Moving to Oldham County (Lexington, Louisville: renting, mortgage, credit)

[nnali]

Hi,

My husband is being relocated to KY, and we have been seriously considering Oldham County because of the schools. We had been focusing our search in Prospect in the neighborhoods of Moser Farms, Glen Oaks and Hunters Ridge because although we would like the schools of Oldham we don't really want to feel like we are so far out of the city life or don't at least have quick access to it. I haven't found a home I love in our price range in those neighborhoods so I was looking at houses on-line and was seeing that we may have an easier time getting what we are looking for in a home if we open up our search to Crestwood. So my question is based on the following criteria for which we are looking at in a home, would you recommend we search in Crestwood also, or any additional areas???

And are there any specific neighbhorhoods you would recommend??? We would like a neighborhood with good chance of easy resale since we get moved every few years.

OK so here's some additional info.

1. My husband will be calling on accounts in Louisville and in WV so he would like to be able to get to Louisville easily and be able to access highways to get him going toward WV

2. We are looking to spend approx 300K - 325K for a 4 BR home and would love to have a basement (either finished or unfinished)

3. We would love a newer home (10 years or less) with upgrades in the kitchen

4. We love the feel of suburbia and would love to be in a neighborhood with young, friendly families like our own (we have 3 boys aged 2, 4, and 6)

5. We want to be relatively close to Target and/or other shopping and restaurant areas and parks

Thanks in advance for any info you can share!

[tomocox]

Originally Posted by nnali

Hi,

My husband is being relocated to KY, and we have been seriously considering Oldham County because of the schools. We had been focusing our search in Prospect in the neighborhoods of Moser Farms, Glen Oaks and Hunters Ridge because although we would like the schools of Oldham we don't really want to feel like we are so far out of the city life or don't at least have quick access to it. I haven't found a home I love in our price range in those neighborhoods so I was looking at houses on-line and was seeing that we may have an easier time getting what we are looking for in a home if we open up our search to Crestwood. So my question is based on the following criteria for which we are looking at in a home, would you recommend we search in Crestwood also, or any additional areas???

And are there any specific neighbhorhoods you would recommend??? We would like a neighborhood with good chance of easy resale since we get moved every few years.

OK so here's some additional info.

1. My husband will be calling on accounts in Louisville and in WV so he would like to be able to get to Louisville easily and be able to access highways to get him going toward WV From the west end of Oldham County, it's a simple ride to the Gene Snyder (I-265) to I-64 towards Lexington. When the six lane widening is complete, it will be a very smooth ride. From the east end (LaGrange/Ballardsville area) it's a short hop across KY 53 to Shelbyville.

2. We are looking to spend approx 300K - 325K for a 4 BR home and would love to have a basement (either finished or unfinished) Lots of that value homes here now for very good pricing values.

3. We would love a newer home (10 years or less) with upgrades in the kitchen Most Oldham County homes have been built within the past 20 years. Depending on the size of lot/land you need. The older the home, the more likely the larger lot. With all the features you might imagine.

4. We love the feel of suburbia and would love to be in a neighborhood with young, friendly families like our own (we have 3 boys aged 2, 4, and 6) Briar Hill fits your lifestyle perfectly. Lots of kids, ease to and from Louisville, Interstates, etc.

5. We want to be relatively close to Target and/or other shopping and restaurant areas and parks 10 minutes or less to Target, Costco, Meijer, Kroger, super-Walmarts, food from fast to class all around. Oldham community parks are great, three modern malls, plus several upscale shops & trade centers as well. Three state parks within 15-30 minute drive.

Thanks in advance for any info you can share!

Until someone has lived in Oldham County, there is simply no way to understand what we who do live here know about it. We have our issues, not everyone can be satisfied but 99/100 people discover living in Oldham County as almost ideal.

[emom975]

I am facing the same situation and can't find any newer housing in our price range. We will be renting til we find a house that we feel is worth the price. Could be quite some time from all our house hunting so far. Good luck! Keep us updated on what you find and where you buy!

[spence425]

no offense emom, but if you can't find housing that you feel "is worth the price" now, then you will likely be waiting quite a long time.

[emom975]

[quote=spence425;14591422]no offense emom, but if you can't find housing that you feel "is worth the price" now, then you will likely be waiting quite a long time.[/quote
really? cause i'm sitting looking at all these houses on the market. many are dropping the prices and just looked at one 479,000 today and had to leave because it was in a newer neighborhood but so outdated it would take alot to fix it up. . .yes there are some good buys out there but I'm not finding what I'm looking for in my price range. yes we are sitting prequalified just waiting to buy a home. lived in enough cities and built a custom home to know what we feel a home is worth. even if you calculate the lot is worth 100,000 it doesn't add up. perfectly happy renting in the city at this point!

[emom975]

Originally Posted by spence425

no offense emom, but if you can't find housing that you feel "is worth the price" now, then you will likely be waiting quite a long time.

also, most people realize a bigger housing bubble is on the horizon. . .now louisville will most likely be an exception but the housing crisis in most of the country is far from over. I don't want to make money I just want to break even on a house if we need to move in 3 yrs. So we are taking our time and looking around. when interest rates go up do the housing prices go up? I somehow doubt it but I could easily be wrong. We are willing to take the risk.

[tomocox]

Originally Posted by emom975

also, most people realize a bigger housing bubble is on the horizon. . .now louisville will most likely be an exception but the housing crisis in most of the country is far from over. I don't want to make money I just want to break even on a house if we need to move in 3 yrs. So we are taking our time and looking around. when interest rates go up do the housing prices go up? I somehow doubt it but I could easily be wrong. We are willing to take the risk.

Normally, interest rates going up pushes home prices down. This happens when there is a normal free market. The issue right now is there is plenty of money to be loaned, but even with higher rates for people with lower creditability the mortgage market is absolutely scared to death and is sitting rather than risking any loans except for perfection.

A political note: So long as the President of the United States and the Congress are hell bent on raising taxes, people who are hiring are not offering secure jobs. Secure jobs are required to make long term loans such as mortgages, and small businesses can't borrow capitalization funding because lenders are afraid of the long term.

[savvywoman]

You might want to consider The Reserve at L'Esprit in La Grange. The problem with Crestwood is that most the housing is back along winding roads that take quite some time to traverse. Once you are in Crestwood proper it's a short hop to just about anywhere in the greater Louisville area, however, Crestwood has also become very congested due to overbuilding without considering the impact to traffic. La Grange isn't as overbuilt but still has the easy access to the interstate.

[Queen Louis]

There are several good neighborhoods in Crestwood area in that price range. I have also included Centerfield in this discussion because it's close to Crestwood (it even shares the postal address with Crestwood), and there a lot of good options in that area. Heritage Hills, Stone Ridge, Northridge Farms, Spring Hill, Abbott Grove, and Briar Hill Estates just to name a few. A couple I named may be more in the 10-20 year old range (Northridge and Spring Hill), and Briar Hill may be slightly above your price range (more like 340K+), but you get the idea.

I would lean away from LaGrange from what you're saying just because I wouldn't consider LaGrange suburbia, and it is quite a long drive to get to any good shopping beyond Walmart. The east end of Oldham County sounds like the perfect choice for you because of the proximity to shopping, interstates, downtown, etc. I have two boys myself, and I love living in Oldham County but close to the Jefferson County line. Briar Hill Estates is the closest to that end of town out of the neighborhoods I've listed. I've sold houses in that neighborhood before, and my clients were very happy with the neighborhood.

I hope I've helped!