Moving to Fort Lewis... (Tacoma, Olympia: rentals, HOA, insurance) - Washington (WA) - Page 3 - City-Data Forum

rissaib · 07-22-2008, 07:31 AM

in reply to cobalt..you are so right it only makes sense in this day and time to live on base! we are just biding time until we hit our housing number. have not had much luck at all in the surrounding area with reasonable rent that starts with reasonable deposits. we have animals and i know that my house and yard are cleaner than most non animal lovers yet people want us to either get rid of them (not an option) or pay as if they were a seperate family moving in with us. just find it frustrating to talk with rental managers who need to make sales quota..so we are still on the hunt for a home any info for short term..we are on waitlist...we would love to live together, have not done so since february. and folks as we all know we want to get this time in and not waste because he will eventually go on deployment.

cobolt · 07-22-2008, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rissaib

in reply to cobalt..you are so right it only makes sense in this day and time to live on base! we are just biding time until we hit our housing number. have not had much luck at all in the surrounding area with reasonable rent that starts with reasonable deposits. we have animals and i know that my house and yard are cleaner than most non animal lovers yet people want us to either get rid of them (not an option) or pay as if they were a seperate family moving in with us. just find it frustrating to talk with rental managers who need to make sales quota..so we are still on the hunt for a home any info for short term..we are on waitlist...we would love to live together, have not done so since february. and folks as we all know we want to get this time in and not waste because he will eventually go on deployment.

Been there, done that when I was stationed in Hawaii. Wait list was 9 months. I feel for ya and I pray the best for you and your family. Hang tough.

bellabella2 · 07-23-2008, 05:50 PM

I feel your pain. Rents are extremely high in the area. Property values are high and that is why BAH is high. It is also a terrible time to sell a home and when that happens rents go up. Buyers are not qualifying to buy, and they still need a place to live in. The demand for housing drive prices up.
I have a home for rent in Tacoma that now is placed with a rental agency. It is still vacant. I am hoping for a tenant before the end of the month. However, I had to increase the rent to be able to pay the property management fees which equal 10% of the monthly rent.
I have a good home in the best area of Tacoma yet I was unsuscessful on my own to get a renter even by dropping the rent back then to 1300. I mean there is no way to live in my sde of town for that amount. No way. Those rents are charged in the worst areas.
I wish you the best on securing a place but I doubt you will get anything below that amount in a decent area and that accepts animals. It has to be frustrating.

asmotj · 07-24-2008, 10:07 PM

Housing first...
There are houses that can be bought for less then BAH
Second buy now it is a buyers market and all propery has at least doubled in value near FTL... i the past 5 years

RENT IS CRAZY FOR A FAMILY

I just put a land contract on a $129800 home in Spanaway 12 minutes from base no closing cost no points and no formal loan. One of the benifits if I default I just loose wht the BAH covered anyway and if I retire there then we are in like Flynn\

Also the foreclosure market is out of control in FtLewis area ad I am trying to close on another at $.43 on the dollar valued by a Broker Survey that is a savings of 57% off the 250000 home

Drawbacks
taxes run $1000 to $3000 a year for $150000 to $300000 homes annualy approximatly as each schools districk levies differently
if your not going to stay more than 3 years you spend 6 months to a year waiting then you only have 2 left good for a fixer but not good for all homes...

I will be in the area Mar 2009 and have foun 350 homes that are less then BAH for an E-6 so the deals are there let me know if I can help.

I can also help you get a foreclosed house the paperwork is not a complicated as realtors make them out to be and I am not a real estate agent!
If you have good credit and or an existing VA loan forclosures are the way to buy and get instant equity...

Peace
J

monster_bugs · 07-25-2008, 09:43 AM

We lived on post at Fort Bragg and LOVED it, but like I mentioned before, we don't qualify for post housing because our orders are for less than 15 months. We were hoping to find a nice apartment since we'll only be there for about 10 months, but like others, we have a dog, and the few places that take animals won't take a dog over 25 lbs. even though our dog is much more well behaved and quieter (not to mention fully housebroken lol) than the small yappy dogs. We would look into buying but for such a short term and with the market being what it is, it doesn't make much sense. I would stay in San Antonio while he's at Fort Lewis, but aside from being pregnant, we did 9 months apart for training, 3 months for hurricane Catrina then 15 months for Baghdad. Seems silly to me to stay behind when we could be with him. We've learned that living off post is extremely expensive and renting is just insane, but we don't have many options at the moment. We just need help finding the best area to live and best schools, since once again we'll be moving somewhere we're not familiar with and will be doing all of our house hunting via the internet.

bellabella2 · 07-27-2008, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by asmotj

Housing first...
There are houses that can be bought for less then BAH
Second buy now it is a buyers market and all propery has at least doubled in value near FTL... i the past 5 years

RENT IS CRAZY FOR A FAMILY

I just put a land contract on a $129800 home in Spanaway 12 minutes from base no closing cost no points and no formal loan. One of the benifits if I default I just loose wht the BAH covered anyway and if I retire there then we are in like Flynn\

Also the foreclosure market is out of control in FtLewis area ad I am trying to close on another at $.43 on the dollar valued by a Broker Survey that is a savings of 57% off the 250000 home

Drawbacks
taxes run $1000 to $3000 a year for $150000 to $300000 homes annualy approximatly as each schools districk levies differently
if your not going to stay more than 3 years you spend 6 months to a year waiting then you only have 2 left good for a fixer but not good for all homes...

I will be in the area Mar 2009 and have foun 350 homes that are less then BAH for an E-6 so the deals are there let me know if I can help.

I can also help you get a foreclosed house the paperwork is not a complicated as realtors make them out to be and I am not a real estate agent!
If you have good credit and or an existing VA loan forclosures are the way to buy and get instant equity...

Peace
J

Sometimes it does not make sense for a militry family to buy. An example? Friends of ours bought a home thinking they were going to stay put for at least three years. Well, he got orders before even to years and now are selling at a huge loss.
Not a great situation

asmotj · 08-09-2008, 10:12 PM

Sometimes it does not make sense to speak either but people still do.

Now as to housing prices in Ft Lewis area they will not badly affected in the future economy is good 47% have a college degree and there are enough Jobs to go around. I would not suggest you buy in ANY OTHER MARKET. We are talking about Fort Lewis area no where else. Was your friend in the Ft Lewis Area? If So I might buy it! If he was not then it does not apply to this thread.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bellabella2

Sometimes it does not make sense for a militry family to buy. An example? Friends of ours bought a home thinking they were going to stay put for at least three years. Well, he got orders before even to years and now are selling at a huge loss.
Not a great situation

o/\bKa · 08-27-2008, 03:20 PM

I just happen to be trying to rent out my brand new house in Lakewood, WA, walking distance from Ft. Lewis. It is a very nice house, I promise

I just had to move and ended up buying a condo about 2 hours from Lakewood. I really miss my house and looking to rent it "into good hands". If anybody is intersted, please check out my add on [URL="http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/apa/815445162.html"]http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/apa/815445162.html[/URL]
or [url=http://www.posthousing.com/housing_view.php?i=820]Military: Single Family Homes: Brand New 3bd+2br/walk home from Ft.Lewis base! Housing Relocation Information[/url]. thank you.

asmotj · 08-28-2008, 05:33 AM

And it only costs $1400 so it costs more than a soldiers housing allowance.
If anyone is moving to Ft Lewis and is under the stabilization program please contact me I have lots of information for "soldiers only" I will help you with closing costs...

Quote:

Originally Posted by o/\bKa

rent out my brand new house in Lakewood, WA, "into good hands". If anybody is intersted, please check out
Military: Single Family Homes: Brand New 3bd+2br/walk home from Ft.Lewis base! Housing Relocation Information. thank you.

MMMAC · 09-03-2008, 03:25 PM

My husband, son and I are currently stationed at Fort Lewis. I would have to say I DEFINATELY DO NOT recommend any area off post except for DUPONT and STEILACOOM. They are beautiful, well kept areas and you can reach them without using the highway. They also seem very "safe" compared to most other areas around base. You do not want to fight the morning or evening traffic in pierce county..it could take an hour or so to go either north or south. Also, if anyone is considering living on post, it really saves time in the morning. There are some great neighborhoods on post, whether you like large townhouse styles close to the PX and commisary (discovery village) or if you want to live in the trees on north fort and have easy access to the lake (smaller houses but nice area, attached by garage) (beachwood). Most neighborhoods have a year waiting list but if you are in need of a place quickly just contact the housing office on post and tell them your situation. They will try to get you in a place as quickly as possible, you can also temporarily stay in lodging at discounted rates. hope this helps someone!