Question for Homeowners??(Non GSD)
 

I'm starting to really look for a house and I think I missed the big buyers market:( Lots of investors and brokers came and bought lot of houses that were in foreclosure or going that way. My son is going to be going away for school, so I have to look for something in the area I work so I can go home and let them out on lunch..this narrows things down quite a bit. I went to look at a house today that is a good candidate for builders to buy...the house is going for $150,000 and that is not the norm for the area. The houses in the area are at least 500,000, most of them 750,000 plus. My guess is they would just knock it down and build a brand new house, a lot down the road is listed at 795,000 for just the lot:crazy: There was a builder and an architect there today and they spent a lot of time with me showing me what is wrong with the house. It needs a better support system for the loft which will be about $5000.00. The bigger problem is the addition that is not on a good slab, it will cost 10-15,000 within the next three years to fix, but it can be fixed. Has anyone bought a house with the intentions of fixing it and it never happened? How bad is it to live through construction? The lot is great, the neighborhood would normally be very difficult for me to get into and its 4 minutes from my job....that 4 minutes is really getting me. The gas and toll money I would save is lots:) I'm going to look at again tomorrow and at another one too..but that one is pushing it with distance for my lunch time let the dogs out time:( Here is a picture of the house...


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Hi llombardo,

My S.O. and I bought a greystone in the city 11 yrs ago. At first, we rented out the other units, but we always knew that we would one day convert it to single-family. We did, and we lived there through it, it was not always easy!!!! In fact, I don't think I could do that again. But, I love the end result!

We bought at a time when the market was on its upward climb to the bust, we know that the only reason we were never underwater on our property was that we put a lot of our own sweat equity into it... that, and our neighborhood continued to rise in value through all of the crises. So, first rule of real estate is LOCATION.

Today, even though the market isn't as bottomed out as it was, say, a year ago, it is still a good market to buy in. On top of that, the interest rates are still SOOOO low on mortgages.

So, if the numbers you cited are real and the house is otherwise move-in ready, and in a location that is rising or stable, I would recommend you go for it!

We live in a town home, so I have not lived through major construction although we will need a new kitchen in the near future.( this is an example of me wanting to fix things before we moved in, husband said we'd do it later, it's been 17 years later and still have crappy cabinets I've had to paint and ugly countertop.) Windows were easy to replace, that took two days and a few minor other things that only took a couple days, but never anything major.

All I wanted to say is - do not overextend yourself and get into a mortgage that will be pushing the limits on your income. Our condo was about the only thing in our price range, of course I wanted a home, but now I am so glad we stayed within our limits. Our mortgage was not much more than the rentals in the area. We paid off our mortgage in 10 years, just because you can get a 30 year mortgage does not mean you need to pay over 30 years. Pay additional principal whenever you can for financial peace of mind when you are older. Good luck in your search, hope you find something decent within your range.

This is my thought to..it would be the smartest investment. My dad is going to be helping me and he will eventually be moving in with me, so he has a say to. He's actually excited to go see the houses. My niece and sister are too...it will be a family event. They spend lots of time at my house, so we are looking for a house that works for family events and the dogs, not necessarily in that order:rolleyes:

This is very good advice...so many people didn't do this and looked what happened with the housing market:( I'm in a pretty good position, because my dad is going to help me. Eventually he will be moving in with me, so it has to be something we agree on. He is getting a loan, because his credit rating is astronomical and the house will be paid for(the house he lives in is already paid off), I just have to pay back the loan, which is at a VERY low interest rate. I'm thinking that putting extra money on it every month will put me in a good position for retirement time:)

We bought our first house with the intentions of fixing it up. We did some work to it, but in the end, we demolished the whole house, basement and all, and built a new one in it's place. I am so happy we made that decision. We are in an area similar to what you describe. We bought our house for $120,000, put $200,000 into it and it's now worth $549,000. In the better market of a few years ago it was worth $600,000.

I say go for it--with the caveat that you can afford to do the repairs. Do you rent now or own? If you rent, plan on staying for a few months beyond the close of escrow if you cannot live in the house while repairs are made.

If you currently own a home, it's a bit more complicated. A lot depends on your cash flow situation. Figure all the repairs you need to do on the new house will take three times as long and twice as much money as you think.

Several years ago I came upon the same situation. I'd been looking for some property where I could both live and work. I came upon a place close to town, on an acre of land, with a fixer-upper house on it. Great location, perfect for what I needed, at a price that I couldn't pass up. When I sold my first home and bought this one, I stayed in my first home while repairs were being made.

It took a LOT longer than we thought it was going to. I figured three months, it turned out to be seven, and I was stretched awfully thin paying two mortgages. Fortunately, I had a buyer who wanted my first house, so I had a standing offer for whenever I was ready to move. But if you don't, it can be tricky--you never know how long it's going to take to sell the house.

But I say, if you can possibly manage it, go for it!! It sounds like a really good investment.

Make sure you check everything too. School taxes, property taxes, blah blah, blah. No matter where you go. Alot of folks forget that.

First of all I love the look of the house. My husband and I purchased a ranch style home that was pretty much gutted from the inside out. The whole property was grown up and it took 10 months to get it totally redone.The actual construction wasn't too bad,but it is a pain when you plan certain things at your house and realize that it's not completed. If you have a good relationship with your contractor (if you use one),then it should go by pretty smooth.

Its amazing how much taxes can be:( I found another house that is move in ready, not in the same town, but the taxes are 8600, how can taxes be that high. Aren\'t the taxes based on the purchase price of the house? The real estate agent told me that, but I can\'t see the taxes on a $170000 house being 8600..pretty depressing because in no way, shape, or form could I afford those taxes:(