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10-8 posted:Chicago is the same way right now. Inventory is incredibly low and decent properties are flying off the market. It makes me really cautious that we're headed right back into another irrational bubble or if lending standards have just loosened up to the point where people who've wanted to buy for a couple years are finally able to. Possibly both. I'm thinking it's a normal cyclical action, not yet a bubble by any means, but a very volatile upwards swing. The savvy people who bought in the last two years are sitting pretty, and now everyone with any significant cash and/or credit who's vaguely interested in real estate right now is buying before (they believe) prices will skyrocket and interest rates will rise again. I think we're past a temporary bottom on the way to a temporary high. If you can buy in the very near future, that's great, but otherwise I'm thinking waiting a year or three may see a counter-swing as more and more people buy rental property that can't sustain itself.
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Mar 20, 2013 02:24
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You could counter offer, accepting the contingency if they agree to accept all costs incurred by you if they sell to someone else, plus like $10k.
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Mar 29, 2013 14:38
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lord1234 posted:Also, yes this is a repost from the legal thread, where the general sentiment is "run the gently caress away". That's good advice. If you really want to do this, the neighbor pretty much needs to directly lend you the money to buy the house, effectively becoming your mortgage lender. Alternatively, you could write up a contract as an X-year lease term with a call option for you within the lease term, having a call price of what the neighbor is buying it for plus Y% interest/year, and free reign to make any and all alterations to the house. Essentially, if you call your option within the lease and buy the house, you keep the improvements, otherwise he does... you can structure the deal however you like, but structure it with a lawyer. Securitizing real estate, what could go wrong?
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Apr 1, 2013 20:48
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lord1234 posted:This is sort of how a lease to own works. However, given that I am putting money into the home, I want to not take 100% of the risk if for some reason I choose to walk away, so as such, I'd like to figure out some way to "value" my input. You don't take 100% of the risk because he's already risked a significant amount of money buying the place. Even if you fix it halfway up and then walk, he still has a fixer upper just sitting there that he has to pay property taxes on and try to move. If anything, giving you the option to buy at a fixed, pre-determined price is generous even with a fixed time limit. You can ultimately structure the deal however you like, but if you're not the owner from the start there's always going to be a risk that he'll just ignore the deal and force you to court. quote:There is no possible way that you spending $60k+ to improve a house that you do not own ends well. If you have a fixed price buy option on the property, I don't see why it has to end in tears. Doesn't make it the best idea, but if everyone sticks to an agreed contract there's no reason it can't go well.
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Apr 1, 2013 21:12
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Baronjutter posted:We don't have HOA's where I live and the ability to repair and modify things my self and putting down roots in my city is one of the biggest selling points for me to get a condo. Are you sure? I've never heard of a condo without an HOA. You need one in a condo for the common areas.
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Apr 9, 2013 00:28
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I want to buy a house/half a duplex/nice condo in the Chicago area (<45 minutes from the loop) in the next 15 months. I have an apartment lease ending in 3 1/2 months, at which time I would have approximately 15k savings. In 15 months, I would have more like 50k because I'm currently paying $1200/mo on my student loans I can redirect, I can back my 401k off to employer match, and I'm getting some family help. My target price is approximately $250k, with $300k being highish, and $350k being the most I would want to spend. Pre-tax income right now is approximately $11k/mo, and if my partner gets the kind of job she should, it would be more like 12-14k. My credit is perfect, with a score above 800, and my partner has one in the 700's. What has me concerned is that rent prices right now are ridiculous. The rental company I currently go with are planning on raising rates literally 30% over last year. Other rental prospects are likely to see similar prices. A 15 year mortgage on $250k is going to be seeing similar prices *after* taxes and insurance, and ditto for a $325k 30 year. What do you all think, should I be home shopping shortly and looking at FHA/PMI, or hold off a year and hope for minimal PMI or avoiding it outright? baquerd fucked around with this message at 01:51 on Apr 13, 2013 |
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Apr 13, 2013 01:48
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Sophia posted:If you can find a $250,000 place to live that's within that distance from the loop and is not in a crime-ridden neighborhood I wish you well. I couldn't find anything I'd want to live in where I'd want to live for less than $325K back in 2009. I can't imagine it's any better now. I'd say your first step would be doing some searches to see if it's feasible to even find things you'd want in the price range you are in. That being said you seem to make enough money to buy a house but you need a lot more ready cash than $15K to even think about buying something in Chicago. Condo fees and special assessments alone could clear you out in a couple of months if $15K was the amount of money you had left after putting your money down, but from what you say that seems to be your entire down payment with no money left at all afterwards. That is a "do not go farther" sign. You need to save at least a year or probably more to really be in a financially secure place to buy. I don't know, just looking around on zillow I see plenty of places in safe areas like Ravenswood and Evanston under $300k. Nothing fancy, but not just condos either. Why would condo fees and special assessments run over a few thousand dollars a month? I can't see how anyone would be able to live anywhere with fees and assessments running multiples of actual mortgages. I definitely want to try and avoid HOA areas and get a freestanding house, and the market just doesn't look that bad. I think I'll be waiting a year but I see crazy things like a $150k foreclosure on a 4 bedroom house in Ravenswood and if I could grab that I know I could get "gifts" from family to buy it and then start to pay them back after closing. I mean realistically I save $2500/mo right now and starting in September I'll be able to save $3500/mo as I'll be done with my student loans, and I have another $80k in retirement accounts I could draw on if I really needed to.
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Apr 13, 2013 21:36
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Robo-Pope posted:Assuming you have the cashflow, you should also subtract equity gain. If rent = total mortgage payment for a 30-year fixed loan, I would buy like crazy assuming equal quality and location. It's to the point in many areas where rent = 1.5x mortgage payment. It's still a ridiculously good time to buy, and I'm really annoyed I need another year to build a down payment.
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Apr 18, 2013 19:38
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All the investment buyers are really annoying. I would pay such good money for a guarantee of what the market is going to be like this time next year.
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May 24, 2013 21:36
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DemonLlama posted:The pre-approval is really easy to get, I did one over the phone. Its just a statement by the bank that they would probably loan you a certain amount if everything you told them is true. The real mortgage app is later and is way more involved. It will ding your credit very slightly, because they'll do a hard pull of your credit, so it wouldn't be a good idea to get pre-approval like 6 months before you actually want to buy if your credit is borderline. But part of the reason agents command such high fees is to make up for all the people that don't buy and are just looking. Watch out for exclusivity contracts with excessive terms (6 months+).
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Jun 4, 2013 17:38
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Baronjutter posted:People are saying the housing market in my town is NOT due for a crash still. A condo built a few years ago that sold for 800k just sold for 550k. 250k reduction. I don't expect everything to fall the same percentage but man that's a big drop. At the same time I have some friends actually buying a higher-end condo saying now is the time to buy Historically, it seems like not a bad time to buy. 20/20 hindsight and all your ducks in a row, you'd be buying 2 years ago, but the market can still go back up for a while before it comes down again.
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Jun 4, 2013 17:57
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No one can talk them out of it...
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Yeah, $25/mo is pretty much the absolute cheapest HOA you can ever hope for.
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Jun 7, 2013 19:17
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GD_American posted:Nope- nothing besides (and I'm assuming here because we're getting zero info from them) upkeep of the subdivision's grassy areas along the road, the turnarounds, insurance, fee collection etc. 300 lots * $25 is $7500/mo in costs. You should be able to request a financial breakdown of income and expenditures. It's not unheard of for some of the fees to go into developing a savings buffer to allow for one-off legal costs without needing to increase the rate perfectly in line with expenses.
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Jun 7, 2013 19:29
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Robo-Pope posted:I had my loan officer hilariously call me a week after closing, begging me to sign an addendum to the contract to remove the dude's TV from the sale, because their underwriting department completely missed it during approval and they couldn't sell the loan with it in there. "Sure, I just need $X from you to make that happen." (Where $X = cost of TV brand new)
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Jul 2, 2013 00:04
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Where is the loam at? It's killing any grass underneath it...
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Jul 17, 2013 21:30
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I was just quoted $8000 for total closing costs, are any of these crazy? $500 appraisal fee $800 closing fee $1400 title insurance $300 title insurance endorsements $3600 transfer taxes $1000 (2 months taxes and insurance) in escrow
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Jul 24, 2013 17:25
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ETB posted:How much are you paying for your home? My closing costs were basically 3% of my condo's cost, which was around $260k. This would be a $240k loan on $300k house, so 3% is right there.
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Jul 24, 2013 17:39
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Dik Hz posted:What cash? The assumption is that, particularly at the start of a mortgage, the total cost of ownership will be greater than renting the same sized place. If, after taxes, insurance, mortgage payments, amortized closing costs, and estimated maintenance, your costs are actually less than renting, buying basically becomes a no-brainer.
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Aug 9, 2013 12:30
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sbaldrick posted:Only an idiot borrows against the equity built in a house. That's what got the US in so much trouble the first time, but it doesn't look like some people have learned. There's a big difference between borrowing money at a lower interest rate while investing the money you would have spent at a higher interest rate, and just borrowing money you don't have.
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Aug 9, 2013 17:11
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Ranma posted:Stuff like outlets and light switches, are they in good places or are they gonna make you crazy. It's actually pretty easy to move outlets around, at least on the same wall (if you have drywall). You can do it yourself and it's roughly a 4 out of 10 job for difficulty and hassle where 1 is replacing a face plate and 10 is wiring a house to code. Note that doing it yourself will probably violate code somehow.
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Aug 13, 2013 16:23
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I'd be a little concerned about the oven being full sized because the mini-size is common for the in-wall units. You won't notice it unless you try to put a half-sheet pan in it or something tall though, so it may not be important to you.
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Sep 28, 2013 20:37
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JPrime posted:No, this was a new build for us, not a spec home. We can just walk away and lose our earnest money, we may have the option of cutting some of the unfinished/delivered options to lower the price some. Waiting to hear back from our agent next week. Are you sure the appraiser took into account that the unfinished and undelivered options would be in the house? That doesn't sound like something they would do.
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Oct 13, 2013 16:29
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adorai posted:indeed. Not all agents are scumbags. Only the most successful ones. Real estate, like most sales positions, rewards sociopaths. The best will gently caress you over while making you think you got a great deal.
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Nov 8, 2013 04:39
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DariusLikewise posted:I got really lucky on my house, it sat on the market because the previous owner smoked cigars and the house natuarally smelled them. The originally listing price was 255000 and they had it down to 235000. On the advice of my real estate agent I put in a 219000 offer and they came back with 222000 which I bought it for... Yeah, I get that it sounds like you could have lowballed more, but it sounds like you did more than alright if the comps panned out. If you're worried about the moral implications, send their mother a fruit basket.
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Dec 20, 2013 04:11
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Dik Hz posted:So landlords lose money on average? Professional landlords don't buy homes at mortgage = rent values, that wouldn't be a good rental grade investment.
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Jan 15, 2014 04:48
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Leperflesh posted:But then of course adjust all of the above for state law, the appraiser's personal feelings about house values, and the phase of the moon. Is there any harm in introducing your appraiser to your friend Benjamin?
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Feb 27, 2014 20:20
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Cocoa Ninja posted:I don't mind my condo because I'm on the HOA board. Look at this abuser of power, literally getting fat off of HOA dues. Today cookies, tomorrow ice swan banquets.
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Mar 5, 2014 18:13
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Sephiroth_IRA posted:How difficult is it for a person to become their own realtor? I've heard it only costs like $100 bucks or something to create a corporation and that would mean (I guess?) I could use that as a proxy so the seller wouldn't no I was representing myself. Most realtors are basically part of a oligarchy/mafia type organization. Getting your realtors license is easy, but what you really need is membership to your local circle jerk society of realtors, which typically means 1-2 years spent working as their bitch. If you're not a member of the secret society, you don't get the same privileges and access that they do, and they basically will direct their clients to anyone but you. Realty is the last bastion of the most corrupt sort of crony capitalism in the US. You are getting hosed with a realtor taking a percentage of the sale proceeds, this is not in question. Are you less hosed than trying to fight their organization? Hard to say.
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Mar 12, 2014 23:59
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mastershakeman posted:A coworker just told me that when purchasing his house two years ago, he put down about 7%, acted as his own agent (he's licensed) and used that 3.5% commission towards the down payment, then had a HELOC opened at the same time that put down the other 10% so that he would be at 20% down and wouldn't have to get PMI. Is this something that's usually not done or is often a huge risk? Most people can't act as their own agent, so that's a bit unusual. He got a HELOC on what, though? On the house he's buying with only 7% actually down? That wouldn't make sense, HELOCs require equity to work.
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Apr 1, 2014 15:30
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Pain of Mind posted:Also, since it is somewhat house related and I feel like sharing it, my wife applied to go on HGTV's house hunters but we backed out because you need to miss a week of work and other dumb stuff, and it is 100% fake. They only accept people who are already in escrow, then you look at a few houses including the one you are already in contract with, then you pretend like you are deciding between some random houses and the house you already bought. So they pay you a decent chunk of change then or something?
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Apr 9, 2014 13:18
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Steve French posted:I'm not disagreeing with your overall point, but isn't "stealing from your future self" exactly what a mortgage is? (or any other form of debt, really) Buying a house with a mortgage is essentially going long on real estate on margin. If real estate values outpace your interest rate, you win big. If they increase at inflation rate, you win due to the necessity of the expense. If values crash, you lose super big if you need to sell. Think about it like this: You have $20k. You buy a stock on margin at 4:1 ($100k is invested, $80k of which you borrowed at 5%). Both gains and losses are now magnified, particularly losses if you cash out. If the stock goes up 10% in a year, you now own $110k of stock on $20k invested and $80 of debt, and you can cash out and pocket $6k ($10k - $4k interest) minus taxes of 15%, a gross profit at a rate of 22.5%. If your stock goes down to 90% of basis, you still owe $80k. Your assets are now $85k (after 5% interest on $100k), and your liabilities are $80k. Cashing out, you can claim capital losses but you are still in the hole for a loss of over 40%.
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Apr 24, 2014 05:38
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anne frank fanfic posted:Hoas own. Keep living in filth and attract similarly filthy neighbors if you dont like em. I am glad you have acknowledged that the thread HOA owns you. Regretfully, as a responsible owner, the HOA must now act to preserve the thread's post values. Fellow posters and board members "iv46vi" and "couldcareless" have already approached you about issues with your most recent post, but you have not responded in nearly 4 hours. You are expected to address issues promptly and have failed in your responsibilities. I therefore am forced to now deliver official notice of your violations. You neglected to use a comma when you joined your independent clauses with a conjunction. The board has decided to deliver a warning for your violation. This will be your only warning, and next time it will be a $500 fine. An item that cannot be overlooked is your use of a contraction without an apostrophe. Firstly, this is not the sort of thread where you can just throw contractions around haphazardly. Secondly, forgoing the apostrophe is frankly shocking to us, and calls into question your ability to abide by HOA rules. You are hereby fined $1,000. Your use of the slang term "em" has resulted in a $10,000 fine. This matter has been raised with the police. Disparaging the HOA via improper TLA capitalization is a capital offense. Please make available funds for the aforementioned fines and then notify us when you are ready to be executed. As a friendly reminder, failure to pay will result in a lien being placed on your account and we are authorized to liquidate any posts you have made in the thread. Cordially, The Thread HOA baquerd fucked around with this message at 08:08 on Apr 27, 2014 |
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Apr 27, 2014 08:06
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Taco Pirate posted:Who are all these guys who can afford to waive all contingencies when they make an offer? I mean, geez. That seems not smart. People who believe the market is going to continue to rise at a rapid rate, such that barring the worst possible luck, they will make a profit even if they have to tear half the place down and rebuild. Alternatively, idiots.
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May 8, 2014 00:24
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a shameful boehner posted:Basically, some forms from my lender are showing me that I'll have ~$3,369 in savings at closing if I take the higher rate of 4.625%. My monthly mortgage payments will be $33/mo higher than they would be at 4.375% over the life of the loan. You actually need to calculate the present value of your future savings to compare to the present value of your closing savings, after taking into account that the money could be invested, so at 3% hypothetical inflation and 4% real ROI you would need to remain for a bit over 11 years.
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May 13, 2014 00:51
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necrobobsledder posted:That's a lot more expensive than getting even a top escort or hooker (at $2000 / hr from what I can guess), and you can certainly pay a hooker to just talk to 100% legally to be honest. But mortgage lenders give happy endings at a greatly reduced incidence rate from escorts.
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May 21, 2014 04:04
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Lowness 72 posted:Plus don't forget about the mortgage tax credit. That's like the top way for most people to shield income. Are you talking about a MCC? Other than that, there aren't any tax credits, just the mortgage interest deduction. Anyone know how much you need to borrow at today's rates to even break even on the standard deduction for either single or MFJ, assuming no other deductions?
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Jun 2, 2014 14:38
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Bloody Queef posted:Buying a condo is like leasing a car. In all but the most edge cases it's a lovely financial decision, yet it appeals to many people. Look, I just really want the freedom to do thing like paint the walls without having to paint them back or pay a fine when I move out, replace the appliances when they break out of my own pocket, install fixtures loving *everywhere*, and participate in my own LARP of Lord of the Flies as realized by the HOA board, and that somehow makes me bad with money? Maybe I don't want to be good with money then!
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Jul 1, 2014 07:53
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Sephiroth_IRA posted:I'm also apparently competing with both my neighbors at the moment but thankfully the couple to the right listed their house for $160 even though it's significantly smaller than mine. My other neighbors (the window peepers) listed theirs for $149 even though it's probably worth more than that and is only a little smaller than mine. That's pretty scary as a buyer, if you know that three houses in a row are all for sale though.
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Jul 3, 2014 00:41
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krysmopompas posted:My first order of business will be finding the drug stash of whomever thought this was a good idea: Looks like an asbestos fume hood for a gas stove top. Not quite as expensive as crystal meth, but pretty close.
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Jul 30, 2014 06:17
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Jastiger posted:That is exactly what we did. Well every other house on the block is bigger and sold for more in the last few years. The two story next door sold for $148K and it had a few hundred square feet more, and was about 6 years newer. That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, giving up several hundred square feet for no appreciable change in cost?
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Aug 8, 2014 20:59
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