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I would choose outside the beltway. I would chose safe over extravagance. That’s just me. I wouldn’t spend 500,000 on a home on your salary. I would save the money. I would rather be financially independent at a younger age then have a more expensive house.
OP, how long will your work be 2-3 days in person? If location is a factor, I'd consider that when making your decision. If this is a temporary move due to increasing COVID cases, etc., I wouldn't let that factor too much into your decision as you'd likely be going back into the office full-time.
All in all, I think you'd be comfortable either way (more comfortable with a great interest rate), though more comfortable with the cheaper option. But if you're someone who wants to be closer to the action, I'd consider inside the beltway. Also, I'd consider re-sale potential.
Are you also open to the possibility of roommates/tenants? If so, I'd look into more where you're likely to have an easier time renting to working professionals.
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Not sure what you're looking for in a home (SFH, condo, TH), but at $300k in Ashburn you aren't going to get much. Maybe a condo? But then you're looking at ridiculous HOA fees. Same with a townhouse. Who is telling you for $300k you can get something in Ashburn? That's not happening.
Not sure what you're looking for in a home (SFH, condo, TH), but at $300k in Ashburn you aren't going to get much. Maybe a condo? But then you're looking at ridiculous HOA fees. Same with a townhouse. Who is telling you for $300k you can get something in Ashburn? That's not happening.
I was thinking that, too. But, while I live (rent) in Silver Spring and am familiar with some of the cost of housing around here, I can't say that I'm familiar with everywhere in the area.
Where do you work? If it's in DC area then you'll need to trade of commuting time/ distance/ cost.
What's your tolerance for risk? Do you want a higher future appreciation vs. safer but slower rate of appreciation?
How much disposable income do you have left after paying for the $500-$550K house? Do you have enough for rainy days? emergency funds for 3-6 months of living expense? Do you want to be house-rich but cash-poor for the next 3~5 years?
Do you plan on taking roommates to subsidize your mortgage? If so, which area is more attractive to renters?
I work in Farragut Square, about a block from the White House. So prime real estate.
I currently live in Prince William County along the Potomac, about a 5 minute walk from a VRE (commuter train) station. It gets me into Arlington in 45 minutes where I transfer to metro and add another 30 minutes. So 75 minute daily commute.
The commute isn't actually too bad and is doable without a car, but I (a) find my suburb utterly soulless and empty (the #1 attraction is Potomac Mills Mall - yuck!) and (b) if I ever want to visit D.C. outside of commuting hours, I'm screwed, since there are only trains into DC in the morning and back in the evening.
Ideally, the options would be someplace like the DC Diamond, or further out like Loudoun County where I'm still metro accessible and a short drive to Dulles.
Tolerance for risk is rather high. I'd prefer higher future appreciation with more volatility (assuming that I'm not buying at the market top and my $600k home purchase in Alexandria quickly becomes $400k in a few years.
I already currently pay $2,600 for a 3-bedroom apartment that I use to take care of my siblings (15 year old sister and older brother). That's about what a $500k mortgage seems to run. The plan is that once she turns 18, her and brother would go to college/Oklahoma and I'd have the house to myself.
I do not have enough for rainy days (my downpayment pot of $30k is also essentially my emergency fund), but my job is bulletproof (as in I can't get fired unless I commit a gross felony), so that doesn't bother me as much (though I know it should). I just don't want to pass off on buying now and we get another 20% home price increase and that's another $100k hit.
No roomates. I'm almost 30 and once the siblings are gone, I want the house all to myself (or until I get a partner of course).
I also agree that you should post in another thread, not the general Real Estate forum.
Yes, but it's a local circumstance with a more universal question behind it: is it the financially responsible decision to spend far below your mortgage limit to buy a home? It seems like financial planning is in agreement that anyone buying up to their mortgage limit is a Dodo. Are there scenarios where that's not the case?
Or do the stars-are-aligned low interest rates (coupled with supply issues in the broader market) mean that I'll never have the same opportunity in the future to buy as much quality house, so I should go for broke and buy with location in mind?
Inside the beltway especially with your guaranteed raise. Prime locations generally fall the least and rise the most.
At $130k, bulletproof job, prime credit, and no/minimal other debt, and no dependents or other prior financial commitments, you could easily afford a $3k/mo payment. You've got siblings still in school so get something in an excellent school district and it's a pretty safe bet you're going to see good appreciation. At $130k, $500k is about a ~4x multiple which is doable at current interest rates. I'd say 6x or more is stretching it.
I'm not familiar with DC geography but can you get something in Georgetown or right across the river for that kind of money?
OP, how long will your work be 2-3 days in person? If location is a factor, I'd consider that when making your decision. If this is a temporary move due to increasing COVID cases, etc., I wouldn't let that factor too much into your decision as you'd likely be going back into the office full-time.
All in all, I think you'd be comfortable either way (more comfortable with a great interest rate), though more comfortable with the cheaper option. But if you're someone who wants to be closer to the action, I'd consider inside the beltway. Also, I'd consider re-sale potential.
Are you also open to the possibility of roommates/tenants? If so, I'd look into more where you're likely to have an easier time renting to working professionals.
It will be 2 days through the epidemic and then 3 days after that during our busy season (September-February). It's being done as a retention measure, since my employer was starting to lose people to rivals who were offering full-time remote.
No roommates, but I am hoping to get my MBA in the next 5 years or so, so would want to sublet it for 1-2 years then. So the desirability of renting to someone is definitely a factor pushing me towards inner city.
As for preferences, I'd ideally want one layer outside the city center ("inner ring suburbs" if you will). So I wouldn't be in D.C. per se, but in the more affordable suburbs that still have good connections to the city (Tysons, Reston, Alexandria, Ashburn, Dulles in particular).
Reading the replies, I think my best bet is probably to see how much mortgage I can get and that will help decide how close in I actually get to D.C. (and maybe buy in 10% below my mortgage approval amount just to be a little Puritan). But the allure of buying in the suburbs (Manassas, Woodbridge, Leesburg, Frederick) just because it's cheap and fiscally prudent seems to be waning.
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