|
KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:one neat trick: defer buying a house I posted in the wrong thread about this first but I take it this is the general consensus? Wife and I have a new baby and it's making our current (90% paid for, if you go by zwillow estimates) house feel crowded; plus I need a new car (because it isn't safe to put a baby in a pickup). So our initial thought was "sell current house, move to a bigger house in a better school district, take some equity out and buy a new car." Looking at interest rates right now though that seems like an extraordinarily bad idea? Any suggestions beyond "you have five years till the kid is in school, wait and watch" ?
|
#
¿
Oct 22, 2023 18:19
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 12:16 |
|
|
barkbell posted:what are people's thoughts on purchasing new construction in a market like this with builder incentives at lower mortgage rates? How does that work? I didn't realize this was an option.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 2, 2023 14:48
|
|
|
Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority ? I've done it. The benefit is you can sometimes keep the hoa from doing actively stupid things. The problem is you can't make them proactively do good things, because it's prohibitive to get people to agree to spend money for the collective rather than individual good.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 23, 2023 05:08
|
|
|
Hoa boards are functionally a lesson in how commons collapse.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 13, 2024 23:12
|
|
|
Interesting. Yeah, at this point I'm basically waiting on mortgage rates to drop down below 6% to start shopping for a new home, and a service like that would in theory be great for helping sell the old home and it's fifteen years of a wear and tear . . . But 25k is a lot more than a rounding error on house prices where I am!
|
|
#
¿
Feb 21, 2024 20:00
|
|
|
Lockback posted:Yeah, doing the cosmetic facelift stuff is almost always worthwhile even if new owners will want to paint and such anyway. The small ways that influences someone looking to buy is invaluable. So what's the best way to do that stuff if you don't use a service? In our current place the carpet is utterly shot (like, held down with duct tape in places), the appliances are aging, etc. - it's a roughly twenty year old house. In theory I'd like to get a new place, renovate it like we will want (appliances, hardwood floors, etc), move in, then renovate the old, then sell it, but I'm not sure what the best way is to do that logistically and financially.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 21, 2024 21:26
|
|
|
Mushroom Zingdom posted:Quick sanity check here: home warranties are mostly a scam, right? Let me know if there are any scenarios in which they make sense I’m not considering. As always, everyone in this process has their hand out and it’s easy to assume it’s all marketing. Thanks in advance. If you're buying an older house with older appliances that needs a lot of maintenance and may soon need major replacements.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 22, 2024 12:37
|
|
|
Sirotan posted:If a seller if throwing in a home warranty as part of the sale then that's cool, I had a friend who ended up with a free furnace out of that deal, and I personally saved about $800 on a furnace repair with mine. The odds are more likely that you'll get nothing out of it though or the servicer will make it as difficult as possibly to use the benefit. That was my situation. Back many years ago I bought a 15 year old condo and got a home shield warranty with the purchase. The entire AC system failed a few months later and the home shield covered a full replacement. I sold the condo a year or so later. Again, like most insurance, functionally a scam in statistical terms, but might work out for you if you get unlucky.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 22, 2024 16:23
|
|
|
What should I know or learn or think about before I consider buying a lot to build a house on? Where to start?
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 00:14
|
|
|
Beef Of Ages posted:Do you have access to unimaginably large sums of money? Most desirable land for building is already taken which means that building somewhere else is a wildly expensive proposition in almost all cases. No, no. Like a developed but unbuilt lot in an actual neighborhood. I'm not trying to homestead in the wilds or some poo poo.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 00:31
|
|
|
Hadlock posted:Do a thread search this topic has been beaten on relentlessly half acre but yes. Leperflesh posted:
This is a neighborhood from the 70's that my in-laws have lived in for like twenty years. They seem to be slowly developing a few lots every year. At any given point there's a couple lots open for sale but never more than a couple. Hadlock posted:Do a thread search this topic has been beaten on relentlessly if there's something specific I should be reading, could you link me to it? i don't even know what to start searching, hence the questions.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 01:17
|
|
|
Hadlock posted:
Ok yeah searching this seems to be the closest hit Hadlock posted:There is no vacant land for sale worth buying for less than $150k/acre, generally yeah, the open lots in the area I was looking at are hitting around this on either side. In theory I could swing it if the build cost wasn't too crazy, but not with what I have liquid; I'd have to either sell or re-mortage the place i'm in currently. I'm not in a huge rush to do that given current loan rates but I'm gonna need to move at some point in the next few years just to be in a better school zone, so scouting out my options.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 02:16
|
|
|
Cyrano4747 posted:The real question is why isn't there a house there already? You're not going to be able to know what the cost will be until you know what defect has prevented anyone from building there up until this point, and how much it will cost to fix that. Yeah, and that's not a question anybody here can answer, so fair enough. Presuming the answer is "this neighborhood has restrictions that limit rate of development" or something otherwise surmountable, what are "reasonable" expectations and how would the process work? e.g., . . .if the lot costs 150k, and another 300k to build a house on it, I take a loan on the current house, spend that money buying and building, wait a year or however long, sell old house? What are the hiccups and hurdles to expect in that process?
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 02:35
|
|
|
Hadlock posted:You should probably talk to a loan broker who specializes in this kind of stuff for the state you live in. You're probably looking at some kind of construction and/or bridge loan. iv46vi posted:Search design build or custom builder contractors in your area and see the examples they can offer on websites or in person. That should give you an idea of costs and if you need their help to get a builder mortgage. Thanks, I think that answers my questions for now at least. Appreciated.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 03:27
|
|
|
Rotten posted:Just in case it seems like the thread is dog piling you, they just don’t want you to be set up for failure or taken advantage of. Nah, once I got past all the people desperately trying to stop me from trying to homestead in the middle of the wilderness or otherwise sign up for the real estate equivalent of nigerian prince scams, posts like Leperflesh posted:the most recent contractor I interacted with, who did my mother in law's remodel, flatly stated he no longer does work for people who are paying with a construction loan, period. Because he can't pay his crew with money the bank is withholding until he jumps through whatever asinine hoops they throw in his way constantly. The banks require regular, documented proof that each incremental payment has been spent specifically on the construction, and documenting a build that way is very hard to do when you are running a company that sends different subs to different sites to do various work depending on poo poo like the weather, when supplies finally show up, the shifting whims of the customer, and the challenges of keeping skilled trades fully staffed with competent people these days. Hadlock posted:Also, whoever gets stuck with your loan will probably have never done one involving construction before, so expect it to be like pulling teeth, and (frequently) getting their supervisor/manager involved. Like over half of loan personnel have been let go since the industry has seen about 10% of regular volume these were extremely helpful. Overall it looks like building would be theoretically possible with a few big IFs (checking out why the lot hasn't already been built on; finding a decent contractor; getting a construction loan set up in a workable way; etc) that are theoretically surmountable (I think I know who I'd need to talk to locally, actually) but would take a lot of work and overall probably be more hassle than I really want to deal with. Either way I'm in no particular rush, given the current loan rates vs where we are in our existing mortgage. We just need to be in a better school district at some point in the next three to five years. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 14:14 on Feb 23, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 13:45
|
|
|
Ungratek posted:A lot of hoops to jump through to live near your in-laws It's free child care !
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 14:28
|
|
|
Lockback posted:. Again, not trying to dogpile but just making sure you're thinking through all options. No, thank you, this kind of post is extremely helpful. It's a weird rear end time to want to move. My wife and I have top level credit scores, decent salaries for the state we are in, and a fair bit if equity for the area but loan rates are absolute dogshit and most of the houses I see for sale near us are either mcmansiony plastic junk species houses or . . .let's say extremely "as is." We've got to move though at some point because when I bought our current place years and years ago kids weren't in the picture so I took advantage of the "great house in bad school zone" premium. Now there's a six month old though and I'd sure as hell rather be in a good school zone than pay for private schools. So, exploring my options. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 17:46 on Feb 23, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 17:39
|
|
|
TooMuchAbstraction posted:In other words, I wouldn't necessarily expect to be able to get a better mortgage (cheaper monthly payment, or larger loan size for the same payment) if you wait. Oh absolutely! Which is why I'm beginning to look now. But it's weighing a 3% and nearly paid off mortgage vs . . . Oww Lockback posted:Some school advice too (which, don't take this as gospel but just a guy who has kids 9 and 13 in an urban area): Unfortunately the schools are really genuinely awful. Southern state . Different parts of my town have some of the best ranked schools in the country and some of the worst in the country, just an absolutely massive divide. And there ate various diversion and honor school type programs but you have to start young; other parents have been telling me about them but it's all absurdly complicated. I'm not wholly against private schools in the abstract but a house is a much more concrete investment. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 18:09 on Feb 23, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 18:04
|
|
|
Epitope posted:Exciting opportunity rare dream you will love quote:Discover the allure of history in this pre-Civil War mansion! . . .Immerse yourself in culture and history while enjoying modern conveniences like a new roof and replaced windows.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2024 20:23
|
|
|
Cyrano4747 posted:The reason? Because plumbers in the 60s, when our house was built, thought it was good and awesome to bury copper pipe in cement. So here's a question for folks. What's the *best* age of house to buy, if you don't buy something newly built? Around here all the best houses seem to have built between the 1950s and the 1980s. Older than that and they're literally falling apart, newer than that they're all spec houses and going to fall apart at any minute as all the plastic ages.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 25, 2024 00:50
|
|
|
SpartanIvy posted:
If it's anything like my area, after a couple weeks of refreshing zillow, which I have decided is as toxic as any other social media site, my guess is: -- anything built before 1990 was originally built well, but now is in a bad school zone and has been "remodeled" by lowest-bidder flippers. Hello grey laminate flooring -- anything built after 1990 is in a good school zone but it's a spec house made of 95% plastic and a maximum of one nail per square foot -- exceptions include a parallelogram house built in the 1970s out of, apparently, leftover battleship dazzle camouflage, and exactly one 3000+ Sq ft genuine Victorian or Art Deco house that exists to taunt you with your lack of financial success (your more successful relative will buy this) -- any house in good condition at a sane price has already been purchased by real estate rental conglomerates, the same ones constantly texting you "cash now offers" for your current home. If you sell to them they may rent it back to you! Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 22:25 on Feb 26, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Feb 26, 2024 22:19
|
|
|
Epitope posted:What was house shopping/browsing like in the Craigslist era (the golden age of the internet)? The last time I bought a house, in 2011, I remember it basically felt like I was paying to rent MLS access, filtered through a dude who kept saying "my bad, I forgot that" about details of the offer(s). Is the thread consensus that real estate agents are a giant waste of time now in the age of zillow?
|
|
#
¿
Feb 27, 2024 14:23
|
|
|
Mush Mushi posted:Just a quick vent. I wrote and deleted a long rear end post because this gets to the heart of it: the excitement I have for every potential home is replaced with fear that I’ve made a horrible mistake the moment I submit an offer. This process is really not for me. A realtor once told me that studies have indicated that moving / house shopping is on par with death of a family member in terms of overall stress.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 28, 2024 01:08
|
|
|
Makes me wonder if he's intending to refuse to leave and force an eviction so he can stay a few months extra for free.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 29, 2024 15:54
|
|
|
Kuvo posted:well i'm taking my first steps into the terrifying world of home ownership and just finished the preapproval stuff with my bank. next step is to find a realtor and i have no idea how to start this process. what do the rest of you do? random googling, yelp reviews, lookin at sale signs, human sacrifices? Ask everyone you know who isn't a realtor if there is anyone they would recommend. See if any names pop up more than once
|
|
#
¿
Mar 1, 2024 20:08
|
|
|
If you're buying a house from a private individual with no real estate agent, and you don't have a buyer's agent, what are all the things you need to do to effect the sale? e.g., in my area I know all real estate sales have to be overseen by an attorney, so i'd have to hire an attorney. Not asking for local law guidance but just a general "these are the sorts of things you should do" (pre purchase inspection, etc.)
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 15:01
|
|
|
Motronic posted:You should hire a real estate attorney that practices in your area and ask them, because they will know specifically what things are required in your area to buy/sell a house. Customs differe from area to area. More than you appear to understand from that post. I'm aware. Im just asking for a checklist of good ideas (e.g., asking for a home inspection and termite report) to cross check whoever I hire & so that I can start working on things in parallel if I need to. That's why I said, in the post, that I was aware there were local variations. This thread seems to assume anyone asking any question at all is too dumb to realize bleach isn't coca cola Edit: don't worry I'm not dumb enough to blindly do whatever yall suggest either but it's cheaper to post than to call an attorney so yall get asked first Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 15:32 on Mar 5, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 15:24
|
|
|
Motronic posted:
Which is . . . Why I am asking I am asking for information about the set of possible things i could ask a local professional. I realize termite inspections are local, that is specifically why I used that as an example.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 15:35
|
|
|
Lockback posted:I did the same in October. Thanks, that was helpful. This is at the "that nice old lady who lives around the corner from the inlaws said she was going to sell soon" stage, but it sounds like the sellers want to avoid going through an agent if possible to save money. Which, like, great, but just because they want to fly blind doesn't mean I'm going to.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 17:37
|
|
|
Yeah yellow flag sounds right. Credit report isn't an issue; I did that months ago (it turns out my wife and I both have 800+ credit scores, which explains why we get so many unsolicited credit cars offers). We went and looked at the property exterior over the weekend and it looks great . . . Except for a one inch crack in the brick on one corner of the house. Which may be a fixable issue but may be a big problem and would need an inspection etc. So we will see. The standard practice in my state, oddly, is for one attorney to oversee real estate sales for both sides. It's bizarre and probably a conflict but our courts allow it and it's normal here. I think my next steps are probably 1) set up an actual walk through of this place 2) figure the best way to get short term equity out of the current house (heloc? Bridge loan?) For down payment and renovations on this house or whatever other place we end up getting 3) put out feelers locally and find a good attorney, home inspector, and buyers' agent / agent to help us sell our own place. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 18:09 on Mar 5, 2024 |
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 17:56
|
|
|
Lockback posted:Ok, yeah you're super early. You'll want a real appraisal too, I'd probably do that before paying for an attorney. Thanks! Yeah we are just getting rolling. We'd been talking about moving for years but new kid and the in-laws want us to move closer because grandbaby, so now we're just starting to get off our butts and figure out first steps.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 18:34
|
|
|
Leperflesh posted:oh yeah get a flood map, unless it's like, obviously going to be irrelevant I have some word of mouth on that already, good call.. Our area had "thousand year" floods about ten years back, and so I asked and my in laws have verified nothing in their neighborhood flooded despite being adjacent to a river (there's a high bluff cliff shelf at the riverbank).
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 18:45
|
|
|
Shifty Pony posted:Also, be sure to go on optoutprescreen.com and make sure that you are opted out of having your contact information shared based on credit activity. If you don't, within minutes of filing for preapproval with any bank you'll get absolutely inundated with calls from desperate mortgage brokers. That's possible? That s why I've been putting off calling professionals and just posting here first instead! The minute you call anyone it's like you just slit your wrists in the shark tank
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2024 18:47
|
|
|
For people who have bought houses and renovated them, are there any features people have either especially regretted or been especially glad they installed? Fancy robotic toilets? High end insulation?
|
|
#
¿
Mar 8, 2024 22:04
|
|
|
Cyrano4747 posted:Plumbing that doesn't piss water everywhere is pretty high up my "I'm glad I paid money to have this put in" list. Can you explicate this a bit? Just replacing old lovely pvc or?
|
|
#
¿
Mar 8, 2024 23:08
|
|
|
QuarkJets posted:I have never renovated a house, but I would like to get a steam shower. I've thought about a steam shower too but I feel like I need to research them in more depth. I'll look over the easyclosets website, thank you.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 9, 2024 01:57
|
|
|
Lockback posted:. But yeah, I'm in MN so I'd say if you're in a place with cold winters and you have the space a steam shower is absolutely worth the reasonable uplift. Thanks! Our winters are not particularly cold but I hate them anyway and have arthritis.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 11, 2024 18:20
|
|
|
Are foundation issues always an automatic "run away"? I thought there were all those companies selling foundation repair.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 11, 2024 21:51
|
|
|
I suspect a lot of these cash offers are coming from large scale institutional investors, buying and inflating rental costs.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2024 00:09
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 12:16 |
|
|
pointlesspart posted:
Maybe an investment property, not a preferred spot for a primary residence.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 16, 2024 02:35
|
|