Home Buying Conversation

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but an inspection can tell you if there was past water damage that was covered up or mold or anything like that. Had 2 friends back out of purchases lately because of things that turned up in an inspection. Some lenders will also require an inspection

if your looking at new construction thats a whole other story. I actually opted out of mine but it was a brand new house that also came with a 1 year warranty.
 
Sure, they have trained eyes... but if you're observant and look for it, you'll see it too. it's not like they rip off sheet rock or trim to find stuff. they have a AA mag lite and a 3-step ladder and mostly just observe.

it's a risk, yes. some mortgages even require it before they will lend. mine didn't because of the age of the home. sounds like nick is looking into newer stuff too and can avoid it
 
chadcharb said:
wise to stay out of king county. I have a 8,000sq ft lot and my property taxes were $3400 last year
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Man I wish Texas property taxes were that low.

My wife and I just closed on our home earlier this month about 20 miles north of downtown Dallas and our property taxes for 3250sq ft home with 7500sq ft lot are about $7850 a year and in the 2.5% range. When we were looking in Colorado last year I was used to taxes of under 1%. That had a huge effect on what we could comfortably afford, as that alone raised our mortgage like $650 a month.
 
Based on the number of issues with water damage and such, it sounds like someone needs to invent a Carfax for homes.

King county sucks. High taxes, dipshit democrat electives, poor schools, and the list goes on. Plus, I like my guns and they are trying to turn this into the worst socialist state in the country. God damn hippies.
 
lswhitecivic said:
Man I wish Texas property taxes were that low.

My wife and I just closed on our home earlier this month about 20 miles north of downtown Dallas and our property taxes for 3250sq ft home with 7500sq ft lot are about $7850 a year and in the 2.5% range. When we were looking in Colorado last year I was used to taxes of under 1%. That had a huge effect on what we could comfortably afford, as that alone raised our mortgage like $650 a month.
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pffftttt I pay $8100 dollars a year for a 2500Sq/ft house on .46acres...be glad you don't live in Connecticut.
 
corvetteguy78 said:
pffftttt I pay $8100 dollars a year for a 2500Sq/ft house on .46acres...be glad you don't live in Connecticut.
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That is pretty damn high. I will also mention that Texas doesn't have state income tax, so that should help to even out some of the extra property taxes I'm paying here. Its definitely not a 1-1 relationship, but does help lower the overall hit each month.
 
lswhitecivic said:
That is pretty damn high. I will also mention that Texas doesn't have state income tax, so that should help to even out some of the extra property taxes I'm paying here. Its definitely not a 1-1 relationship, but does help lower the overall hit each month.
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No State income taxes??....lol.....like i said be glad you don't live in CT...so far this year ..to date.. i have paid $4100 in state Income taxes
 
You guys in CT get fucked pretty badly. I think B and I had this conversation in another thread or on fb or something.

Washington doesn't have a state income tax, but we have a 9.95% sales tax in Seattle and pretty high property taxes in King County.
 
get_nick said:
You guys in CT get fucked pretty badly. I think B and I had this conversation in another thread or on fb or something.

Washington doesn't have a state income tax, but we have a 9.95% sales tax in Seattle and pretty high property taxes in King County.
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Yeap..and now the CT electricity rates are skyrocketing....I am with Direct Energy at 8.19 cents, and the rate is expiring in Jan 2015...now their rates are 11.5 cents lol...
 
I'm pretty sure you're screwed wherever you live these days one way or another. Taxes, Whether, idiot people, idiot laws, traffic, Etc. Just finding a happy medium is everything.
 
corvetteguy78 said:
pffftttt I pay $8100 dollars a year for a 2500Sq/ft house on .46acres...be glad you don't live in Connecticut.
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I live a couple of town away from you and my 1300 sqft house with .24 acre yard is only 3500 a year. But every town has their own mil rate and how they access the value of the house. But yes CT is fucking expensive to live in. We also have one of the highest gas taxes.
 
why the fuck do you guys stay? i mean, the states up there are tiny, surely a better state is just a morning commute away.
 
shit, following the coast your state is only an hour and a half long. lol, according to google any way.

takes me an hour to get to nashville. longer during traffic. and im rarely lucky enough to just go as far as nashville.
 
Why am i still here?

family, friends, etc etc are all here.
i'm upside down on my house thanks to the market tank
as much as i bitch about it, everywhere else for the most part is shitty too.

But the real reason is--- Because I'd make half the salary anywhere else that's cheaper to live.

And yes, after you factor in the high taxes and high housing prices/etc, you still end up ahead of the game if you're in the earning game.

bread still costs the same here as it does there.
shit on amazon still costs the same here as it does there. so my hypothetical 1000 extra a month after expenses goes further than my 500 after expenses would (assuming a half salary and half housing cost)



The goal, for me, is to get in a work from home job here, and then move. thus, keeping my salary at ct earning levels without living in ct.
 
reckedracing said:
run out an amortization schedule on the ARM and the fixed rate and then get back to me on how much that 1% actually saves you over the term of the loan.
ARM's are historically a poor option and in 5-7 years you will find out why.
30 year fixed are about as low as they ever were, you're probably looking in the 3-4% rate right now.
your monthly payment will skyrocket if the rates go up, keep that in mind when you are calculating what you can and cannot easily afford.
and in 5-7 years when that ARM triggers, you probably aren't going to be able to jump into a 3-4% fixed rate. just keep that in mind.

i bought in 2009 and have a fixed 4.25%. rates went lower but its not worth it for me to refi at this point.
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Basically this.

There are times, markets, and cash positions where ARMs make sense. Right now they make no sense.

Buying now to flip in 5-7 years is a bad play unless you can really buy a house "right". I.e., you pay under market for the home.

Why? Because interest rates are at all time lows. Money is free flowing right now, if you can scrape two nickels together and come up with 20% down. Once that spicket is turned off, the appetite for purchasing new homes is going to diminish because the cost to borrow is going to be greater. Renting will become more appealing - at least for a point. That point is like 5-10 years from now when the housing market softens again.

You also have to buy right because you have to do so well that after your commissions and closing costs, along with your hypothetical selling fees (5-10 years from now), you will have to have either bought really low or have been in a market that appreciated significantly/quickly. If you are in that sort of location, you probably won't be able to buy "right".

We lucked out in how our home purchased turned out. There was a relocation and a passing of a sick wife on the sellers side. We were qualified buyers and had the cash to put down. The house was at a price point that it locked many other potential buyers, especially first time buyers, out.
 
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