Inexpensive housing around Lake Oswego (Portland, Clackamas: to rent, co-ops, mortgages)

[Minervah]

Craigs List is good but as a long time renter I can tell you that walking around a neighborhood is best. The one drawback is that you need to be lucky enough when a For Rent sign is put out. They can be few and far between. And be prepared to pounce, these places are rented out within days or sometimes even hours after the signs are posted.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to contact a rental management company. I don't think realtors handle rentals. How high a rent you want to pay will determine your neighborhood.

[christiner81]

i think i paid that kind of rent 10 years ago in college when i shared a room in an apartment in Indiana. I kind of want to ask what salary you're going to be making (i'm rude like that), because your rent price expectations are not realistic at all. will you be working full time?

[Nell Plotts]

Landlords will be asking about income on the tenant application. IMHO rent should not exceed 25-30% of wages because the tenant will be paying some utilities and many want cable and wifi.

[HiggsBoson]

Honestly if $450 is your max you are going to need a roommate. I see a lot of decent options for rooms for rent on craigslist for that price.

[Nell Plotts]

Absolutely! And a roommate can also help socially.

[2bpurrfect]

Originally Posted by ShamrockB

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I have never been to Oregon before and didn't realize everything was going to be so expensive.

Would it be more cost efficient to buy a cheap foreclosure? I've seen quite a few places in good shape on redfin for equal to or less than $100,000. If so, would the addition of property taxes (I've heard they're high in Oregon) negate any monthly savings I might get from buying as opposed to renting a place?

i saw this calculator and thought you might want to use it. you are right to ask this question. Many many landlords you will rent from, are merely taking all the costs of buying and then tacking a bit of cushion or profit on top of their costs of buying the unit. So that the rental amount is higher than the purchase costs and that would include all costs like repairs, taxes, etc. Buying a home is complex and so you do need to find out a great deal before you go into something like that.

ok this calculator shows the costs of renting vs costs of buying over a period of time, for the same house.


Is It Better to Buy or Rent? - Interactive Graphic - NYTimes.com



note, if the graphic has too small of font,there may be other similar calculators out there....
*

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by ShamrockB

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I have never been to Oregon before and didn't realize everything was going to be so expensive.

Would it be more cost efficient to buy a cheap foreclosure? I've seen quite a few places in good shape on redfin for equal to or less than $100,000. If so, would the addition of property taxes (I've heard they're high in Oregon) negate any monthly savings I might get from buying as opposed to renting a place?

You will want to check out the neighborhoods where these houses are. If they are in areas that may be a difficult commute to work or if they are in not so great neighborhoods inexpensive may not be such a good deal.

[davemess10]

Originally Posted by 2bpurrfect

Many many landlords you will rent from, are merely taking all the costs of buying and then tacking a bit of cushion or profit on top of their costs of buying the unit. So that the rental amount is higher than the purchase costs and that would include all costs like repairs, taxes, etc.

Isn't that the definition of a landlord? Someone who has the financial means to buy a property and is then responsible for it instead of the renter? Would you expect them to be operating at no profit out of the benevolence of their hearts?

I can't stress the carefree aspect of renting enough. I have owned my first house for about 9 months now, and it's a lot of work and takes up a lot of your free time. I knew this going in, and I'm okay with it. But there is definitely the benefit of having less responsibility and more free time when renting that many people just don't factor in. And for a younger person I think this is much more important.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by davemess10

But there is definitely the benefit of having less responsibility and more free time when renting that many people just don't factor in. And for a younger person I think this is much more important.

Quoting, as I bought a fixer upper just before the market totally crashed. It's been three years of long work, and it seems every time I turn around there is a new problem to address.

[Minervah]

When I first moved to Portland in the late 70's I had enough for a down payment for a nice house in a nice area. For most of my life I had been a renter. So I rented a cute little craftsman
house for a year to see what it would be like. Work, work, work. I was responsible for all the yard work and shovling snow when needed which was something I never had to do as an apartment renter.

I had to pay for all utilities including water and garbage which although I realize is factored into a rental cost, was still higher for a individual paying rent on a house than any apartment I had ever lived in.

The owner of the house had to come by to fix things fairly often. I realized home ownership was not for me. I loved to travel and was away from home a lot. I wouldn't have had the time, money or patience for home ownership. For me renting was the way to go hands down.

I would have considered purchasing a co-op apartment if they had them here in Portland but that is not the case. So I have been a life long renter and have not regretted it.