Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,779 posts, read 15,793,171 times
Reputation: 10888
Quote:
Originally Posted by annabanana123
Buy with the intention of staying put. If you would have to move for schools I'd just buy in wake co to start with.
This. Don't forget that moving is EXPENSIVE! Closing costs, Realtor fees, movers, cleaning up, fix-its, etc. You may be looking at $30K to move, depending on the price of your home. Plus, you may end up making good friends and be sad to leave them. Move where you want to live, not where it's cheap, unless you absolutely cannot afford where you want to live.
This. Don't forget that moving is EXPENSIVE! Closing costs, Realtor fees, movers, cleaning up, fix-its, etc. You may be looking at $30K to move, depending on the price of your home. Plus, you may end up making good friends and be sad to leave them. Move where you want to live, not where it's cheap, unless you absolutely cannot afford where you want to live.
For my situation, we were looking at starter home pricing (~$250K) for our first home purchase with the idea that we would eventually use the equity to get our forever home for us and kids. Durham Co gave us much more bang for the buck and it worked out well in my situation since I was able to get the home I wanted while spending only ~$200K. Its all about doing the math to determine whether the higher price is worth it when really the only benefit of Wake Co pricing is the school system. For me it made sense to get a cheaper house, get a 15 year mortgage to build equity faster, and save the money left over from a lower mortgage to have significant savings on hand when buying the forever house.
I second the recommendation to not buy new construction. I'd work with a knowledgeable realtor and look at existing homes within a reasonable commute to your job. I'd also second the idea that moving when you have kids may be easier said than done and can be quite expensive.
For my situation, we were looking at starter home pricing (~$250K) for our first home purchase with the idea that we would eventually use the equity to get our forever home for us and kids. Durham Co gave us much more bang for the buck and it worked out well in my situation since I was able to get the home I wanted while spending only ~$200K. Its all about doing the math to determine whether the higher price is worth it when really the only benefit of Wake Co pricing is the school system. For me it made sense to get a cheaper house, get a 15 year mortgage to build equity faster, and save the money left over from a lower mortgage to have significant savings on hand when buying the forever house.
The lower tax rate is significant as well. Really can make a difference and wipes out much of the benefit of lower pricing that Durham offers.
The lower tax rate is significant as well. Really can make a difference and wipes out much of the benefit of lower pricing that Durham offers.
That's fake news. It's well understood that counties adjust property tax values when the cost of housing is higher or lower so they can have consistent revenue.
Anyway Durham's lower pricing will still be good for your mortgage.
That's fake news. It's well understood that counties adjust property tax values when the cost of housing is higher or lower so they can have consistent revenue.
That's a different issue from the one you're quoting.
The post you're quoting is making the point that if you have the same house in Durham and Wake, you will pay more in annual property on the Durham one even if the house itself costs 10% less or whatever, due to Durham's higher tax rate. It can amount to $500-1000 more a year in taxes on equivalent houses, depending on what the price differential is in reality.
Example: On a $300,000 house in Raleigh, you'd pay $3120.90 in property taxes in 2017. If the exact same house costs $270,000 in Durham, you'd pay $3512.97 in property tax on it. So even though it's cheaper to buy in Durham, you pay an extra $400 a year in taxes.
Granted, in this theoretical example it would take 75 years of higher taxes to completely make up for the difference in purchase price (also discounting the fact that appreciation and tax rates would change over that time, as well as interest effects related to the lower purchase and mortgage amounts), but it's a factor worth considering.
Completely separate from a specific county adjusting tax rates with reassessments to maintain revenue levels as you're talking about.
That's a different issue from the one you're quoting.
The post you're quoting is making the point that if you have the same house in Durham and Wake, you will pay more in annual property on the Durham one even if the house itself costs 10% less or whatever, due to Durham's higher tax rate. It can amount to $500-1000 more a year in taxes on equivalent houses, depending on what the price differential is in reality.
Example: On a $300,000 house in Raleigh, you'd pay $3120.90 in property taxes in 2017. If the exact same house costs $270,000 in Durham, you'd pay $3512.97 in property tax on it. So even though it's cheaper to buy in Durham, you pay an extra $400 a year in taxes.
Granted, in this theoretical example it would take 75 years of higher taxes to completely make up for the difference in purchase price (also discounting the fact that appreciation and tax rates would change over that time, as well as interest effects related to the lower purchase and mortgage amounts), but it's a factor worth considering.
Completely separate from a specific county adjusting tax rates with reassessments to maintain revenue levels as you're talking about.
All I'm saying is it's a variable number. Balancing for tax and appreciation Durham and wake tax are tuned similarly. So the money you get buying cheaper in Durham is still real money.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
