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lowcrabdiet posted:Even with the homebuyer tax credit expiring, they have at least 20 out of 49 units still for sale. I believe that the program has been going on for at least a year now. This looks like a giant red warning sign to me. How has the DC market been over the last year? Where I live (bay area, CA) the only houses that have sat on the market for a year unsold are the ones that are grossly overpriced, or will required 100K+ in repairs. It doesn't really matter if the advertising has been poor; the local real estate agents surely know about it and would have recommended it to their clients if it was a good deal at all. Which tells me that either it's not a good deal, or, you're in market where half of the inventory goes unsold even when it's selling for a giant "discount" which means that "discount" isn't one.
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Apr 14, 2010 17:07
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It's a similar situation with new condos where I live - half or more going unsold even at steep discounts. They just built too many too fast during the boom. Lots of buyers backing out and developers going bankrupt.
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Apr 14, 2010 17:16
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Leperflesh posted:This looks like a giant red warning sign to me. How has the DC market been over the last year? Where I live (bay area, CA) the only houses that have sat on the market for a year unsold are the ones that are grossly overpriced, or will required 100K+ in repairs. The DC market is still fairly strong. The effect of the bubble burst has been fairly mild in the area. It's still a buyer's market, but not by much. The condos in this subdivision (all low-rise condos and townhouses) get snapped up pretty quickly if they're at a reasonable price. The only condo that hasn't been sold in a significant amount of time has an owner who isn't in a hurry at all and is reluctant to come down on the price. My experience mirrors this a bit: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2010/04/why-are-there-no-houses-for-sale-in-dc/38789/ Of the agents I talked to, no one has known the details about the WFH program. I went to an agent's office and they printed out the listing, and there's only a brief description and no pictures. The units are being renovated so there's not really much to take pics of anyway. The only reason my friend and I found out about it is from another postal worker friend who met an agent there while delivering mail in the subdivison and the agent was asking if he was interested. I really just think that it's not well advertised. The agent I'm working with is the manager of a local realty company and he asked his agents if they knew about the program and no one did. Then again, the office usually deals with more high-priced properties so that may be why.
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Apr 14, 2010 18:21
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Finally after having every offer we put out rejected, we had one accepted! We have a home inspection tomorrow and close July 1st. I'm a strange mix of extremely excited and extremely terrified.
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Apr 15, 2010 00:15
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Ophelia's Ashes posted:Finally after having every offer we put out rejected, we had one accepted! We have a home inspection tomorrow and close July 1st. That is the correct mix.
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Apr 15, 2010 00:21
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Ophelia's Ashes posted:Finally after having every offer we put out rejected, we had one accepted! We have a home inspection tomorrow and close July 1st. Congrats! I'm closing next Thursday. My excitement/terror is getting to critical levels. I submitted the last few papers that underwriting wanted, and am waiting for the final ok, and to get the exact amounts needed for closing so I can write the biggest checks of m life! Oh god...
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Apr 15, 2010 01:17
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We're looking at a 3 year old home in a neighborhood where almost every other house is about 50-60+ years old. The current owner razed the 1940's house that was on the lot and built this really awesome modern house. It's really nice and the location is great but we're really concerned about having the most expensive house in the neighborhood. They're asking $395,000 and I have a hard time believing any other house in the area is even worth $200,000. Would it be a big mistake to consider this house?
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Apr 16, 2010 20:41
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filo posted:We're looking at a 3 year old home in a neighborhood where almost every other house is about 50-60+ years old. The current owner razed the 1940's house that was on the lot and built this really awesome modern house. It's really nice and the location is great but we're really concerned about having the most expensive house in the neighborhood. They're asking $395,000 and I have a hard time believing any other house in the area is even worth $200,000. Depends on where but personally yep.
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Apr 16, 2010 21:23
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filo posted:Would it be a big mistake to consider this house?
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Apr 16, 2010 21:40
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I agree, but with the caveat that this is with regards to it's ability to appraise for the loan value, and, its resale value. For the first factor, if it can't appraise for the loan value, then it is literally not worth that much, and you can offer a lower price for the house. If you want a house to live in for the rest of your life that you will never ever sell and will give to your grandkids, it might not be as big a deal. One more thing to remember, though: you can change your house but (generally) you can't change your neighborhood. It's better to buy a shack in a rich area because doing maintenance and fixing it up will improve its value tremendously, and, you'll be enjoying a nice low-crime high-quality neighborhood.
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Apr 16, 2010 22:58
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moana posted:If it really is the most expensive house in the area, then yes, a hundred times. It's almost always better to get a lovely house in a nice neighborhood than the other way around. We don't want to buy a lovely house as we are not very handy people and wouldn't be capable of doing any major improvements. And the neighborhood is hardly a ghetto, it's simply an older neighborhood with smaller, less expensive homes. It's a very nice home and is a ten minute bike ride from the university where I work. Plus the sellers are relocating to Utah and I feel like we could light a fire under their rear end to lower the price quite a bit. Would it really be so bad even if we were planning to stay there for ten years or longer?
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Apr 16, 2010 23:08
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It sounds like you've already convinced yourself that it's fine, in which case, why ask? But this is the truth: neighborhood affects value. A lot. More than number of rooms or age of the structure or even plot size. What the other folks are getting at is, you should be able to find a really nice house that is, if not the 'worst' house in the neighborhood, at least in the average. In a nicer neighborhood. That house will keep its value, and be much more likely to go up in value. The nicest, biggest house in a lower-cost neighborhood is much riskier as an investment.
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Apr 17, 2010 00:42
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frankdiabetes posted:We don't want to buy a lovely house as we are not very handy people and wouldn't be capable of doing any major improvements. It sounds like you're in love with the place and you're trying to justify a purchase, but if it's really double the price of all the other houses in the neighborhood, that's just insane. Check out the area on Zillow and Trulia, see what the comparables are, and make a reasoned decision. But if it's the only house that price in the neighborhood, consider it likely that you'll quickly be upside down on your mortgage and you won't build any equity at all in the ten years (or whatever) that you live there.
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Apr 17, 2010 00:48
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Leperflesh posted:It sounds like you've already convinced yourself that it's fine, in which case, why ask? You'll notice that it wasn't actually me asking in the first place. That said, you've all got good points. We already know from Trulia and other sources that the current sellers are losing lots of money themselves. $395,000 would probably get us something decent with less of a risk for loss but we do really love the house.
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Apr 17, 2010 02:23
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Leperflesh posted:It sounds like you've already convinced yourself that it's fine, in which case, why ask? Why do people always act like this in these threads whenever someone presents their reasoning behind considering it in the first place. He isn't being hardheaded or unreasonable, he is just obviously interested but hasn't made up his mind and is asking for other's opinions... why be a dick?
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Apr 17, 2010 05:33
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greasyhands posted:Why do people always act like this in these threads whenever someone presents their reasoning behind considering it in the first place. "Should I buy a Ferrari with gold rims?" "No, it is too expensive and you can't afford it and the gold will get chipped." "Really? Because my girlfriend really likes it and it's my uncle selling it so I think it's a good deal, and the gold matches my cell phone, is it really such a bad idea?" "  "Like, if there is important information we should know about the house, you should give it beforehand. And if, for example, being able to bike to work is such an important thing that you're willing to overpay for a house for it by X amount, that's important information that we need in order to give advice. Otherwise it just sounds like trying to justify an unwise decision (and sometimes it is). I don't think it's being a dick to point out when someone's not evaluating the finances of something rationally, although house purchases tend to be much more emotionally charged and so it seems harsher when you're in love with a place that's overpriced. I fell in love with an overpriced place, and oof it hurt to walk away, but in the end it was the right decision.
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Apr 17, 2010 16:38
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moana posted:Like, if there is important information we should know about the house, you should give it beforehand. And if, for example, being able to bike to work is such an important thing that you're willing to overpay for a house for it by X amount, that's important information that we need in order to give advice. Otherwise it just sounds like trying to justify an unwise decision (and sometimes it is). I don't think it's being a dick to point out when someone's not evaluating the finances of something rationally, although house purchases tend to be much more emotionally charged and so it seems harsher when you're in love with a place that's overpriced. I fell in love with an overpriced place, and oof it hurt to walk away, but in the end it was the right decision. You're right. It hurts to walk away and it's hard to see past the things you love to reasonably assess the problems. Being able to commute by bicycle is very important but there are a million other houses in a 10 mile radius of my work. We had our parents come with us last night to look at it and they said "The house is great but the neighborhood sucks. Let's move on." It was my husband that posted the first post about this house. He's keeping a more reasonable approach to the situation than me because I think he's less fond of it than I am, but I posted to attempt to clarify a bit (and maybe a little to try and justify a fiscally unwise decision).
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Apr 17, 2010 18:14
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Yeah, I actually didn't notice it was two different people posting, sorry. And Moana hit the nail on the head; here on SA, the number of people who ask for advice and then obstinately refuse to listen to it are by far the majority, unfortunately. It's nice when people actually listen, though! The best advice my wife and I ever got when we started house-hunting for our first home was "don't fall in love with a house". There's this very strong cultural pressure in the US, the idyllic scene where the impossibly attractive young couple take ownership of their impossibly gorgeous, enormous and perfectly-appointed house in an impossibly gorgeous family neighborhood, and I think we all kind of internalize that a lot. The reality though is that a house is the biggest purchase of your life, and its best to resist the romantic notions in favor of clear-headed appraisal. There's no such thing as a perfect house, and it actually takes practice to learn how to look at a house for fifteen minutes and notice the problems instead of just being charmed by the newness and the nice parts. I've met and read about a lot of people who go house-hunting for just one or two weekends, see maybe a dozen houses, and then ultimately just pick one and buy it. I can't fathom that. Many people spend less time searching for a house than they did deciding what to wear to prom, or planning their next vacation. Crazy! My wife and I started looking at houses in April of last year, and we made our first offer in November. We made, and won, our second offer in December; by that time we'd been shown at least 30 or 40 houses, and had gone to drive past/walk around at least that many more by ourselves; nevermind the hundreds and hundreds of listings we went through over the months. Granted we were in a position where that was necessary (shopping foreclosed homes, pretty tight budget constraints), but I think it really taught us how to spot problems right away. By October we could pull up out front of a house and see problems from the curb within seconds; we developed a good eye for neighborhoods, started noticing sloping floors and door-frames out of square and faint stains on ceilings, poor uses of living space, big trees right up against a foundation, all kinds of little signs like that which were total deal-breakers. Maybe one in ten houses deserved a thorough look, and only about one in twenty were worth seriously considering a bid. Your mileage will vary because (it sounds like) you're not looking for a foreclosure, you have a larger budget, and your market will be different from ours. Be patient and thorough and try hard to prioritize your requirements and be very firm on the top few, and you'll do great. Good luck!
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Apr 17, 2010 18:33
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I currently pay rent of $1200/mo for a 1BDR apt and am relocating to a much more affordable city. My salary will stay the same so I'm looking to buy a house with a mortgage payment of $1200-1400. Most of the homes prices in the neighborhood I'm looking at have already dropped from $300k to $200k. Coming from a city with a high cost of living, this to me is a great deal. I can essentially maintain or even elevate my standard of living while keeping the same salary. My job is secure. My question is do I have much to gain by waiting to see if house prices drop further? By my calculations, if a $200k home drops to $180k my mortgage payment decreases by <$100/mo, which to me isn't something worth waiting for. I conceive that if I wait I may able to purchase more house for the same price, but that would mean higher utilities, taxes, etc. I'm happy with what I can afford right now. Is my thinking sound?
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Apr 19, 2010 16:59
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Black Jasper posted:My question is do I have much to gain by waiting to see if house prices drop further? By my calculations, if a $200k home drops to $180k my mortgage payment decreases by <$100/mo, which to me isn't something worth waiting for. I conceive that if I wait I may able to purchase more house for the same price, but that would mean higher utilities, taxes, etc. I'm happy with what I can afford right now. What's your time frame? I think you might consider waiting a year for other reasons, to make sure you want to be in this city long-term and to figure out what neighborhood is the best fit for you. Cheaper rent will give you more money towards a down payment or home maintenance fund. If you're thinking about renting a room in your house it'll also give you a chance to try out housemates before you're the landlord.
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Apr 19, 2010 17:07
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Sure, but make sure you're really elevating your standard of living. You might be able to rent a kickass apartment without having to worry about things like roofs needing to be redone, water heaters breaking, etc, etc. Also you wouldn't have to worry about selling the house (if you plan on staying a while, it's okay, but less than 5 years and you have a good chance of being upside down on your mortgage). If you're happy with what you can afford and know you plan on staying for a while, then I don't see any problem with buying now. We knew that prices in San Diego might continue to drop, but we liked the house we bought and plan on living in it for quite a while so it didn't matter.
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Apr 19, 2010 17:09
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There's a ton of unforeseen costs in moving to a house. Be prepared for the additional costs over renting. Extra maintenance, increased utility bills, etc. As for the wait or not question, depends on the market, how long your going to be there, etc. What area are you looking at? I bought about 3 months ago. I have a stable job in a city that wasn't really affected by the bubble (San Antonio) and conservatively estimate I'll be here another 5 years or so. Buying was worth it for me. On the flip side, in a major declining market like yours, you can rent a house cheaply, have all the benefits of home ownership, but none of the commitment!
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Apr 19, 2010 17:11
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Black Jasper posted:My question is do I have much to gain by waiting to see if house prices drop further? By my calculations, if a $200k home drops to $180k my mortgage payment decreases by <$100/mo, which to me isn't something worth waiting for. I conceive that if I wait I may able to purchase more house for the same price, but that would mean higher utilities, taxes, etc. I'm happy with what I can afford right now. On a monthly basis you are only out $100/mo. But if the house drops in value $20,000 you are out $20,000. If you don't have a down payment you would be underwater for the first 6 years. If you do have a down payment you would just be throwing $20,000 away. That said, you probably can't predict a 10% price swing in a neighborhood. If its worth $200,000 to you, buy it at $200,000.
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Apr 19, 2010 17:12
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I don't think $1200/mo will pay all the costs of a $200k house, unless you can put at least 20% down (and maybe not then). You need to account for: -Mortgage -Mortgage insurance (PMI) -Homeowner's insurance -Taxes (this varies by zip code but you can usually find out the current assessment on a house via your city or county's website) -Higher utility costs (houses cost more to warm/cool than apartments) -Cost of maintaining the house (this depends a lot on condition, but it is never $0) -Any changes you might have in commuting distance (may or may not apply) The above are certain, there can be other changes in cost as well (cost of living in the area comes to mind) but the above is a good place to start. Figure out all the above before deciding you can really afford to buy. You can estimate a lot of these costs. Remember that a bank will often happily pre-approve you for far more than you can really afford.
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Apr 19, 2010 17:55
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Yeah, we pay in the ballpark of $1200/month to cover: Mortgage Insurance Taxes Utilities We don't have PMI because it's a VA loan. Our house was $140K. There are better interest rates out there now than when we got it, but our APR is still just a hair over 5% so it's not like we're horribly gouged or anything. edit: our property taxes are high because we have no income taxes.
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Apr 19, 2010 23:42
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Leperflesh posted:Figure out all the above before deciding you can really afford to buy. You can estimate a lot of these costs. Remember that a bank will often happily pre-approve you for far more than you can really afford. I'd like to steer the discussion away from whether or not I can afford to buy. My monthly income would allow me to pay $1800-2000 total for mortgage, taxes ($700-1100/yr), insurance ($500/yr), utilities. I guess I'm more interested in learning how to assess a housing market. The house I'm looking at is priced at $200k and sold for ~$250k 3 years ago. I've seen pretty comparable homes a few streets away that have asking prices in the $275-300k range. Most of these homes are overpriced and have been on the market for over a year. It's in a neighborhood with older homes and relatively few foreclosures, though that will probably change over the next year or so. I'm comfortable paying $200k right now, but not sure if I should wait to see if prices continue to drop, given the current financial climate. I figure that if prices already dropped 25-30% so far, they could fall further but I have nothing to base this on. I plan on living here for at least 5-7 years. Rents haven't fallen yet. Many of the rentals are $1500-1800/mo. I figure the owners are caught in bloated mortgages and refuse to take a loss. I've considered renting a very nice apartment, but would like the privacy and space of a SFH, now that I finally live in a city where I can afford one.
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Apr 20, 2010 00:35
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Assuming you can afford it comfortably, which it sounds like you can... I vote you rent for a year while you figure the city out. You say you'll like the city but it's difficult to truly say that without living there. You might even like the city, but not the neighborhood you first find. If you rent a place you can get a feel for different areas. It would be much better to find out you like a different neighborhood more six months into a lease rather than six months into a 30 year mortgage. From a timing the market perspective - at the macro-level foreclosures are up, unemployment is still high leading to more future foreclosures, and the first time homebuyers credit is about to expire. I personally feel after reading a variety of articles on both sides of the debate housing - prices will continue to decline at least a little. I could link some articles, but someone could also link articles stating the exact opposite. Obviously no one knows for sure what will happen. I recommend reading up on both sides, weighing empirical, statistical evidence and drawing your own conclusions. Also note that the national market could (will) be different than your local market so more localized research is in order. Also consider rates are going up so it might be somewhat of a wash if prices do decline further and will depend on how much you finance the purchase of the property. Bottom line: Rent for a bit, when you find a place you do like - look at comps so you don't get screwed on the price. Don't worry about timing every little movement in home prices or interest rates. If you have a good down payment and don't stretch your budget you should be set.
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Apr 20, 2010 01:50
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I agree with alreadybeen more or less completely. I don't think you've mentioned the specific market you're looking in, but, anything you read that is about the US housing market as a whole, must be taken as possibly being totally relevant, partially relevant, or totally irrelevant, depending on the local situation. And buying a house is special. Yes, it's an investment, and a wise investor pays attention to the market and tries to time an investment well. But it's also a place to live. There are all manner of intangibles that play into that. If I may make a comparison that is perhaps a bit of a stretch: it's a bit like investing in comic books, as opposed to gold. Few people get emotionally attached to their gold, but most comic book collectors buy what they like, and read what they buy, and get enjoyment out of them for years. As an actual investment, comic books kind of suck, but it's OK because the goal isn't really to get rich, it's to enjoy a hobby that, perhaps, may also provide a modest financial return (or not). Deciding when in your life it's time to buy a house, then, is not merely a cold financial decision, or some calculation where if you somehow had perfect information about all relevant market forces, you could make a perfect choice about when and where to buy and sell and thereby maximize your profits at minimum risk. That's why the advice to wait and evaluate the new city is good; not just because maybe prices will keep falling for a year or two (they might or might not) or maybe interest rates will rise for a year or two (again, might or might not), but because even if you get a great deal and come out ahead financially, you will have a very bad experience if you buy the wrong house, or buy in the wrong neighborhood (or city or state or etc.) And houses are very illiquid and very expensive to sell. So take your time, if you can, and don't worry too much about timing the bottom of the market.
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Apr 20, 2010 08:39
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mlmp08 posted:Yeah, we pay in the ballpark of $1200/month to cover: Can you explain what it's lioke going the VA loan route? At the beginning of next year my lease for my appartment expires and I really want to look in to buying a house. Was the VA easy to work with? Did they do anything to help in the interaction between you and the real estate agent, or however you found your home?
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Apr 21, 2010 05:18
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God drat poo poo, is there any worse feeling than getting outbid on a house you really wanted? MLS says "Contingent Offer" now  While I'm posting here, anyone had any experience with mortgages based on self-employment income? I'm pre-approved and don't foresee any major problems with getting approved, but am apprehensive about what my rate will be compared to someone with W-2s at the same income level.
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Apr 21, 2010 06:00
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Can you show several years of stable income from your self-employment? I think a bank will certainly apply much more scrutiny to your case, and you will probably be placed in a higher risk-bracket. But if you've been self-employed for more than two years, and can show that your income has been solid and sustained (or growing) during that time, you should at least be able to get some kind of loan. Having a hefty down payment will help a lot though.
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Apr 21, 2010 07:13
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Been self-employed since mid-07...they basically want to see Schedule Cs from my income taxes. Unfortunately while 2008 was a "normal" year, 2009 was a semi-down year. But I always file an extension so not sure if they'll use 2009/2008 as my baseline or 2008/2007 (they said they add up the 2 years of income and divide by 24 to get my monthly income). I was pre-approved with 2008 & 2009, so even with the lower 2009 income, it was good enough to pass through the initial underwriting test. I'll be putting 20% down, and my credit score is almost 800. The problem is my TYPE of employment, which I don't want to get into, but I just hope they don't screw me around in terms of rates. Also for USAA members, how have you found their mortgage rates? I'm not in the military or a veteran, so VA isn't an option. My mom said that USAA never has the best rates when they shop (and my parents have moved a whole bunch). I'm going to shop around, but I would definitely prefer USAA because I do everything with them.
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Apr 21, 2010 07:24
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With such excellent credit and 20% down I think you should be able to get a good rate (5% or so) regardless. I don't think they care about the 'type' of employment and, in fact, it might even be illegal for them to take that into consideration, depending. Someone more versed in the law will have to comment. I don't know anything about USAA.
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Apr 21, 2010 07:32
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Arkane posted:While I'm posting here, anyone had any experience with mortgages based on self-employment income? I'm pre-approved and don't foresee any major problems with getting approved, but am apprehensive about what my rate will be compared to someone with W-2s at the same income level.
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Apr 21, 2010 16:07
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Arkane posted:Also for USAA members, how have you found their mortgage rates? I'm not in the military or a veteran, so VA isn't an option. My mom said that USAA never has the best rates when they shop (and my parents have moved a whole bunch). I'm going to shop around, but I would definitely prefer USAA because I do everything with them. I got my mortgage through USAA as did one of my good friends. We only shopped with two banks (USAA and Key) due mostly to being so busy (wife works full time + grad school), but they came out cheaper than Key and seemed to be very in line with what I was seeing rates at when I perused the internet. Out experience was more or less good, but we did have to bug the hell out of our loan officer on a couple occasions to get in contact with us. I've had this experience with USAA on an auto insurance issue as well. Calling their general mortgage number was way more effective in getting movement in some cases.
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Apr 21, 2010 16:17
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Arkane posted:Also for USAA members, how have you found their mortgage rates? I'm not in the military or a veteran, so VA isn't an option. My mom said that USAA never has the best rates when they shop (and my parents have moved a whole bunch). I'm going to shop around, but I would definitely prefer USAA because I do everything with them. I poked around a bit. What I found was that USAA generally ended up with equivalent or cheaper cost for a particular rate. USAA's fees are rock-bottom, and don't forget that any broker is going to charge you an extra point or two to get their rate. Basically, be sure you account for interest rate, all points, and fees. Also be aware that USAA will probably sell your mortgage on to somebody else right away - US Bank in my case. My loan officer did go on vacation in the middle of the process, but I didn't have any problem getting hold of someone when needed. I went here for comparison shopping: http://mtgprofessor.com/A%20-%20UMLs/introducing_upfront_mortgage_lenders.htm
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Apr 21, 2010 16:25
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Grem posted:Can you explain what it's like going the VA loan route? At the beginning of next year my lease for my appartment expires and I really want to look in to buying a house. Was the VA easy to work with? Did they do anything to help in the interaction between you and the real estate agent, or however you found your home? I can kind of explain, but my wife did about 95% of the actual footwork for buying the house, because I was deployed to the Middle East at the time. VA didn't so much help with the real estate agent as the real estate agent helped with the VA. We found a guy who was former military and does most of his business with VA and Tex Vet (form of VA) loans. We financed through our builder, since the rates didn't change depending on who we went through, and the builder was willing to pay closing costs if we financed through them. My biggest problems with VA stuff was that I was deployed and didn't have regular access to quality internet or a scanner, and they didn't really want to have only my wife's power of attorney as proof that it was ok to sign me up to buy the home. Having a good realtor is critical, IMO. We still call him up from time to time, 6 months after closing, and ask for advice or help and he's happy to oblige, because he is advertised primarily through word of mouth.
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Apr 22, 2010 16:32
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FYI regarding USAA: they are extremely picky with what they will give loans for. This probably helped them weather this crisis (which I am happy they remain strong, I love every aspect of their business), but I could not get a loan through them due to their restrictions on condos.
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Apr 22, 2010 17:11
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Arkane posted:Also for USAA members, how have you found their mortgage rates? I'm not in the military or a veteran, so VA isn't an option. My mom said that USAA never has the best rates when they shop (and my parents have moved a whole bunch). I'm going to shop around, but I would definitely prefer USAA because I do everything with them. I was able to do slightly better with e-loan in 2003 (before the secondary mortgage market went to poo poo) and a local broker in 2008. Both times, USAA's rates were just slightly worse than the best I could find elsewhere. You may end up paying a small premium at USAA, but that could be totally worth it to you for an easy transaction with a company you know won't screw you over.
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Apr 23, 2010 00:01
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| # ? May 16, 2024 00:05 |
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Oh god I had another offer accepted. Oh god I have to pay for an inspection and downpayment and closing costs and oh god oh god oh god how do I breathe <-- this is how the entire loving process makes me feel.
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Apr 24, 2010 00:50
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