Where is better to buy condo (Reston, Manassas: real estate market, rent, mortgage)

[michael216]

Hello!
I want to buy a condo or townhouse. I live with my wife and newborn. We cannot decide where to buy. What is better option for living and for the future resale.
I work from home, my wife currently is working in Fairfax, but she will look for another job in two years.

First option: North Reston, new construction. 1-2 floor condo, 1600 sq ft, $600 K. (3 bedroom), 2 miles from the metro, $237 HOA. Stanley Martin

Second option: 5 minutes drive from One Loudoun, Kincora, new construction, 3-4 floor condo, 2500 sq ft, $475 K (3 bedroom), $210 HOA. Lennar

Third option: Brambleton townhouse, new construction, 2800 sq ft, $650 K (4 bedroom), $220 HOA. Miller and Smith

We want to leave there no more than 5 years and sell it.

[ozzyngcsu]

Due to your 5 year time frame and the current uncertainty in the real estate market due to COVID 19, I would go with the cheaper option. Keep in mind that with new construction you are generally paying a 15-20% premium compared to resales, so combining that with the possibility of a downturn in the real estate market you could be way underwater in 5 yrs. Obviously no one knows what will happen in the future but if I were in your shoes I would go with option 2 in order to reduce the downside if things are bad.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by michael216

Hello!
I want to buy a condo or townhouse. I live with my wife and newborn. We cannot decide where to buy. What is better option for living and for the future resale.
I work from home, my wife currently is working in Fairfax, but she will look for another job in two years.

First option: North Reston, new construction. 1-2 floor condo, 1600 sq ft, $600 K. (3 bedroom), 2 miles from the metro, $237 HOA. Stanley Martin

Second option: 5 minutes drive from One Loudoun, Kincora, new construction, 3-4 floor condo, 2500 sq ft, $475 K (3 bedroom), $210 HOA. Lennar

Third option: Brambleton townhouse, new construction, 2800 sq ft, $650 K (4 bedroom), $220 HOA. Miller and Smith

We want to leave there no more than 5 years and sell it.

This just blows my mind. I realize it is now near a metro but damn. My first townhome in Manassas and was $62,000. I had trouble writing the first check for the mortgage payment and told my wife she needed to start writing them. That $600 K would buy an unbelievable home with at least 5 acres out here in Shenandoah County.

[NOVA_guy]

Obviously this is a forum where people ask questions but... this depends on what you want, which area you like more and what your long term ultimate plan. That’s something you have to decide for yourself.

[NOVA_guy]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

This just blows my mind. I realize it is now near a metro but damn. My first townhome in Manassas and was $62,000. I had trouble writing the first check for the mortgage payment and told my wife she needed to start writing them. That $600 K would buy an unbelievable home with at least 5 acres out here in Shenandoah County.

Yeah, as someone that grew up here it’s fascinating. This area was always known as boring, a bit sleepy and a place with lots of government jobs. Not exactly fun or exciting so to see people paying close to $1M for a condo or TH is interesting but NoVa has changed a lot. I’d say it probably has more in common with Massachusetts or Connecticut nowadays whereas back in the day it was similar to North Carolina or one of those kinds of states.

[Sdbu679]

I agree with what ozzy said. Since you're not planning to live there longer than five years, and with current market unknowns, option 2 might be best. Also, even though Kincora is further out than Reston, it's along Route 7, which I think is more convenient for commuting, and more accessible to shopping/retail (whatever remains after the pandemic) than Brambleton.

I'm actually familiar with the exact floorplans you're describing (we previously lived in one of those stacked townhouse condo unit floorplans).

If you're looking at the product types I'm thinking of, the 3-4 floor back-to-back townhouse condo by Lennar has been sought-after more than the 2-story stacked townhouse condo floorplans because of noise issues, and will likely be easier to sell when you're ready to leave. With a newborn, you don't want to plunk down a lot of money, only to have a noisy neighbor above or below you. Since you guys are relatively young, the stairs shouldn't be any different from a typical townhouse.

[michael216]

Thanks for opinions. I also prefer Kincora because of cost. The only reason why I have doubts about Kincora is that, in connection with the current economic situation, I am afraid that all the buildings that are planned (not residential) will be frozen and we will have to live in the midst of construction for all 5 years

[oneasterisk]

I'm throwing this out there since you mentioned wanting to sell in 5 years. There are a lot of transaction costs when buying and selling a house so that may eat into any perceived profit you may have. Typically when you buy there is 1-2% in closing costs. When you sell, there is about 6-7% closing costs. If home values go up about 1% a year, then your transaction costs pretty much negate the increase in value. The first few years of a loan pretty much go towards interest on the loan, so principal reduction isn't much. If you're thinking it's good to have that tax deduction, it's been negated by the higher standard deduction (Nearly 25k if married filing jointly).

Renting is not that big of a deal and gives you the flexibility to move in case your wife's new job is not in an ideal location from where you live.

Just something to think about.

[phobos512]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

This just blows my mind. I realize it is now near a metro but damn. My first townhome in Manassas and was $62,000. I had trouble writing the first check for the mortgage payment and told my wife she needed to start writing them. That $600 K would buy an unbelievable home with at least 5 acres out here in Shenandoah County.

There are plenty of single family detached homes in Herndon/Reston for much cheaper than that. I know because I get listings from my realtor daily on this area, it's one of several we're looking at. This guy is looking at high end luxury garage condo/townhomes to find that kind of pricing.

[Hiker-biker]

I would rent. Fives years is risking it as already explained. The down payment and carrying costs of a condo are not worth it when you could rent an older house and invest the extra cash.