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I realize everyone's situation is different, but I'd just like to hear what everyone thinks about this issue. It's got to be nice to own a house, but It seems like there are a lot of regional captains that can't move on because they're tied down to a house payment and location.
I plan on buying a house in Vegas as soon as I can afford it (who knows when that'll be...). That's where I'd like to retire to, I love the desert. I already know I won't be spending much time there, so I'll rent it out to help pay off the mortgage, while I live in apartments wherever I'm working. By the time I retire, I should have enough saved up to give it a total overhaul, and be able to live in it
very basic rule of thumb, buy a house when the cost of the house you want is 3 times the salary you/your spouse make. Obvious variable being how long you want to live in that city. Less than 3 years, probably better to rent, unless you think the home will appreciate 125% or so. Again, very rough numbers, but in the navy I always made my home buying decisions somewhere along those numbers
EDIT: probably need to clarify the first statement, just because the house is 3 times what you make in a year, DOES NOT MEAN you can afford it, that is the upper limit of what the banks are looking at. You are better off keeping it less than 3 to 1 for paycheck to paycheck purposes.
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My fiance and I have decided that wherever we build, we will own the lot first. We hope to buy it outright. We've looked at properties in Greensboro, NC; Olive Branch, MS; and Atlanta, GA. The website I used was www.newhomes.com. If you go to their website and pull up MEM and click on the "Lawerence" model, that's the one me and my fiance (wife) are looking at.
As long as the builder changes at least 30% of the plans, you're good to go. We plan to do that in the aforementioned cities or in the Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie County areas in Florida.
I plan on buying a house in Vegas as soon as I can afford it (who knows when that'll be...). That's where I'd like to retire to, I love the desert. I already know I won't be spending much time there, so I'll rent it out to help pay off the mortgage, while I live in apartments wherever I'm working. By the time I retire, I should have enough saved up to give it a total overhaul, and be able to live in it
Better not plan on renting it in Vegas for a while. There are thousands upon thousands of houses for rent here right now and prices are low low low. Nobody can sell their homes here, so they're all trying to rent them. You can easily get a 3br house for the same price as a 2br apartment right now.
The real estate market is horrible in Vegas and will probably remain that way for at least 3 more years. Asking prices will have to decline significantly before people will start buying again.
I'll be in the market to rent a house in a couple months and I expect to get a 3br, 2ba house for about $800-$1000/month. That won't even cover the mortgage/taxes for most owners.
Vegas will soon be right behind southern California in number of foreclosures.
Don't buy unless you will live in the home for at least three years.
Don't buy until you can put 20% down.
Use a 15-yr fixed-rate mortgage with a payment no more than 25% of your take home pay.
This will prevent the costs of the home from dominating your budget and preventing you from being able to save for other goals such as retirement, vacations, kid's education, etc.
I've always stuck with the 3 times rule. The house should not total more than 3 times your annual salary. To answer your question of when the best time is, I'd say when you make a certain amount for at least 1.5 years then buy at that current figure. Don't get sucked in like some today who bought a house they knew they couldn't afford, but was planning on appreciation or a raise.
Last week 200 Billion was pumped into the credit pipeline. Six months from now banks could start to generate loans again and things could turn around. This is a great window of opportunity to jump into the market.
SkyHigh
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Wrong!
Interest rates are pretty good, but prices are definitely not low; they are LOWER than they were a year ago, but they are still much much higher than they should be.
Don't buy yet. The price of houses will continue to drop for another a year or two. Most prices still need a correction of at least $50,000.
Once all the wannabe real estate investors realize they're wasting their time and aren't gonna make any money, they'll quit and stop driving the cost of houses up for those of us who just want a nice home for our families. Only then will the prices return to normal.
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