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Old 07-08-2008, 12:22 AM
 
20 posts, read 55,420 times
Reputation: 12

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So I pose to this forum... how the heck does one buy a home in the Seattle area? Due to pets I need a decent sized yard... something bigger than the 5x5 they have in the townhomes that I can afford. Also I need it in a decent area for schools. Places I like are in the Green Lake, Capitol Hill, Wallingford area.

I make a little over 100k, which is not a bad salary... not too good either, but still when I look at homes in Seattle it makes me feel poor. I make more than the median income. How the hell do people afford homes in this city?
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Old 07-08-2008, 12:43 AM
 
9,618 posts, read 27,351,453 times
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You've really hit the nail on the head. The neighborhoods you mentioned are areas where houses are still selling and where home prices haven't dropped much, and it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. You might want to expand your search to include West Seattle.
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Old 07-08-2008, 03:35 AM
 
Location: Georgia, on the Florida line, right above Tallahassee
10,471 posts, read 15,838,455 times
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The reason they are are so high? Gas prices....according to this article.

Yeah...gas prices.

Business & Technology | Will gas prices drive homebuyers away from suburbs? | Seattle Times Newspaper
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Old 07-08-2008, 08:56 AM
 
3,695 posts, read 11,375,333 times
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One buys a home in Seattle by either doing well in investments and windfalls or by sacrificing for a couple of years to save up enough of a down payment to be able to buy the house that you want in the neighborhood that you like.

Decide what is more important to you - the luxuries that you have that cost you money every month, or being a home owner in a community that you love. My wife started making very good money after her postdoc ended, but we kept living like grad students for several years because we wanted to buy a house.

Set your sights on a long term goal and work toward it, and realize that every $4 cup of coffee, every dinner out, every expensive vacation, and every car payment you make is keeping you from acheiving that goal.
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Old 07-08-2008, 09:07 AM
 
9,618 posts, read 27,351,453 times
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...And keep in mind that there are several neighborhoods that have bus rides barely longer than a bus ride to Wallingford or Greenlake, but with home prices 1/3 lower.
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Old 07-08-2008, 10:55 AM
 
Location: Georgia, on the Florida line, right above Tallahassee
10,471 posts, read 15,838,455 times
Reputation: 6438
Or that you could always move somewhere else, if you don't dig the prices.

My house in Marietta, in Atlanta was a 5 bedroom 3 bath....was 5 years old.....cost me $149,000.

Last I checked, it was appraised for $175,000. Then again, I thought Atlanta sucked.
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Old 07-08-2008, 11:15 AM
 
Location: Happiness is found inside your smile :)
3,176 posts, read 14,705,340 times
Reputation: 1313
We live in Greenlake, when we bought at the end of 2003 when we made $100K, BUT we got help with the 20% down! (from Family of which we've paid back) And the house at the time was $310K (when the median was $240K)

We want to move because the schools suck balls in Seattle School district. (and definately at Capital Hill! HUH?)

We have a enormous back yard - want our house? We'd be happy to sell it and move pronto
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Old 07-08-2008, 11:31 AM
 
Location: Cosmic Consciousness
3,871 posts, read 17,107,915 times
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The OP really wants to be in Denver, so perhaps that dream will come true and the Seattle house will no longer be a concern...
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Old 07-08-2008, 02:00 PM
 
Location: The Great State of Texas, Finally!
5,477 posts, read 12,249,829 times
Reputation: 2825
That's why you see lots of people commute sometimes counties away (Pierce, Thurston, etc).
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Old 07-08-2008, 02:07 PM
 
24 posts, read 126,769 times
Reputation: 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by sbdude76 View Post
How the hell do people afford homes in this city?
They don't.
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