Rent or buy?

fwiw, the triangle, triad, and charlotte areas were recently rated among the most affordable places to buy a house in the country (comparing median yearly income to median real estate prices).
 
Ok, I guess my .02 and LOTS of good advice I saw in thread already for both PROs and CONs of 1st home, I will try to add my thoughts and one or two newish ones for you.

First of all, just in the explanation about the 124k house...don't buy it. Here is how you find the RIGHT house....

SHE...MUST like and approve on 100% of the interior and exterior OR believes it could be updated to her expectations. If you do not, she will nag, hate and generally "keep looking" at other houses until it causes an issue in the marraige OR you give in...(married guys can all back me up on this one I think)

You MAY get one room...at most, on the inside that will be your room. (If/when a kid ever comes along, chances are you are losing your "room"...)

What YOU really consider important is a decent place to work on your rig. Knowing your current situation, is there any reason to think mom/dad are gonna get tired of seeing your junk/friends showing up still at THEIR house?

If not....then you don't "need" an uber garage of your own YET...(all will come in good time my friend.)

If they are a bit tired of it...then yeah, you do enough side stuff you NEED (not just want, but actual need = you make money with the side biz stuff) a decent garage....and non HOA/place that allows you to have the various rigs around the house.

I did a range of pmts for you, basically for every $10,000 financed, add $75ish of total pmt right now incl pmt, taxes and insur.

I am a big believer in watching/keeping debt under control (Dave Ramsey influence although I do march to my own version) If your folks are cool with you doing stuff at their place for a while, I would rent something CHEAP to give you guys time to build up as much cash as possible for downpmt.

You might also end up finding a piece of land to buy / build what you guys really want on it instead of compromising... (big uber pluses here with the wife I can assure you) The deal is you get the "garagmahal" and she gets the house, and by waiting until you have the cash / find the perfect land / etc you probably will end up living there 10+ years if not "forever"

So I hope this helps...and grats dude on the upcoming nuptials!

Sam



Fin Amt Pmt Prop Tax Insur Tot Pmt
140,000.00 884.90 140.00 50.00 1,074.90
130,000.00 821.69 130.00 50.00 1,001.69
120,000.00 758.48 120.00 50.00 928.48
110,000.00 695.27 110.00 50.00 855.27
100,000.00 632.07 100.00 50.00 782.07
90,000.00 568.86 90.00 50.00 708.86
80,000.00 505.65 80.00 50.00 635.65
70,000.00 442.45 70.00 50.00 562.45
60,000.00 379.24 60.00 50.00 489.24
50,000.00 316.03 50.00 50.00 416.03
 
You can write off the interest you pay every month to the bank, you now write off the PMI (private mortgage insurance) at the end of the year, plus write off your property taxes as well. You can't do that from renting.

If you buy a home you can take out a home equity line of credit (these can get you in trouble also), plus the home is yours and you can anything you want to it....like painting, putting in hardwood floors, landscaping, having parties, etc.

When you go to make an offer on a house, ask the seller to pay $4000 in closing costs and provide a one year home warranty if you go with anything other than new construction. If you don't ask for these things - then you never know if could have gotten them. You don't have to pay any Realtor fees since the seller pays them. Shop around for mortgages too. I just bought a new home for $185,000, $0 down, 5.75%, and payments of $1350 a month. Best of luck!!
 
SHINTON said:
I did a range of pmts for you, basically for every $10,000 financed, add $75ish of total pmt right now incl pmt, taxes and insur.

I am a big believer in watching/keeping debt under control (Dave Ramsey influence although I do march to my own version) If your folks are cool with you doing stuff at their place for a while, I would rent something CHEAP to give you guys time to build up as much cash as possible for downpmt.

You might also end up finding a piece of land to buy / build what you guys really want on it instead of compromising... (big uber pluses here with the wife I can assure you) The deal is you get the "garagmahal" and she gets the house, and by waiting until you have the cash / find the perfect land / etc you probably will end up living there 10+ years if not "forever"

So I hope this helps...and grats dude on the upcoming nuptials!

Sam



Fin Amt Pmt Prop Tax Insur Tot Pmt
140,000.00 884.90 140.00 50.00 1,074.90
130,000.00 821.69 130.00 50.00 1,001.69
120,000.00 758.48 120.00 50.00 928.48
110,000.00 695.27 110.00 50.00 855.27
100,000.00 632.07 100.00 50.00 782.07
90,000.00 568.86 90.00 50.00 708.86
80,000.00 505.65 80.00 50.00 635.65
70,000.00 442.45 70.00 50.00 562.45
60,000.00 379.24 60.00 50.00 489.24
50,000.00 316.03 50.00 50.00 416.03
Click to expand...

Good info Sam but is the Insur. home owner or PMI? He would need to have both added into that if not putting 20% down and that could range $50 to $100 or so on those numbers. The $50 either way would go up with the price of the house.

Also don't know what kind of job they have or if they work for theirself, my parents had a hard time getting a house at the coast when they had there own Restaurant. Maybe some of you people that work out on your own can bring that in to the picture....
 
Lived with my girlfriend and rented for three years at a cheap house. Got to know her and partied a lot.

Got married to her and we bought a house with a nice big garage for my wrenching. She does what she wants with the rest of the house. I'm fine with that.

Had a kid. First year was tough with the kid but is awesome now. My son loves to help me wrench and goof off.

Been a home owner for about 6 years now and love it. Really like my house and hood. I could be here for a long time.

:beer:

Edit:

Also if you do buy a house get one with a BIG flat driveway so your friends can come over and wrench too!

aimg.photobucket.com_albums_v214_nhodierne_frontcorner.jpg
 
Shinton really hit the nail on the head for me. My brother in law gives the perfect example, from when he and his wife were shopping for a house. Basically if you walked into a house and it looked like it needed no work and everything was decorated nice, she loved it. If it needed any work, she hated it. He could see the potential in a fixer upper, she could not. Ultimately you're going to have to find out what works best for both of you and that may take time.

I also agree that IF you're going to go the rental route, don't rent the best place you can afford. Rent the cheapest place you can find, where you're not in the ghetto. Use the saved money to put money away for the house. My wife and I just got out of our trailer. It was basically like renting because you can't expect to get anything out of them when you sell. For us it was a means to an end, it was cheap housing while she went to college.

We love our house and appreciate it more, having lived in the trailer. I'll add to the me too's, though, that the house costs us more than I had thought it would and it's a relatively new house. Not that we've had any problems, but you're gonna spend a ton on the stuff you need (lawn mower, trimmer, vacuum, etc). You also need to plan ahead for emergencies.

I'm not trying to talk you out of the house. Ultimately I think if you can really afford it, the tax advantages and eventual equity advantages are there. Just be 100% sure you're erring on the conservative side and make sure this is a decision you make together. As others have said, if she's 100% onboard with the decision, it will go a long way towards you're long term happiness.

Jeff
 
JThomas said:
If she desides to leave you because your truck is not big enough, she will take half of your junk.
Click to expand...

Just step up to the 54" Boggers. That should cover that problem. Better yet, get a prenuptial agreement. Probably costs less than the Boggers and axles you will break running them.

Stay at home as long as possible! Don't leave the womb! You have never had it so good. This is advice coming from someone who didn't move out till he was 27. Now on to business, I offer my condolences on signing your life away:flipoff2:.

I know you are from the area and assume she is too, so my impression is that yall won't be leaving the Triad area. At least not any time soon. Therefore, I recommend buying. My biggest piece of advice is to hold out for the house you want. Rent if you have to while looking. I went month to month contract in my apartment looking steady(almost every evening on the internet + driving around on the weekends) for 1.5 yrs before my house popped up for sale. By that time, I had seen enough pieces of property to know it was the right one at the right price.

I recommend you both make a list of what you 'have' to have in a house. For you it might be a garage and minimum xx size lot. For her it might be xx size bedroom and xx size bathroom/kitchen etc. Then review each others list so know what the other person has to have.
 
there is some really good advice in this thread.

here is mine...

write down everything you want, as danny said. then armed with this information show it to your significant other. then she can use it for whatever she wants, a coaster, something to start the fire with, hell toilet paper, whatever.

as you shop for a place with you SO, be prepared for things to make zero sense to you in any way. Be prepared for houses you like to be out of the question. Be prepared to buy a house for the kitchen, that they will never cook in.

Be prepared to buy a new nicer washer and dryer. New bedroom furniture, new refrigerator (because it matched just right), and if you are lucky, you can buy a tv too. Lets not forget the mower, the weedwacker, the blower, and all the pots and flowers and hoses, well you get the idea.

Now after you have braced for all of that, get ready for the bills. Lights on, water running, a/c blasting. Shit....torretts, sorry

Now to finish it off, get ready to have your ride tore apart for 2 months to put on a power steering pump, and to put in a front locker. Yes 2 months.

After you have weighed all that, come up with a decision on what you want to do. Because in the end you have to be happy, and my friend, you are only happy if your SO is happy.

I say all this kidding, yet serious, my wife is awesome, I mean incredible, but get ready for expenses on top of expenses, because women have a picture in their head, and they will paint it regardless of your checkbook.

All that said, buy a house. I did, and as you can see, I knew what I was doing.
 
Also don't know what kind of job they have or if they work for theirself, my parents had a hard time getting a house at the coast when they had there own Restaurant. Maybe some of you people that work out on your own can bring that in to the picture....
Click to expand...
yeah, it's not hard to get a stated income loan. that's what i did. you will pay a bit more in interest though.

I would rent something CHEAP to give you guys time to build up as much cash as possible for downpmt.
Click to expand...
saving cash is good, but don't waste it on a down payment unless you know for sure you're going to stay in the house long enough to pay it off, or at least be there for 10-20 years. that money can be better invested elsewhere. more return and better liquidity should you ever need it for anything.
 
Someone mentioned building.
DO NOT BUILD YOUR FIRST HOUSE.
YOU WILL HATE IT!
I PROMISE THAT I DID. I built our "dream home" and sold it 18 months later.
I ahve bought 16 houses now in 8 years (some investment, 2 rental, 1 vacation and lived in a few) I *think* we are finally ready to build our dream home, again.

You just wouldnt believe how much difference 2 foot can do to a room, or door placement etc. Hell Ive lived in these places and still dont see the big deal, my wife however taht another story.
 
drkelly said:
Better yet, get a prenuptial agreement. .
Click to expand...
There's the gold in this thread....I had to get one because of my business and some trust fund crap, I was worried to death about asking my then future wife to sign it. I knew I was marrying the right one when she had no problem with it and said money had nothing to do with why she wanted to marry me.
 
Gotta give props to this crowd

Ok :gay: moment.

You gotta give someprops to this crowd. This is a hella long post for being started only 6 hours ago.

Carry on.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Ok :gay: moment.
You gotta give someprops to this crowd. This is a hella long post for being started only 6 hours ago.
Carry on.
Click to expand...

You got that right. I am not even going to respond, there is too much to respond to. But I did read everything. Thanks!

I think I might show her this page so she can read it. The renting for 1 year or less I could live with, but as stated, I would want something CHEAP (~$500). I saw a house with a frame (:D) today for rent, will have a 2 car carport, and small storage building. Yard is mowed, and water bill is paid, in a good location near where I live now. Problem is the trailer itself looks like crap, if she could deal with it I am sure I could :)
 
I wouldn't get into any kind of financial debt in the first 2-5 years of marriage. All that stupid shit she does that you think is cute now will come back to bite you in the ass in 2 years. Unless you two are exactly alike in almost every way, from how clean your house it to how clean her house is, to how you handle money, you couold be in the same world of hurt I am. I wish like hell I hadn't bought a home. It is such a PITA to get rid of if (when) things go south in the relationship. Remember: Opposites attract, then they attack. Rent for a couple of years to get to really know her first. (You don't really know her till you live with her and share everything including your name.)
 
Back
Top