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Thread: Buying houses... Brian was right :-/

  1. #31
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    I heard a teaser (didn't hear the piece) on NPR that Zillow will be making their US database available in Mandarin.
    Here is the link to an article in the Washington Post.

    My point here is that there may (emphasis on 'may') be an influx of new buyers in the US real estate market.

  2. #32
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    Quote Originally Posted by Malcolm Schweizer View Post
    These are all what I call "first world problems."
    No argument here about that... but I worked hard all of my life so I didn't have to worry about 3rd-world problems in my own life. As long as my family is fed, clothed, and a roof over their heads, we're good... but why live on roadkill, wear rags, and live in a lean-to?

    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Bolton View Post
    Wow.. I guess maybe that just read bad,.. but with that I guess I'd just increase your budget to 2-3 mil... ;-)
    I ran through the finances and went into the bank with a very specific limit in mind... I will not budge over that limit, and I would prefer to stay below it. By staying below that point, I feel I can live without stress of where the next paycheck is coming from to make the house payment, as well as still saving for future toys, vacation, etc. I'm also making sure my 401k and Roth are fully stuffed to get that tax benefit.

    Guess I'll have to engrave a few extra glasses this month
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  3. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jerome Stanek View Post
    That sounds like real estate talk around here there are a lot of houses that are a good value and have been o the market for a while. Neighbors house was for sale for 10 months and sold because they had a new house built and couldn't afford 2 payments.
    I guess it really depends on the local market. I have seen the effect a few months ago in the Sacramento area. It was different two years ago when there were few buyers and houses were not selling. All of a sudden, the market picked up and minor bidding wars started. It may change again since the recent price increases have brought out a lot more sellers. The best houses still sell fastest. It only becomes a problem when the market is hot and there are more buyers than sellers.

    Steve

  4. #34
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    As we get deeper into the search, it looks like every place being built now is going to be well/septic, so my earlier thread about such systems has provided a huge amount of useful systems. That said, I can take comfort in the fact that the law of numbers kicks in... there simply can not be any real problem with such systems if so many of them are being used, particularly on $1mil+ homes. It also guarantees a good-sized yard

    Bot wow, my opinion on cost of everything certainly hasn't changed. No matter how many houses we look at, the middle ground is almost non-existent.
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  5. #35
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    I was looking today at lots sold in the last two years in the city I want to be in. 18 months you could get a lot for literally half the price of what a lot sells for today. Of course, houses were selling for a lot less than too, but not half.

  6. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    I was looking today at lots sold in the last two years in the city I want to be in. 18 months you could get a lot for literally half the price of what a lot sells for today. Of course, houses were selling for a lot less than too, but not half.
    Lots are going for up to $600k/acre in the surrounding area... the builders are getting them in packages for $4-500k/acre.
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  7. #37
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Hintz View Post
    Lots are going for up to $600k/acre in the surrounding area... the builders are getting them in packages for $4-500k/acre.
    About the most expensive land you'll find around here is maybe up to $400,000 an acre excepting waterfront land. More typical in areas without septic/sewer, but still in metro area, is under $100,000 an acre. I think a 1 acre lot for $60,000 is expensive when they sold for $30,000 not that long ago. I have a $209,000 home plan ready to build, but I don't want to spend over $250,000 and not able to find a $40,000 lot that is really buildable.

    I'm in the process of buying a $150,000 house with a 3 acre lot though I might cancel the deal due to the rehab costs.

  8. #38
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Hintz View Post
    I never want to play on the edge, living paycheck to paycheck, as I know many do to get into those big houses and keep up with the Joneses. I've never been a "keeping up with the Joneses" kind of guy.
    Which is what got this country in the shape we're in now. People embraced the "Look at ME" attitude, and bought huge homes they couldn't afford, or even furnish.
    Now, I'm paying for the stupidity of others. I spent wisely, paid the mortgage off, and saved my pennies for the retirement I am now enjoying.
    I feel sorry for my Great Grand children.

    In this area, homes are being sold within 1 week, although it seems the prices are more reasonable than pre-2008. We've had 5 homes sold on this street alone in the past 2 years. Only 1 was a foreclosure, and surprisingly it took the longest to sell. Several months.
    You have to be ready to act right now when looking for a home.
    Never, under any circumstances, consume a laxative and sleeping pill, on the same night

  9. #39
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    Quote Originally Posted by Myk Rian View Post
    In this area, homes are being sold within 1 week, although it seems the prices are more reasonable than pre-2008. We've had 5 homes sold on this street alone in the past 2 years. Only 1 was a foreclosure, and surprisingly it took the longest to sell. Several months.
    You have to be ready to act right now when looking for a home.
    Yep, stuff is moving VERY fast, especially since the area is nearing a complete moratorium on building... as it is, the county has said 'no' to quite a few builders at this point. I put a deposit on a specific lot a couple of days back, but we're still looking. A couple of interesting options have presented themselves (at least partially), so I'm paying close attention to how they pan out. We may have to get our current one ready for sale more quickly than I thought, but we'll see...
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  10. #40
    If you want a less expensive home, move out to the country far away from SPRAWL !! Bank Owned homes can be a real deal. Might have to spend time and money fixing them up, but you are likely to get more acreage and square footage. A lot of people drive 30 to 50 miles each way to work. The longer drive time is offset by knowing you live in an area that has less houses and fewer neighbors to deal with.

  11. #41
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    Quote Originally Posted by Clarence Martin View Post
    If you want a less expensive home, move out to the country far away from SPRAWL !! Bank Owned homes can be a real deal. Might have to spend time and money fixing them up, but you are likely to get more acreage and square footage. A lot of people drive 30 to 50 miles each way to work. The longer drive time is offset by knowing you live in an area that has less houses and fewer neighbors to deal with.
    Not an option... the ex-husband must have reasonable access to his offspring, and with the 50/50 custody we have, picking her up/dropping her off from school would be painful (the school systems are significantly better out where we'd be moving to).

    And I've had enough of 45-mile, one-way commutes... it's a horrible sink on your time (the biggest drawback), and you spend quite a bit of that "saved" money in gas and car upkeep.
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  12. #42
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    Quote Originally Posted by Clarence Martin View Post
    If you want a less expensive home, move out to the country far away from SPRAWL !! Bank Owned homes can be a real deal. Might have to spend time and money fixing them up, but you are likely to get more acreage and square footage. A lot of people drive 30 to 50 miles each way to work. The longer drive time is offset by knowing you live in an area that has less houses and fewer neighbors to deal with.
    Bank owned houses aren't necessarily a great deal unless you have cash to buy a house outright and cash to do the repairs yourself and want to spend all your free time fixing up a house. The house I am buying is $150,000 for the house plus another almost $100,000 for a contractor to do repairs. I am getting a bank loan and they probably wouldn't give me a regular mortgage due to the condition. They will loan the money to fix it up if a contractor does the work. I probably wouldn't want to do windows and such myself anyhow since I live alone and I don't know how to install them properly anyhow.

    I will end up commuting about 26 miles each way which means 45 to 60 minutes in traffic. I could be looking at two to four hours on a snow day in the winter. I have to factor in the cost of extra gas although I may start taking the bus from a park and ride.

  13. #43
    I guess I just look at things from a different point of view. I have seen enough of the City and heavy traffic , that I know I don't want any part of it. Where I live now, it's a 35 to 40 mile hike to the Malls, Doctors and Hospitals are 30 to 35 miles away. 1/2 an hour to get to a good grocery store. It's true, living further away costs more in time and gas, but it's worth it!

  14. #44
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    Quote Originally Posted by Clarence Martin View Post
    I guess I just look at things from a different point of view. I have seen enough of the City and heavy traffic , that I know I don't want any part of it. Where I live now, it's a 35 to 40 mile hike to the Malls, Doctors and Hospitals are 30 to 35 miles away. 1/2 an hour to get to a good grocery store. It's true, living further away costs more in time and gas, but it's worth it!
    Some of us still have to work in the city. The house I am buying is further than I would like from shopping. I tend to do lots of home and auto repairs and most all the stores are 8 miles away in two different directions. There is a hardware store maybe four miles away.

  15. #45
    That's walking distance compared to one job I worked on ! LOL Had to rebuild a burned out house that a Man bought up on the shores of Lake Ontario. 70 Miles EACH WAY !! Worked on that all Summer , Fall and through the whole Winter. 980 miles put on the truck each week just for that one job! The fun part of that job came during the Winter . The Harbor would freeze over solid and the house is on an Island . The only way to get building materials to the worksite, was to walk them across the frozen harbor once Winter came.

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