1st Time Homebuyers - $8,000 !

[SHINTON]

let's say i already own the house and sell it to her.....and then finance it jointly? and get married jan 1 2010?
oh...and can i then claim it as a loss on my taxes...and come out ahead on both of our taxes?

I would be a bit leery of that setup. If you two were buying a new house together I would say this works, but to buy into your house...I would have to read up on it and def pushing the envelope at the least.

As for the loss on selling your home, that would be at best a capital loss which would offset capital gains (not ordinary income)

Not saying you cannot do your scenerio but would def want to spend time researching it and making sure before you committed to that action.

 

[BIGWOODY]

Isn't there also a 15k tax credit for buying a house (first time or not) in 2009?
Also, there are plenty of deals on houses over 300k cause that market is sucking balls right now. I'm so glad those big bad banks didn't hold a gun to my head a few years ago and make me take an adjustable rate mortgage on a house I couldn't afford.

 

[hscrugby]

This is so true. The crack houses in Charlottes worst neighborhoods sell for those kinds of numbers......

Charlotte Housing
Median home price $169,483

For a townhouse or condo, you could get a fairly nice one for ~100k.

These numbers make me laugh.
$90k? $130k?
Up here, $400k is fairly normal for middle/upper-middle class. Small old houses in crap locations start at $250k. Cracktown is $190+.
We're paying $1425/mo in rent for a ~1000 sq ft ranch and very happy about that rate.
And, no, we're not all making 6 figures to compensate. The truth is that most of this housing recovery business is really targeted to area like this, most of NC really didn't get the crazy inflation and consequently dosn't have the fallout as bad w/ so many people hurting.
Yeah it may seem rediculous to take a $250k loan when you you only make $50k/year, but when that's the cheapest that's you can get, and rent just keeps going up - what else do you do?

Estimated median house or condo value in 2007: $221,696 (it was $104,900 in 2000)

That's the problem right there. No wonder it's a bubble that popped.
Now for your 250k for 50k house purchase.
Assuming 5% interest, that's about 16000/ year in payments.
Add escrow (or taxes/insurance) figure about 3000 for tax/600 for insurance. No hoa, (cause I hate them)
So you are at 20,000 or so before any other bills.
I don't want to do math, but lets say you've got 35k take home after taxes/insurance/401k/etc.
That leaves you with 15k for living.
Figure 1200 for power, 600 for internet, 600 for phones, 400 for water. Got a newer car? Lets say 3500/year (lowball) for car/gas.
Lets go real cheap for food, and say 250/month for another 3000.
We're down to 5000/year for clothes, entertainment, savings, any presents, special occasions, tools to fix cheap cars, tires, beer, etc.
And that's not even thinking about kids.

I don't care if "everyone else is doing it" etc.
It's not smart, it's a HUGE chunk of why we are in this mess.
living beyond your means= BAD. Not to mention it makes you bitter since you can never afford what you want.

Hell, I feel like I'm house poor often, and our house loan is less than that, and well, we make more than that.
Don't get me wrong I've got friends that did the crazy house, and most of them are regretting it. One is divorced because of it.

 

[02 TJ]

let's say i already own the house and sell it to her.....and then finance it jointly? and get married jan 1 2010?
oh...and can i then claim it as a loss on my taxes...and come out ahead on both of our taxes?

Quick answer: No.

 

[SHINTON]

Isn't there also a 15k tax credit for buying a house (first time or not) in 2009?
Also, there are plenty of deals on houses over 300k cause that market is sucking balls right now. I'm so glad those big bad banks didn't hold a gun to my head a few years ago and make me take an adjustable rate mortgage on a house I couldn't afford.

Greg, I haven't seen a 15k one, could be something that was proposed and then altered during the back and forth between house/senate?

Right now the credit is up to 8k for 1st time home buyers. There is def some deals out there...hoping when the time comes mine will sell decent / if not I may hang on and rent it out.

 

[RatLabGuy]

Don't get me wrong I've got friends that did the crazy house, and most of them are regretting it. One is divorced because of it.

I think you are missing my point.
In NC most places, $250k IS a crazy house.
Here however $250k is minimum livable w/o unwanted housepets such as rodents or theives.
Yet $50k is still a common 2-family wage income here too.

Fairly simple problem. You need a place to live. You're not a kid anymore and bumming w/o mom/dad isn't an option anymore. This is the cheapest that you can get. You can eitehr (a) rent for $1800/m or (b) buy for $1600/m. Chances are, rent is going up. So what do you do - you take it. People have to have a place to live, it just happens that in some places, the norm is 1/3rd of your income b/c that's the only option.

all i'm saying is, this "stimulus" stuff is really targeted more for other parts of the country where it makes more sense, as a whole NC didn't have the huge bubble and consequential crunch.

 

[hscrugby]

I think you are missing my point.
In NC most places, $250k IS a crazy house.
Here however $250k is minimum livable w/o unwanted housepets such as rodents or theives.
Yet $50k is still a common 2-family wage income here too.
Fairly simple problem. You need a place to live. You're not a kid anymore and bumming w/o mom/dad isn't an option anymore. This is the cheapest that you can get. You can eitehr (a) rent for $1800/m or (b) buy for $1600/m. Chances are, rent is going up. So what do you do - you take it. People have to have a place to live, it just happens that in some places, the norm is 1/3rd of your income b/c that's the only option.
all i'm saying is, this "stimulus" stuff is really targeted more for other parts of the country where it makes more sense, as a whole NC didn't have the huge bubble and consequential crunch.

No you missed the point.
221,000 is MEDIAN AVERAGE.
Yes, I know that is a statistic. And we know the value of statistics.
That being said, according to other sources for Aberdeen, Md, the real estate went down ~20% last year. And that 20% was weighted heavily by the "upper end" homes.
So what was a 250k house (still above average) is now a 200k house.
But I'm sorry if you feel the majority of people around live in crack houses infested with rats.
(For the record I have been there. But it's been a while. Good friend used to live across the water on 40 in Delaware)

If people can't afford a house, they shouldn't buy one. That's what caused the crazy inflation, and now that they are realizing they can't afford it, prices are dropping to be a more normal "appreciation" rate.
Banks saying 5x income is easy for a traditional loan, and 10x for an interest only, are part of the problem. The other problem is people are stupid.


To compare it to Raleigh:
Estimated median household income in 2007: $49,555 (it was $39,190 in 2000)
Aberdeen: $49,555
Estimated median house or condo value in 2007: $221,696 (it was $104,900 in 2000)
Aberdeen: $221,696
Raleigh Median household income $57,050
Raleigh Median home price $177,902

So you make more on avg in Raleigh, and have a cheaper house?

 

[RatLabGuy]

No you missed the point.
221,000 is MEDIAN AVERAGE.
Yes, I know that is a statistic. And we know the value of statistics.
That being said, according to other sources for Aberdeen, Md, the real estate went down ~20% last year. And that 20% was weighted heavily by the "upper end" homes.

i'm not real sure why you chose Aberdeen, aside from it being in my profile? Yes it happens to be my nearest township, but isn't real representative of the rest of the area or the state.
Aberdeen is a small town supported only by the military base, and in general a pretty crappy place to live... higher crime, higher unemployment and higher empty home rate than nearby townships... yes APG has the highest concentration on PhDs in the whole region but most do not live there, instead more in Bel Air (next reasonable size trwon), White Marsh, commute from Baltimore, etc. Actually most people avoid the town if possible.
I looked at the same stats before moving up here, and got quite a dose of reality when I showed up.
On that same page, note the average median home price in MD as a whole - $347,000
NC - $145,700

So you make more on avg in Raleigh, and have a cheaper house?

yep, that's my point. 2x as much for a home yet the salaries not much different. Therefore much larger % of income must be used to buy a home. Yes, I agree that's not a comfortable situation to be in, but if you need a place to live, not much choice. This discomfort is why I am, in fact, renting at the moment... and inelligible for this credit.

 

[WCURoverd90]

Charlotte Housing
Median home price $169,483

Yeah now narrow your search to my areas. Lake Wylie, South Park, Uptown, Ballantyne. Your 169 figure includes all of Charlotte which I feel that 60% of the Charlotte area is a dump with nothing but thug gang bangers.....

 

[Reid]

I feel that 60% of the Charlotte area is a dump with nothing but thug gang bangers.....

who would most likely be 1st time home buyers eligible for the $8000 credit.


didnt know how else to get this back on topic.