Home advice needed...

[butterfly 17]

Hi everyone, I have not been around as much lately, but I need some advice. This is going to be a long post.
I currently live in a semi-detached home in a very nice area of Staten Island. I love my house and if not for the fact that it is a duplex, I would just keep it.
Anyway, about two weeks ago we decided to start looking at some detached homes because we have always thought of this one as our starter home and wanted to eventually move into a larger detached home when we had the money. We figured we wouild just look and if something happened to come up, then that would be great and if nothing, then great too. We looked at 2 new homes and 2 older, but relatively new homes and I was sort of interested in one.


Well, we were driving by a street and I saw a sign for sale and called and left a message about the house. That was about two weeks ago. I found the house listed on realtor.com and I realized that the house was too expensive for us, but priced reasonable for a newer home.

This Monday, I got a call from the agent and he told me the price was just reduced on the house by 30K and if I wanted to take a look at it, I said sure.

Oh my, I love it!! The house was just built last year in 2005 and the owner moved into it in September 2005. She has the wood floors throughout and porcelain tile in the foyer area and in the kitchen and dinette area. She upgraded the entire kitchen with granite counters and backsplash, high hats, cabinets, etc. and even though she has an island in the kitchen, she also had a custom made granite table with chairs made to match the granite in the kitchen.
The master bedroom has the jacuzzi wth sep. shower and walk in closets. There are 4 bedrooms total.
The best part is that it also has a rentable basement! There is a one bedroom apt in the basement with seperate kitchen, bedroom and living room areas and a sep. entrance. And she did it so beautifully as well. The kitchen in the apt. is nicer than the one I have now!
The lot is extra long for this type of house, not gigantic, but big for new construction here in SI. She had the PVC fence made around the entire lot and she installed the underground sprinklers. And a big plus about this house is that the lot is end to end. Behind the property is a street, not a house, so I don''t have to worry about noisy neighbors looking at me.
It''s just a beautiful house and exactly the kind of house I would have if I had one made in SI.

Plus, it''s priced cheaper than new construction is currently selling for now. Here is SI, a similar house would start at 799K with no upgrades and with all the upgrades and the extra large lot, I would imagine it running for at leat 900K and she is pricing this house well below that. There were only 4 of them built on the block like hers and the next block has new homes as well, but they are more narrow that this one and the lots are a little bit smaller.

So now here is the thing, I know what she paid for the house last year and I also know she desperately wants to sell the house. I don''t know what the circumstances are, but she needs to be in contract by November. She lowered the current price of the house to only 21K more than was she bought it for last year, which means she is losing a lot of money.

She didn''t want to include the refrigerator or the washer and dryer and she also had this tremendous chandelier hanging in foyer that she wasn''t going to include, but she''s leaving me all the window treatments and the granite table she had made.

so, I made an offer. I was told by the agent that there were three offers on the house already, but she had not accepted any of them. My offer was actually one of the lower ones. There was one lower than mine and two higher, according to the agent.

She paid $750k 9/2005, but she actually went into contract on the house in 2004, but was just waiting for it to be built. They originally listed the house at 810K. she reduced it to 799k and then to 769k the day I looked at it. I offered her 737k and her counter was $740k. She also agreed to leave all the appliances and the chandelier with that price. it all sounds too good to be true!

I feel kind of sad because I know she put alot of money into the house and the price she countered with is still 10K less than what she paid, but for whatever reason, she really needs to sell.


I feel great though that I am getting this house at such a price. I even went with my dad (who is a civil engineer and does home inspections) to check out the house on a rainy day to make sure there was nothing wrong with it. He said it was in perfect condition.

So, here is the thing. My husband says we are not ready to buy a house this expensive. I told him this is probably a once in a lifetime opportunity considering that she even paid more for the house last year and all the new construction we looked at is at least 100k more. Plus how often do you find new construction with an end to end lot. Most of the new construction we looked didn''t even have a backyard, they had a tiny space in the back and then another house, etc.

The only other house we liked was 789k , completely upgraded like this woman''s, but had a much smaller lot size and had a fire hydrant right in the front of the house. It was a new construction home, so I would have to pay higher closing costs and didn''t come with an appliance package and had no fence, etc. so I would have to do all that on my own.

But, this is really a lot of money and we would have to sell our house because there is no way we can afford the two mortgage payments. The good thing is that my house has increased in value and I can put 20% down if I sell my house. Another good thing is that my mom will lend me the money if I need to close in this house before my current house is sold. Aslo, the owners of the house I want said they are in no hurry to close, as long as the contract is signed, they are not in a rush. And they are only requiring 25K at contract.

So, what should I do? I have the money, the house is the right price, the bank already told me that we meet the qualifications for a mortgage of this amount, but I am so afraid of the mortgage payments. Help!!!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

You seem like this is something you REALLY want so I think there is your answer. You can either rent or sell your current house and rent out the apartment for extra income. Where do you like again?

ETA: oops, you already answered that. I would read over your local laws. My parents are still in a 5 year lawsuit with their tenant from San Francisco (CRAZY laws there) Also I know our bank gives you a month or two before your first payment is due. That might help the cost also!

 

[qtiekiki]

It sounds like a great house and the price seems really good.

Here's something that came into my mind while reading your post:
How is the market in the area? Is it relatively stable? If it is, then the house will appreciate and be worth more in the long run.
Can you afford it? do you and how much do you have to compromise (luxuries - non-neccessities) to afford it? and are you willing to compromise? If you don't have to compromise neccessities and only some luxuries for the mortgage, then it can be affordable. If you have to compromise too much to make the payment, then it might not be worth it.

 

[Sundial]

The house sounds really nice and from what you say you would be getting a good deal (gosh housing costs seem high where you are). You've already qualified for the mortgage which would have been my first question. Second is the housing market in your area strong enough that you won't have any problem selling your house? Can you make the purchase contract contingent upon the sale of your house? Third can you afford the new mortgage payments even if you can't rent out the apartment for some reason? As Qtiekiki said are you ready to make personal sacrifices so you can afford this house?

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Oh wow. We surely live in a region with different real estate values. I'd say that is more than twice what a comparable home would be here. I hope incomes are double there!

I will just say this. If you are remotely thinking about a baby in the next few years, you might not want to get in that kind of debt. You might want the freedom to choose whether to work part-time or not at all for awhile. Is there not something in between a duplex and a newly built 4 bedroom house?

The problem with mortgages today is that most people with good credit will "qualify" for more than they can really afford. I really can't fathom a $600,000 mortgage (or even $300,000 in my area). That is a huge debt load. Just make sure your income is going to be high enough that you can still buy furniture, cars, and go on vacation.

I will add that most of us have been in this situation at one time or another. In the last couple of years we had the opporotunity to buy a gorgeous brick custom built house (I think around 3500-4000 sq. feet) on 40 acres. It had recently been built and when the husband died, the lady decided to sell. So it was in perfect condition and had a beautiful view of the mountains in the background. We could have afforded the payments, but we didn't want to be tied to a new mortgage for another 20 years. We want the freedom to retire early and travel, and our current 2700 sq. ft. house is adequate for our needs.

All this is to say, look at the big picture...your future goals. Determine what a comfortable mortgage payment would be in the event you wanted to reduce your work schedule when you have little children. Then only look at houses in that price range. If I were thinking of half that amount for real estate our area, I do not know a single young couple that would be buying a $350,000 home in the first few years of marriage. (Okay, well maybe a surgeon or pro football player...but there aren't many of those around here!)

 

[ladykemma]

can you afford the house on his income alone?

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/16/2006 5:24:30 PM
Author: qtiekiki
It sounds like a great house and the price seems really good.

Here''s something that came into my mind while reading your post:
How is the market in the area? Is it relatively stable? If it is, then the house will appreciate and be worth more in the long run.
Can you afford it? do you and how much do you have to compromise (luxuries - non-neccessities) to afford it? and are you willing to compromise? If you don''t have to compromise neccessities and only some luxuries for the mortgage, then it can be affordable. If you have to compromise too much to make the payment, then it might not be worth it.

The market is good I believe, although I am not completely sure. I don''t plan to sell this house and I actually intend to live in it at least until the kids finish college, so I am sure it will appreciate. Also, it is priced about 100K lower than what similar new construction is selling for today, so even if the prices drop, I would still be getting this house at a great price or at least a fair price.

Yes, I can afford it, it''s just the thought of owing this much money is kind of scary. The main luxuries I would have to compromise are I can''t get a new car, I wanted to get an Acura next year, I currently drive a 2004 Nissan Altima and my husband drives a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder. I don''t have any car payments now, but if I buy the house, I will have to wait on the new car.
The other luxury would be eating out, I spend a lot of money on eating out and eat out at least 5 times a week, so I would have to cut back on that.

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/16/2006 6:02:52 PM
Author: Sundial
The house sounds really nice and from what you say you would be getting a good deal (gosh housing costs seem high where you are). You''ve already qualified for the mortgage which would have been my first question. Second is the housing market in your area strong enough that you won''t have any problem selling your house? Can you make the purchase contract contingent upon the sale of your house? Third can you afford the new mortgage payments even if you can''t rent out the apartment for some reason? As Qtiekiki said are you ready to make personal sacrifices so you can afford this house?

I am not sure about the housing situation in my area, but again, I don''t really plan to sell.
I don''t want to make the purchase contigent on the sale of my house, because that was one of the reasons why this lady wanted to sell it to me, the fact that I have the money available. She did say that even if I am not ready to close in 3 months, I can take a month or two longer as she doesn''t move to Florida until April anyway.
Yes, we can afford the house even if we don''t rent it out and I am willing to make sacrifices.

I really don''t have to make too many personal sacrifices though, except for maybe less bling and the new car I want, but my car is still fairly new, so I don''t need one anyway.

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/16/2006 6:34:28 PM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Oh wow. We surely live in a region with different real estate values. I''d say that is more than twice what a comparable home would be here. I hope incomes are double there!

I will just say this. If you are remotely thinking about a baby in the next few years, you might not want to get in that kind of debt. You might want the freedom to choose whether to work part-time or not at all for awhile. Is there not something in between a duplex and a newly built 4 bedroom house?

The problem with mortgages today is that most people with good credit will ''qualify'' for more than they can really afford. I really can''t fathom a $600,000 mortgage (or even $300,000 in my area). That is a huge debt load. Just make sure your income is going to be high enough that you can still buy furniture, cars, and go on vacation.

I will add that most of us have been in this situation at one time or another. In the last couple of years we had the opporotunity to buy a gorgeous brick custom built house (I think around 3500-4000 sq. feet) on 40 acres. It had recently been built and when the husband died, the lady decided to sell. So it was in perfect condition and had a beautiful view of the mountains in the background. We could have afforded the payments, but we didn''t want to be tied to a new mortgage for another 20 years. We want the freedom to retire early and travel, and our current 2700 sq. ft. house is adequate for our needs.

All this is to say, look at the big picture...your future goals. Determine what a comfortable mortgage payment would be in the event you wanted to reduce your work schedule when you have little children. Then only look at houses in that price range. If I were thinking of half that amount for real estate our area, I do not know a single young couple that would be buying a $350,000 home in the first few years of marriage. (Okay, well maybe a surgeon or pro football player...but there aren''t many of those around here!)

These are all good questions!

First off, no, I don''t want any more kids. I have already had three and that''s enough!

My last one is only one year old (had her 9/2/2005) and that''s it for me!!!

As far as work, I am a nurse and work 12 hour shifts, three nights a week, so I don''t even need a babysitter. I have 4 days off every week, so even though I work full time, I still have a lot of spare time to be with my kids.

Yes, that is a huge debt load to carry, which is why I am so concerned. The difference between the new mortgage amount and my current mortgage amount will be about $1200 a month. I was planning to do the biweekly payments (which is what I do now), in order to pay down the mortgage faster and when we are more comfortable, refinance to a 15 or 20 year mortgage, which is what I did with the house I own now.
I was planning on getting a new car, but the two we have are not that old, 2001 and 2004, so me buying a car was more of a luxury thing rather than a necessity thing. As far as furniture, we are going to use all the same furniture we have and then slowly furnish the living room because my current LR set I will put into the family room. I purchased most of my furniture at Ethan Allen and I have kept them in excellent condition and I have only had them for 4 years, so there''s really no need for me to buy new furniture.

By the way, your 2700 sq. foot house is bigger than this new house I want to get!! But that is the cost of living in and around NYC. I could probably buy the same house i want with at least twice as much land for $350k in NJ, but I would have to travel really far, pay higher taxes and gas money, and since my husband is a NYC police officer, he is only allowed to live in NY.

Lastly,we are not a new young married couple, but thanks for thinking that!!!

I have been married now for 13 years! My Ritani set was my 10 year anniversary gift that I wanted because I never got an e-ring when we got married.

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/16/2006 7:52:21 PM
Author: ladykemma
can you afford the house on his income alone?

Yes, my husband actually makes more than me, but I take home more than him, so I can even afford the house on my income alone. That''s what we have been doing,he pays our current mortgage and my salary is for what ever bills we have, etc.

We talked about what if one of us loses our job, but I think that is something that anyone buying a house worries about, regardless if it''s just a one person income or a two person income.

For example, if I was a housewife and stay at home mom and my husband was the only one who was working, if he lost his job, we would not be able to manage and we would definitely have to sell the house or lose it.

At least with both of us working, if he lost his job, I would still be able to do it, especially since I work only 3 days a week, I could pick up another two days to make it five days a week and though it would be hard, I could still do it. The same goes for him, if I lost my job, he could do overtime at work and we would make it, although it would be a struggle, but it would still be doable.

At least, if one person lost their job, the other one could make up for it. I have nurse friends whose husbands don''t even work. They do two jobs, work 5 or 6 days a week and their husbands stay home and watch the kids. They told me it would cost too much to pay the babysitters and since they earn more than their husbands, they go to work and pay all the bills.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Oh, I didn''t realize you already had three children, Butterfly! And I have friends who are nurses and work the kind of schedule you do, which is great for being a mom!

Only you and your husband know what you can afford. Thinking back, when we bought this house, I think it was about 3 times my husband''s income and about double our joint income. There used to be some sort of rule of thumb about the amount of housing expenses to total income. I am thinking something like mortgage, insurance, taxes being no more than 35-40% of take home income..soemthing like that. I really think it would be good to talk to a financial planner or something to really look at that. You want to be able to both put money in 401k''s and Roth IRA''s etc., too.

The last thing I''ll say is that you and your husband should agree on the decision. If it would turn out to be a finanicial strain, it would not be a good thing for your family.

 

[moremoremore]

Well, it sounds like you think you can handle it...but it doesn't sound like hubby does. We can't help you with that...that's b/t the two of you! A 100 million dollar house can be on sale for 10 mill, but if you're not ready to shell out/don't have 10 mill, it doesn't really matter how good the deal is, right? Best of luck and discuss with your husband...they might carry a little more weight and have a little more insight into your finances than ps LOL!!!

 

[Small]

I live in the Chicago market and I thought the housing prices here were high

I was in the same situation about 2 years ago. We had our 6 mo old baby girl and unexpectedly found out we were having #2. We had a 1600 sq ft 3 bdrm 1.5 bath home which was good for 3 but not so much for 4. We decided to look around before sinking money into our current home which eventually we were planning to move from anyway. SOOOOO we found the perfect house for us. The price was still reasonalbe for the sq ft (2850) and it was all the space we needed plus the two kids would have their own bath. The down side was the mortgage. It''s alot of debt and our payment was going up exactly like you by 1200/mo.
We made the move. We love our new house. We have had to sacrifice. We have a 5 year old SUV and won''t get another new car until we pay off hubby''s in a few years. We don''t live life as we did and still save but just not as much due to the increase in payment. But we are in a better district for schools and our house is all we would have ever wanted.
IF you can afford it, I''d say go for it. Life is full of what ifs and all you can do is make the best decision in the moment. We hemmed and hawed about if we should or shouldn''t and decided that we can''t live life waiting for ''what may happen'' we can only make decisions based on life today (although we save alot so if something did happen we would have that to fall back on). In the end, I have no regrets about moving to our new home. I wish I had the $1200/mo but eventually when I go back to work we''ll have that again. Good luck. I hope you end up getting the house!

 

[Mara]

kayla...it sounds like you really love this house. if that is the case and you CAN make it work, then do it. i agree that you should see what you'd have to go through to sell your house first, because there may be one or two months where you are carrying both mortgages and that can be a drain!

we are kind of in the same situation you are where we love our place currently but we didn't really intend to STAY here for longer than 4-5 years. we are in year 3 now so we are starting to talk about what to do in the next year or so. now would be a great time for us to sell as our particular end unit townhouses are commanding a premium and having no problem selling in an otherwise flat resale market, and there is one house i have been watching about 1/2 mile from us (we walk by it all the time on our walks) that has been up for 2 months and they have reduced the price twice, so it's now more in our range even though it's still about 100k more than what we'd sell our place for which means a slightly higher mortgage payment. quite honestly, neither of us really WANTS a larger mortgage payment (our home prices here are basically what you were mentioning so it's already an arm and a leg)...however, we know that if we plan to leave our place and get a 'house' with actual land/yard etc then we will have to probably get a same size or smaller place and still probably pay a bit more than we are paying here now. plus we just flat our love our place and the 'livability' of it means we are kind of spoiled with wanting to find that same feeling elsewhere. but man, we are talking about going from sq ftage of 1850 currently which we both nicely fill up, to get a place that is ~1800 or so that is 50 years old for 100k more? and potentially add a child or two into the mix over the next 5 years? insanity!

so we're trying to figure out what we want to do as well. we don't have any sort of rush urgency, it's more like i keep my eye out and check weekly in our zip code for new houses that are going on sale. we could also just stay here, but if we do that we'd like to mentally committ to staying for another 5 years or so. we love this area and would love to stay here locally and get a house we can be in for 10+ years. but i also keep an eye out on our own complex dynamics and i can see that our end units are in demand right now and selling as they come up whereas inside units are taking up to 2 months to sell....BUT if that starts to shift at all, i want us to be ready. isn't it all just so stressful?!?! argh plus we don't want to deal with moving again! but we also don't want to just sit here complacently and then in 2 years realize we really want to leave and then find our own townhouse complex market has flattened and we are not in such a great position for resale.

anyway, rambling here but i say if you love it and you can see your family there for a long-term committment....then look into selling your place and see if you can make it happen. i think that men many times try to be the more conservative in terms of family and money and making sure it can all 'work out' and feel comfortable to them....have you crunched numbers on the mortgage and do you know what you will be paying and in property taxes and all that? if so, sit down with hubby and talk it out. i think sometimes things just 'feel right' or wrong and you guys will know if it's meant to be or not. just make sure you both are on the same page because you don't want one person really wanting it and the other hesitant. good luck!!

 

[butterfly 17]

Hi guys,
Well, we are going to look at the house one more time today and make our final decision. They had an open house on Saturday, but it was for back up offers only they said. Apparently she got two more offers on the house yesterday and she told them she has an acceptance already.

There is this gigantic plasma TV hanging in the wall over the fireplace and I sort of mentioned to the RE agent that I wouldn''t mind getting it as part of my offer and he called be back a few hours later and said she would let me have the plasma Tv and all the other lighting fixtures in the house, except the bedroom, so another bonus there!
Even the RE agent said he can''t believe that she is including all these things with the house, but he did tell me that the owner expressed very deeply to her husband that she liked me and wanted me to have the house and wanted to sell it to "this girl and her family". So, I feel great about that.
I really love this house. It is really all I ever dreamed of in a house. It has everything I need and a little more and like I said, I don''t know if I will ever find a house like this for the price she is willing to sell it to me in my neighborhood. I love that I will be be able to stay close to my family and friends and not have to move to far to get a similar house.

My husband and I sat down yesterday and did the math and came up with $2500 left over after the mortgage payments, utility bills, cell phone, cable and car insurance. Based on that number, I know that we can do it. If we decided to rent out the basement for $900 a month, then we would have even more money left over. Actually, if we do rent out the basement, then our new mortgage payment would only be $300 more than what we currently owe, so it would be a piece of cake for us.

I put my house up for sale, so I am going to see what will happen now!!!

It''s so exciting and scary at the same time!

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/18/2006 1:10:10 AM
Author: Small

I live in the Chicago market and I thought the housing prices here were high

I was in the same situation about 2 years ago. We had our 6 mo old baby girl and unexpectedly found out we were having #2. We had a 1600 sq ft 3 bdrm 1.5 bath home which was good for 3 but not so much for 4. We decided to look around before sinking money into our current home which eventually we were planning to move from anyway. SOOOOO we found the perfect house for us. The price was still reasonalbe for the sq ft (2850) and it was all the space we needed plus the two kids would have their own bath. The down side was the mortgage. It''s alot of debt and our payment was going up exactly like you by 1200/mo.
We made the move. We love our new house. We have had to sacrifice. We have a 5 year old SUV and won''t get another new car until we pay off hubby''s in a few years. We don''t live life as we did and still save but just not as much due to the increase in payment. But we are in a better district for schools and our house is all we would have ever wanted.
IF you can afford it, I''d say go for it. Life is full of what ifs and all you can do is make the best decision in the moment. We hemmed and hawed about if we should or shouldn''t and decided that we can''t live life waiting for ''what may happen'' we can only make decisions based on life today (although we save alot so if something did happen we would have that to fall back on). In the end, I have no regrets about moving to our new home. I wish I had the $1200/mo but eventually when I go back to work we''ll have that again. Good luck. I hope you end up getting the house!

That''s great to hear! I am not a risk taker at all, though.

Now, I did have a question, did you sell your house first or did you buy first and then sell later? Also, how long did it take you to sell your old house? I am kind of scared that my house won''t sell fast, but from what I have seen, the same houses like mine that sell in my neighborhood go anywhere from $509K to $550K and take anywhere from 43 days to 160 days depending on the house.

In order to put down the 20% on the new house with closing and RE commissions, I need to sell my house at a minimum of $465K, and I am pricing my house at $497k ($12k less than the least expensive house for sale currently on my block, so I have some bargaining leeway in between, plus I am hoping that since it is less, people will want to see my house first). Also, I am paying out a 2% commission to any outside real estate agent that happens to sell my house, where as most of the other houses for sale are only paying out 1%.
I am hoping all these things will make our house sell.

It''s just kind of scary if it doesn''t sell or if no one makes an offer.

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/18/2006 2:09:33 AM
Author: Mara

so we''re trying to figure out what we want to do as well. we don''t have any sort of rush urgency, it''s more like i keep my eye out and check weekly in our zip code for new houses that are going on sale. we could also just stay here, but if we do that we''d like to mentally committ to staying for another 5 years or so. we love this area and would love to stay here locally and get a house we can be in for 10+ years. but i also keep an eye out on our own complex dynamics and i can see that our end units are in demand right now and selling as they come up whereas inside units are taking up to 2 months to sell....BUT if that starts to shift at all, i want us to be ready. isn''t it all just so stressful?!?! argh plus we don''t want to deal with moving again! but we also don''t want to just sit here complacently and then in 2 years realize we really want to leave and then find our own townhouse complex market has flattened and we are not in such a great position for resale.

anyway, rambling here but i say if you love it and you can see your family there for a long-term committment....then look into selling your place and see if you can make it happen. i think that men many times try to be the more conservative in terms of family and money and making sure it can all ''work out'' and feel comfortable to them....have you crunched numbers on the mortgage and do you know what you will be paying and in property taxes and all that? if so, sit down with hubby and talk it out. i think sometimes things just ''feel right'' or wrong and you guys will know if it''s meant to be or not. just make sure you both are on the same page because you don''t want one person really wanting it and the other hesitant. good luck!!

YOu sound like me in that I really wasn''t looking for a house, just trying to see what is out there and every few weeks I would just get onto realtor.com and see what was for sale in my zip code, but with no real intention on buying.

This house is still listed at $810K on the RE agent''s website and even that is a bargain for all the upgrades it has and all the work she put into it after moving in.

The great thing about this house too is that since it is new, it has the 8 year tax abatement, so we will pay only $627 for taxes this year and then it will slowing go up each year until the full amount in 8 years, so it won''t be too bad.

Don''t get me wrong, my husband absolutely loves the house, he was even planning what to do with the backyard etc.
Can you believe he has only seen the house once and I have already seen it 4 times and he says he doesn''t need to see it again because he already knows what it looks like and it looks good.

I had to convince him to come with me today to see the house again, otherwise he keeps saying he doesn''t really need to.

 

[butterfly 17]

By the way, the RE agent put up the sign in front of my house yesterday and I already saw two cars stop in front of my house to look!!!Yay!

 

[mrssalvo]

I hope your house sells quickly butterfly. the new house sounds fabulous and with all the bonus things included you may never want to move again.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Butterfly - congratulations on finding the house of your dreams! Good vibes going your way for the sale of your current home. And once you move in we need house pics!

 

[Mara]

i''ll keep my fingers crossed for you kayla...that your place sells fast!!

i would definitely love to find the perfect place for us at a great price (there were two houses that went up for sale that were super cute but smaller than ours and both a little cheaper than what we could sell ours for, but greg does not want to move into a ''smaller'' house than ours) but i would SO not be looking fwd to moving and getting used to a new place and neighborhood and all that. part of me just wants to stay here since it''s easy and we love our place. but i don''t want to just be lazy and miss out on something great either. we took a chance on this place and it was the smartest thing we have done so i feel like when it''s right you just know.

wow only $627 in taxes?!?!? we basically 10x that in prop taxes per year out here. it''s sick!!

 

[butterfly 17]

Date: 9/18/2006 1:53:18 PM
Author: Mara
i''ll keep my fingers crossed for you kayla...that your place sells fast!!

i would definitely love to find the perfect place for us at a great price (there were two houses that went up for sale that were super cute but smaller than ours and both a little cheaper than what we could sell ours for, but greg does not want to move into a ''smaller'' house than ours) but i would SO not be looking fwd to moving and getting used to a new place and neighborhood and all that. part of me just wants to stay here since it''s easy and we love our place. but i don''t want to just be lazy and miss out on something great either. we took a chance on this place and it was the smartest thing we have done so i feel like when it''s right you just know.

wow only $627 in taxes?!?!? we basically 10x that in prop taxes per year out here. it''s sick!!

Yes, that is another bonus with getting new construction here, but the laws in NY have recently changed so that the new houses being built will no longer have the tax abatement.

I forgot when they changed the laws, but right now, only the houses with the foundation already laid now qualify or those built previously. Since this house was built last year, it still qualifies.

I do hope my house sells soon, but there is one house on the market now 130 days and still hasn''t sold, so I am kind of scared.
The problem with my block are that all the houses look the same, so you have no idea what one has and what one doesn''t. It could look perfect from the outside, but when you actually go inside, it''s a gigantic mess!

 

[butterfly 17]

Thanks Mssalvo and Dee Jay, it's not THE house of my dreams, but for SI it is definitely something I could only dream about. It is funny as we looked at houses upstate and in NJ and for $400 to $500k, you basically get a mansion with one acre of land, a inground pool, tennis court, playyard and the house is something like 3500 to 4000 sq. feet.

Again the offset would be living far from everyone I know, finding a new job, etc.
The new house I found is only two minutes from me now, so nothing would really change with regards to school and work.

 

[Sundial]

Sounds like you've done your homework on this and I hope everything works out for you guys to sell your house and get this new one!

 

[Small]

Date: 9/18/2006 9:51:50 AM
Author: butterfly 17

Date: 9/18/2006 1:10:10 AM
Author: Small

I live in the Chicago market and I thought the housing prices here were high

I was in the same situation about 2 years ago. We had our 6 mo old baby girl and unexpectedly found out we were having #2. We had a 1600 sq ft 3 bdrm 1.5 bath home which was good for 3 but not so much for 4. We decided to look around before sinking money into our current home which eventually we were planning to move from anyway. SOOOOO we found the perfect house for us. The price was still reasonalbe for the sq ft (2850) and it was all the space we needed plus the two kids would have their own bath. The down side was the mortgage. It''s alot of debt and our payment was going up exactly like you by 1200/mo.
We made the move. We love our new house. We have had to sacrifice. We have a 5 year old SUV and won''t get another new car until we pay off hubby''s in a few years. We don''t live life as we did and still save but just not as much due to the increase in payment. But we are in a better district for schools and our house is all we would have ever wanted.
IF you can afford it, I''d say go for it. Life is full of what ifs and all you can do is make the best decision in the moment. We hemmed and hawed about if we should or shouldn''t and decided that we can''t live life waiting for ''what may happen'' we can only make decisions based on life today (although we save alot so if something did happen we would have that to fall back on). In the end, I have no regrets about moving to our new home. I wish I had the $1200/mo but eventually when I go back to work we''ll have that again. Good luck. I hope you end up getting the house!

That''s great to hear! I am not a risk taker at all, though.

Now, I did have a question, did you sell your house first or did you buy first and then sell later? Also, how long did it take you to sell your old house? I am kind of scared that my house won''t sell fast, but from what I have seen, the same houses like mine that sell in my neighborhood go anywhere from $509K to $550K and take anywhere from 43 days to 160 days depending on the house.

In order to put down the 20% on the new house with closing and RE commissions, I need to sell my house at a minimum of $465K, and I am pricing my house at $497k ($12k less than the least expensive house for sale currently on my block, so I have some bargaining leeway in between, plus I am hoping that since it is less, people will want to see my house first). Also, I am paying out a 2% commission to any outside real estate agent that happens to sell my house, where as most of the other houses for sale are only paying out 1%.
I am hoping all these things will make our house sell.

It''s just kind of scary if it doesn''t sell or if no one makes an offer.

Our house was new construction so we put the money upfront 16k was the minimum deposit for building and then we put our house on the market. I was SOOOOOOOO SCARED. I am a SAHM so no way could we have afforded two mortgage payments. We had 5 months til the house would be done. What we did was this...we tried to sell by owner for 1 month and we had alot of hits but nothing substantial. I talked to a couple of RE agents but we couldn''t stand to lose so much money in commission since we HAD to price our house to sell. So in Illinois there are agents that will allow you to pay a flat listing fee and they list the house on MLS without doing anything else but listing. Then you just pay the buyers agent commission (so lets say 2.5 or 3%) and schedule your own showings, negotiate your own contract (or actually Illinois mandates you have a lawyer for RE transactions so our lawyer negotiated for us), and etc. We saved alot of $$ this way. We priced our house to sell, got it on the market, and within one week we had two offers and one was full price with no contingencies. We had 7 showings in that week. It was crazy. Our biggest fear was not being able to sell because it only had 1.5 baths and we had no trouble. It''s all about presentation...our yard was landscaped perfectly and our house was very well maintained. We had so many compliments from everyone who came into it. It just all fell into place so that''s how we knew we made the right decision. There were MANY houses in our subdivision that sat on the market for 6 mos or more but because our house was presented and priced as it was it sold in days

.
Let me just say also that we aren''t risk takers either. My husband second guesses every decision he makes. He''s got buyers remorse on every car and he''s awful to shop with LOL. I have my fingers crossed that your house will sell fast and that everything will go as smoothly for you as it did for me.

Mara...we did the very same thing in regards to keeping our options open. We only built our first house with the intent of staying there for 5 years. We were always looking in certain areas and just kept our eyes open. With circumstances as they were with baby #2 it just seemed like the best move to make with the price being right and the ideal time to sell out of that neighborhood. For what it''s worth, I think you are being super smart about your situation. Nobody likes to be stuck when the market goes south. I can for one say with confidence in our situation we got out just in time

 

[butterfly 17]

Wow Small, it sounds like you lucked out with the selling of your house. I am hoping the same thing goes for us. We have not listed yet on the MLS, basically all that was done was a sign in front of my house. I believe that the agent will be having a open house this Sunday, he hasn't given me complete details, but I am kind of antsy about this whole thing.
I asked the person on my block who's house has been on the market for over 4 months if she got any offers and she said no not yet.

It kind of makes me nervous. There is a house on my block that was for sale and got an acceptance in under a month and they were priced a lot higher than what I am listing my house for, so that gives me some hope.

ONe bonus is that the front of my house is professionally landscaped with pavers, etc. , so that when someone drives by it makes my house stand out a little more than the other ones for sale b/c the other homes for sale are not, also, my house is priced lower than all the other houses as well. OUr house is well maintained as well and it is basically in move in condition, although I don't have updated appliances, but everything is clean. We also added a patio and walkway to our yard, but no pool and one of the houses for sale has one.

I hope they list me on MLS soon so that potential buyers will see the listing. I may ask the agent for another sign outside as well as the one he put is behind our japanese maple and you can't really see it if a car is parked in front of my house.


ETA: when you say it sold in days, do you mean when you first listed it by owner or when you got it on the MLS. also how long does the MLS process work? I just want it listed now!! I can't stand the wait.

 

[butterfly 17]

I just wanted to add that we looked through the house again yesterday and still love it. The woman did nothing to the yard, but it has so much potential and at least it''s fenced and has the sprinkers.

I went to another house directly across the street of the one I like and let me juist say, there is a huge difference. That one was listed for $767K and it is a legal two family house. It is not as wide as the one I like and the inside is no comparison.
The one I like is gorgeous inside and though the other one was nice, but nothing special. They had granite tiles instead of the porcelain ones and all the walls were barren and white. Nothing was done to the yard, not even a fence was up and there was a house built perpendicular to the backyard, so basically, whoever lives there will look directly into my yard.

Also, the master bathroom was only a shower, not a jet tub/jacuzzi.
It didn''t have that special thing that the one I want has.

I am having the inspection done this weekend and then I set to sign the contract on 9/27!

 

[Small]

Date: 9/19/2006 6:44:10 PM
Author: butterfly 17
Wow Small, it sounds like you lucked out with the selling of your house. I am hoping the same thing goes for us. We have not listed yet on the MLS, basically all that was done was a sign in front of my house. I believe that the agent will be having a open house this Sunday, he hasn''t given me complete details, but I am kind of antsy about this whole thing.
I asked the person on my block who''s house has been on the market for over 4 months if she got any offers and she said no not yet.

It kind of makes me nervous. There is a house on my block that was for sale and got an acceptance in under a month and they were priced a lot higher than what I am listing my house for, so that gives me some hope.

ONe bonus is that the front of my house is professionally landscaped with pavers, etc. , so that when someone drives by it makes my house stand out a little more than the other ones for sale b/c the other homes for sale are not, also, my house is priced lower than all the other houses as well. OUr house is well maintained as well and it is basically in move in condition, although I don''t have updated appliances, but everything is clean. We also added a patio and walkway to our yard, but no pool and one of the houses for sale has one.

I hope they list me on MLS soon so that potential buyers will see the listing. I may ask the agent for another sign outside as well as the one he put is behind our japanese maple and you can''t really see it if a car is parked in front of my house.


ETA: when you say it sold in days, do you mean when you first listed it by owner or when you got it on the MLS. also how long does the MLS process work? I just want it listed now!! I can''t stand the wait.

I just remember that our house listed on Monday on MLS. I had agents calling right away to set up the viewing appts by the following Sunday we had our first offer with one showing the next day still scheduled. On Monday, we had offer #2 which was full price and non contingent...so within 7 days of the house getting on MLS we had two offers and decided obviously to go with offer #2 because it was the best offer and we didn''t have to worry about the other people that had to sell their house in order to buy ours.
It didn''t seem to take long to get the house on MLS but they had to come out and take a picture and such. Seems like that process was fairly fast. I think I set everything up on Friday and for sure by Monday our house was on MLS and I was setting up appts

If you have a well maintained, priced to sell home it''ll go fast. It always amazes me when I watch shows or talk to people that are selling how little effort they want to put into the presentation to get the house sold. As a buyer, I''d like to see a well kept lawn as well as a well kept, clean inside. If you see this then at least you can think that the owner must take good care of the home. It says alot to me. No worries...I know it''s stressful because I''ve been there but it will sell and I bet it won''t take near as long as you think

 

[butterfly 17]

Well, I am still waiting for my house to be listed on the MLS. They told me they submitted it a few days ago and again yesterday, but for some reason, they have not yet listed it, nor have they taken a picture of my house yet.
I hope they can do it soon as we are having an open house and at least if some people call they can tsay hat there is an open house this week and that way a few people can see it at one time instead of making a bunch of appointments during the week.
I have this strange feeling that they are waiting to list my house on MLS until they have the open house to see if someone will make an offer without having to even list it. I was told that it cost $1200 to list on MLS, so if they can sell without listing, then they save a few bucks!
I hope that''s not the case, but again, I am paranoid!

 

[mrssalvo]

really $1200 bucks for MLS. we had our house up for sale last spring. since we didn''t have to move we priced high. we didn''t get any offers and took it off the market for the summer. it was listed in the MLS a couple days after we signed the papers with our agent. who pays the $1200 b/c we sure didn''t