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.
Great link and great stories and it's fun to see what people pay for homes in different parts of the country and how much their mortgage payments are and some are incredibly low. One has a $675 mortgage and was paying $875 for rent in an apartment.
We worked hard and saved money. Technically I'm a young GenX and my mate is an old millennial. We bought our first flip in the town where he went to college and have been trading in real estate ever since. We both worked 2-3 jobs at a time for several years. We still have multiple businesses and income streams. It's possible.
Lots of these stories have family help. We didn't. But we plan to help our child buy a house.
I bought my own home ( a townhome-style condo; much easier to manage and less maintenance) at 27 working for a non-profit in a fairly expensive/affluent college town on the edge of a larger metro area. I was able to get a loan that only required 3% down and my monthly payment is still under $900/month. The apartment I was renting before was $900/month at the time I moved out 3 years ago...and currently rents for $1200/month. If I were to sell this place now; I'd walk away with about $45k cash. I'm tempted but I also know I could rent it out long-term once I move on and have a positive cashflow for life from it.
No $$$ from my parents for the downpayment but I was fortunate enough to not have any student loans as they paid for my college so I know that makes a huge difference. I work in the RE industry now and have seen young singles and couples with VERY well paying jobs and good credit that can't buy a house because their student loans throw their debt-to-income ratio all out of wack. Or at least they can't buy one that really suits their needs.
I am one of a handful of single people in my peer group that I know who've bought a home; but the majority of my peers who are married/long term relationship own homes.
(yes I posted this same comment on the article itself...lol)
Last edited by TarHeelNick; 06-04-2019 at 08:05 PM..
It’s good to see millennials are buying homes. Yes it’s tough. Buying a home was always tough. People tend to look at the price and think “houses were cheap back then”. Yeah if you’re comparing numbers. Look at incomes.
I didn't read them all but it's interesting to see how many had help with the down payment or at least had their education paid for so they weren't juggling student loan payments AND a mortgage.
DS is in this generation and he had several factors in his favor. His Aunt (my Ex's sister) and I paid for his college education. She and her husband had an extremely successful business and she started putting money away for him when he was born. I paid half his education and she paid the other half. She had about $12K left in the account when he graduated and gave it to him (Uniform Gifts to Minors account, not a 529). He used that as the down payment but also borrowed through a program similar to the one the buyer in Dubuque described, meant to stabilize neighborhoods after the subprime crisis (DS bought in 2010). Low down payment and a forgivable loan of $12K for home improvements. (DS was most unhappy to see that, as 25% was forgiven each year he stayed, those amounts were taxable income.)
He and DDIL moved to a bigger house last year. They didn't make a killing on the sale (Des Moines, not a hot area) but the home was a nice place to start their family till they outgrew it!
Why in the world would anyone turn to a Missoula, Montana "Culture Writer" for Buzzfeed for economic insights? The author's other contributions to the world include reviews of Kate Hudson's leggings.
Doesn't mean they can't write about topics of more substance. I thought those were good anecdotes, well-told, and certainly pointed out that family help and disciplined savings are important factors in home-buying at an early age.
Great link and great stories and it's fun to see what people pay for homes in different parts of the country and how much their mortgage payments are and some are incredibly low. One has a $675 mortgage and was paying $875 for rent in an apartment.
Sounds good until a major repair bill rears its ugly head then suddenly those monthly numbers are out of alignment and the loanowner is behind the eight ball.
Sounds good until a major repair bill rears its ugly head then suddenly those monthly numbers are out of alignment and the loanowner is behind the eight ball.
Not much worse than your rent going up 25% or being told your lease will not be renewed and you have to find a new place and come up with first, last and a security deposit.
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.
