First-time home buyers, need advice (Falls Church: rental, HOA, condos)

[Ajb74100]

Originally Posted by spencgr

You won't find a single town home that doesn't have an HOA fee. Certainly, not as expensive as condo fees, but another expense nonetheless.

Oh yeah, I know that at least . Condo fees just seem to getting more and more outrageous though.

[ChristineVA]

Originally Posted by Ajb74100

Oh yeah, I know that at least . Condo fees just seem to getting more and more outrageous though.

Condo fees are outrageous. I wouldn't buy a condo for that very reason unless I absolutely did not want to mess with any type of maintenance at all and needed/really desired some of the amenities that condo living might offer. I know it's not for me. My coworker pays $800 per month in condo fees in DC.

[leavingwash]

Originally Posted by Ajb74100

So, it wouldn't be to find a lender first? Or doesn't matter?

I have a different opinion than some that have posted previously. I would recommend finding a good lender that you trust. Lender would know all programs and best potential for you - lender can tell you the price range you are qualified for and what that means from a payment perspective...and you can then determine if you are comfortable going that high or what price range you would prefer to stay under. IMO getting a lender first is optimum.

Also, for me, I have had very good success working with Redfin both on a buy and sell perspective. For a buy standpoint, if you elected to work with a Redfin agent you would get a rebate back at closing for part of their commission (which is paid by seller). that can be put towards closing costs if you prefer. And no - I am not affiliated with them other than having been happy with utilizing them on my two Sterling purchases and one Sterling sell of home.

Good luck.

[SmartMoney]

I can tell you right off you need to decide what payment you want to pay. Just taking what you posted at face value, meaning a lender will calculate income as you gave (no commissions? Bonus income without two year track record)? The reason I say this is I can without even pulling a calculator out, qualify you for a 500K+ purchase, and payment around $3100, maybe $3300, which is a lot more than what you are considering. I suspect your ultimate choice will be between the desired payment and the max payment mentioned here.

Don't buy a home for its payment. If you settle, and don't get what you really want, you will be making a very expensive mistake, a purchase that's 100's of 1000's. I've seen people buy in areas that were sketchy - price drove them there. One even experienced a home invasion the first week in the new home. Ashburn is a great community, you won't have those worries, but the idea of compromising on what you want can create challenges you can't begin to think of. A good Realtor won't push you into something you can't afford or really don't want. And make sure you don't buy where you will be unhappy before two years is up.

Your credit is great, you have a down payment. There are great 1st time homebuyer programs, but you don't really need them. Most of those programs are priced for someone with nothing to little down. With your down payment, you could do an 80/10/10 and avoid mortgage insurance altogether. You have lots of options.

[johnsonkk]

Another option could be to live in an area with $250k townhouses and enjoy a much lower mortgage payment and get a bigger headstart on life.

[blindside]

Originally Posted by Ajb74100

Hi everyone. First time user on this board and first time home buyers (maybe)! My husband and I are both 30, living in Arlington and are thinking of purchasing a home in the Ashburn area, due to high rents and just needing more living space (current rent is $1850 for a 1 br and that's pretty cheap for Arlington).

How much house can we afford? Our combined income is about $100k, and we have about 50k saved up that we can use for down payment. We've seen several townhouse style condos that run between 350-370k that we really like and have just the right amount of space for us. We have one car payment,one student loan, no CC debt, no kids and probably won't for another 3-5 years, and both have 750+ credit scores. Our issue is we have NO IDEA how to buy a home. Just the other day, a sales person from an open house was mentioning an FHA loan to me and I still don't know what that is. What would be our first steps?

Thanks!

Yikes, ditto for staying away from the FHA loan. Lots of fees, if you have good scores, you can qualify for a conventional.

A few ideas for you to consider:

- 50K hopefully in addition to your emergency fund (3-6 months of expenses).

- I personally would be debt free (no student loan and no car payment).

- I personally would take a 15 year fixed rate mortgage after a 50K downpayment.


but the big question..
Where do you work? You want to commute from Ashburn -> DC everyday? Yikes.

[Old Guard]

Originally Posted by Ajb74100

We may skip looking at condos for the very reason of wanting to avoid condo fees. We work in Chantilly and Reston so the commute shouldn't be terrible (I think). I would gladly stay where I am if I worked in DC

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

Condo fees are outrageous. I wouldn't buy a condo for that very reason unless I absolutely did not want to mess with any type of maintenance at all and needed/really desired some of the amenities that condo living might offer. I know it's not for me. My coworker pays $800 per month in condo fees in DC.

First, you did not mention it so I do not think it is applicable but if either of you have served and you are eligible for a VA loan I would start there.

Even though you "Have 50K" for a down payment I would reserve some for emergencies and what you will need to buy when you move in. Do not go into the new home maxes out and unable to buy simple things or be unable to manage an emergency. The rates are low and if you can keep some savings do it.

Come up with requirements. Three bedrooms, 2.5 baths...etc.

Then start looking at real estate sites and seeing what the prices are like. These are not the best. Some houses are listed on some sites that sold long ago, but I hope it would give you an idea of the costs in an area.

Then get a real estate agent and start going out and looking.

Also not all condo fees are crazy. The ones in high rises are generally more expensive than the ones in garden style apartment condos. Also I have seen town homes with $600 a month HOA fees so look at those carefully.

Good luck.

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by Old Guard

Also not all condo fees are crazy. The ones in high rises are generally more expensive than the ones in garden style apartment condos. Also I have seen town homes with $600 a month HOA fees so look at those carefully.

I urge you to look at the health of all HOAs carefully. I know someone who bought into a nice newish townhouse (not in the NOVA area) only to find out that the HOA had NO funds. Within 6 months of buying the townhouse, the community did not have enough funds to pay the property insurance bill. Turns out that the community was not professionally managed, but being managed by volunteer property owners. There were too many properties that were not paying their HOA fees and the HOA couldn't pay the insurance company or the landscape company. HOAs should have a reserve fund.

I know another person, who finally sold a condo (also not in NOVA) because the HOA had a reputation for "special assessments" to the tune of 3-4X the quarterly assessment every couple of years.

[kww]

Originally Posted by Old Guard

Also I have seen town homes with $600 a month HOA fees so look at those carefully.

can't say I've ever seen an HOA fee that high.. Condo fees, definitely.

Do you remember where it was (if in northern VA)?

[Middlin]

Do yourself a favor and take a class if you aren't the type to google a bunch of information and glean a lot from it. I see these classes offered all the time in my local paper and I bet you can find an adult ed class on first time home buying in Arlington.