Buying your own house

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 6/6/2006 8:50:45 PM
Author: codex57
In Sacramento, new housing is still doing ok depending on where you''re at. The growth out here is freaking incredible. All these Bay Area people ditching the $900K 1400 sq ft houses they can''t afford to buy a 1700 sq ft one for $350K.

I''m not too concerned about housing dropping. See how much a point or two does to a mortgage payment. Basically, you''re just trading how much the home price for an interest rate. It''s all funny money anyways. If you''re living in it, who cares if the price drops $50-100K as long as you can afford the mortgage. You''re still building equity in it (unless you have that interest only loan) while others are waiting that 2-3 years for the housing to ''drop.'' In the end, it''s just gonna go back up anyways. This is Cali. Eventually, it''s only gonna go up.

If the market drops, that''s the time to try and buy a second piece of property on the cheap.

well....all depends on how you look at things. i know a couple that paid 690k their house 2 yrs ago (at the peak of the market) they probably will not see their house value at 690k for the next 10 yrs.

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Yes, there is hope!

I bought my home in 2003. It''s a townhouse in Redondo Beach, about a mile to the ocean. Granted, I bought the place with a girlfriend so I didn''t do it solo. We were both in the same boat- financially successful, single gals in our 30''s (and our taxes were killing us!!) It''s the best decision I ever made! It would have been a stretch to afford my home on my own, and I really didn''t want to give up my lifestyle, so it made sense to go in with her.

Fast forward 3 years later. Home prices in our area have steadily increased. We''re selling and moving on. I''m engaged, she has a steady boyfriend. We put the house on the market in late April, and we had an offer a week later (for a bit under our asking price!). I''m moving out tomorrow, and escrow will soon close. I''ll have a nice chunk of change to put towards a home with my husband to be. He owns a townhouse as well, so we''re in good shape.

My best advice is to become informed! Do your research and talk to people. I found our mortgage broker through friends, and he saved us a bundle. Owning your own place is the best feeling ever!

GOOD LUCK!

 

[fire&ice]

Just thought I''d ask - does anyone know about the NoDa district of Charlotte, NC - specifically whether buying a condo would be a good investment long term?

 

[sydneycasandra]

emeraldlover,

I bought my first house almost a year ago, before I was married (and even now my husband still lives 80 miles away in his own house). I am a professional student and will be living here at least 4 years if not 8 and didn''t want to waste the rent money. (My mortgage is not TOO much more than many of my friends who have nice apartments, and they''ll have nothing to show for it later on. I don''t have $$ to go partying and stuff with them all the time, but I decided that a good investment and a real home was more important for me.) I bought in a downtownish area, near my school so it''s a short drive, and it''s a very old (106 yr old) small house, perfect 1 person or a couple. It has been more work than my friends who live in apartments, but it''s also very satisfying... and I can paint things any color I like! It was a good choice and I think, probably more important than bling.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

[Mara]

DF as long as they plan to stay in that house for 10 more years they''ll be fine...that is codex''s point. However if they planned to sell in 2-3 years they may be out some $$.

Portoar...SC is tempting but it''s still pretty pricey out there right?? Places like SD are so tempting...I love the warm weather. Here in the Bayarea where we are it''s been more like SPRING than summer, everyone is complaining about how cold it is and at night as well. Bah!

We are looking into other areas in the US...we looked at NC but I don''t feel like it''s as diverse of a place as I''d like to be...so now we are looking at Austin, TX...so far I have only found a few ''cons'' to it...but it is a little hotter and a little more humid than CA (though not as bad as other areas of TX for sure!!) and the housing is cheap cheap cheap and lots of land out there...and tech is out there too...tempting. But my faimly is here. So who knows. We just like talking about it.

But it''s tempting to think about buying a house with 85% cash that is for sure. Imagine what you could do with all your $$ without a mortgage? Esp since salaries elsewhere in the US are actually fairly similar to what CA makes but CA has the insanely high cost of living.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Date: 6/10/2006 9:33:37 AM
Author: fire&ice
Just thought I''d ask - does anyone know about the NoDa district of Charlotte, NC - specifically whether buying a condo would be a good investment long term?

F&I are you from Charlotte? NoDa is hot right now so it probably would be a bad investment. It might be tapped out like Dilworth. It is hard to get "deals" there. A few years ago, that was a different story. They are building some luxury condos by Cotswald (off Providence). I can ask my FI, he would know better than I would.

 

[portoar]

Portoar...SC is tempting but it''s still pretty pricey out there right?? Places like SD are so tempting...I love the warm weather. Here in the Bayarea where we are it''s been more like SPRING than summer, everyone is complaining about how cold it is and at night as well. Bah!

Compared to other parts of the country, yes, San Diego is very expensive. I have clients from around the country call me about moving here, and they go into total shock when they see what they can get for their money (it''s not pretty). BUT, compared to the Bay Area, it''s so affordable! My home is worth about $750K, but pick it up lot and all and move it to the bay area and add $500K to the price easy. And, it''s closer to the beach

 

[fire&ice]

Date: 6/10/2006 7:12:33 PM
Author: Tacori E-ring

Date: 6/10/2006 9:33:37 AM
Author: fire&ice
Just thought I''d ask - does anyone know about the NoDa district of Charlotte, NC - specifically whether buying a condo would be a good investment long term?

F&I are you from Charlotte? NoDa is hot right now so it probably would be a bad investment. It might be tapped out like Dilworth. It is hard to get ''deals'' there. A few years ago, that was a different story. They are building some luxury condos by Cotswald (off Providence). I can ask my FI, he would know better than I would.

No, but a very close relative who just graduated is living there in a condo owned by someone else. I was just putting my thinking cap on about parking some money there - maybe a rent to own for him. But, thanks - it does seem like a really cool place for a 20 something to live! If it''s margined out - prolly not a good idea.

Other than having my stone set there, I haven''t spent much time in Charlotte since the 80''s. It sure has changed and seems quite the haven for financial people & young people in general. It seems to be such a growing area.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 6/10/2006 2:05:55 PM
Author: Mara
DF as long as they plan to stay in that house for 10 more years they''ll be fine...that is codex''s point. However if they planned to sell in 2-3 years they may be out some $$.

Mara
they got no choice. what?? sell it now and take a $150k bath?

my point is...it isn''t always bad to rent when everybody is chasing a hot market "stay away" at least you won''t lose money on the property by renting.

 

[Dandi]

I bought my first place, an apartment, 2 years ago at the age of 22, alone with no financial help in a (now) very upmarket part of town. My parents offered to chip in so I could rake up a 20% deposit but I refused... I wanted to do it all on my own!

My BF at the time (now DF) had at that stage owned his own house for three years at that point, and now only owes on it 1/4 of what it''s worth. We''re building a house together in an area that three years ago was pretty run-of-the-mill, and has now become one of the most high-end suburbs in our city. Yay!!

DF''s house is also in a lovely area, so all in all I think all three places will continue to increase dramatically in value. We don''t ever plan to sell OUR house, but his house and my apartment will be rental properties once the new house is complete. Actually his latest thing is to sell his house and buy some industrial/commercial sheds, keep one for himself (he races a V8 and is a serious revvhead

) and rent out the rest. Too much to think about with a wedding in tow!!!

I''ll just let him have his fun

 

[Dandi]

I forgot to add... best of luck with whatever venture you take, emeraldlover!

 

[mia15]

Goodness, thanks again for all the great replies! I''m already reading up on the subject to find out what needs to be in order to prepare myself to buy.

It''ll be a while, but I''m sure I want to do it, and I''ll keep you all updated!