, its worth it.

At least Long Islanders have the Manhattan option, imagine being buried in NC or Vegas during the meltdown.
Id be freaking the F out.We're grateful to have some options.

crooks