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Yeah, very less inventory at that price point. Market has moved along.
If you are not selling a home, time is your friend. If you take six months to find the right home at the right price, it will pay off. For one thing, interest rates probably will go down this year - another reason to take your time and not rush.
Also find a great home inspector - never use one recommended by a realtor!
Also find a great home inspector - never use one recommended by a realtor!
I don't agree with that. I want my clients to have a through inspection so they can be aware of as many potential expenses as possible. I say get recommendations for inspectors and shop for quality!
Don’t make this more complicated than it has to be. Assuming you have 20+ years until retirement, as long as you can handle all of the housing expenses on 50% post tax income, you’ll be OK. Your income will grow until retirement so housing expenses tend to get easier as time goes in.
Not so simple. If you sign up for a house or lifestyle that requires a continually increasing income, you not only take on more risk in a recession, but also you have forgone all career flexibility not just for yourself but for any adult in the household whose income was used to qualify. This means if anyone regrets their career choice after 5 or 7 years, you are shackled and stuck. Want more time with kids? Too bad. Have health issues? Too bad. Disabled family member? Too bad. Those shackles are very hard to remove once installed.
Not so simple. If you sign up for a house or lifestyle that requires a continually increasing income, you not only take on more risk in a recession, but also you have forgone all career flexibility not just for yourself but for any adult in the household whose income was used to qualify. This means if anyone regrets their career choice after 5 or 7 years, you are shackled and stuck. Want more time with kids? Too bad. Have health issues? Too bad. Disabled family member? Too bad. Those shackles are very hard to remove once installed.
Great points!
I brought a house in 2007, and the Great Recession hit in 2008. My neighborhood's real estate sales dropped like a lead balloon including my new house. It dropped in value by more than $100,000. When covid raised my neighborhood's housing prices, I jumped at the opportunity to sell it. Finally, I sold it for what I paid in 2007. I lost a ton of money if you consider the money and work spent on updates and new appliances. It was my fourth house and my worse real estate investment. Well, it's not much, but I got the tax write off for those years!
I was lucky because I used the profits from my previous home sales for this house's downpayment. My downpayment was so high, I was never underwater. However, many people walked away from houses in 2008 when their mortgages were higher than the resale value of their houses.
There are so many things that can go wrong! My sister's house had a foundation issue so the house had to be raised and the foundation redone. It cost her 15% of her homes purchase price back in 1990's. They had to refinance their mortgage to make the repair. Another friend's well dried up and it cost close to $40,000 to drill a new well. YMMV
Last edited by YorktownGal; 03-21-2024 at 08:32 AM..
I have been looking at homes on off basis. Based in NJ. So property taxes are high. The towns i am looking at in Central Jersey have property taxes around 22-24k for such a house. T
So taking a home prices of 999,999 USD, a high water mark property taxes of 24k. 2 young kids and a spouse. Have been saving for the last few years dilligently and can swing a downpayment of 500k, what would be an ideal take home income needed to run such a house? I have run some calculators on this but the results vary so much.
Another option is to start looking at other towns with somewhat longer commute. But save money in the longer run.
To add more context, outgrown our current place, and not a great school district. Another thought is to wait more, and save more money.
Appreciate your thoughts.
Also in NJ. Trust me - buy less than you can afford. Find something the $600k range and be happy with your Teflon savings and such.
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