commute versus rent/mortgage

[LivingAlmostLarge]

How much more would you value a shorter commute? We rent for $2400 (not sure if it'll go up talking to landlord now) now and commuting is 1+ hour driving and probably closer to 1.5 hour public transit. Moving in would be $3200-3500/month but 30-45 minute driving and 40-50 minutes public transit.

I'm leaning now to moving closer. It's an area we'll likely buy if it matters but we aren't really ready to buy right now. But are now willing to spend more to move in closer since we have a better grasp of traffic and idea of job location.

How long are your commutes? Did you consciously pick it? Do you mind it? Have you moved because of it?

[dawnwes]

Yikes, $3,500 for rent???

Dh commuted 45-60 minutes every day until his boss said he can work from home 3 days per week. It has been a godsend!

We tried to move closer in, but after looking at prices, we have opted not to.

[rennigade]

OP...like dawnwes stated about working from home...time to ask employer to work a day or two from home each week. Assuming you have a laptop...its a no brainer.

Not sure what your job is but if you sit on a computer all day and work on documents or have meetings there is no reason you cant telework a few days a week. Employers are holding onto this ancient idea that workers need to know their role, come to the office, sit in a cubical all day and do exactly what could be done from any part of the world that offers an internet connection.

If I were op I would stay put and try to telework. If that doesnt pan out time to freshin up the resume.

[97guns]

im not a fan of renting so my choice would be to make a sacrafice and do the commute, there are carpools that you can hook up with if your hours are set in stone.

$3000 a month in rents will cover a mortgage, all expenses and put money in your pocket, i dont know your numbers for buying a house but i can 99% guarantee my scenario is pretty spot on. if the job is secure this decision would he a no brainer for me and i would begin ownership asap to pay it off asap.

if you buy a house in your 30's its paid off in your 60's, if you buy in your 40's its paid off in your 70's

[Nutria]

Employers are holding onto this ancient idea that workers need to know their role, come to the office, sit in a cubical all day and do exactly what could be done from any part of the world that offers an internet connection.

I've telecommuted for 16 years, and most of my co-workers telecommute. Since we're spread across the country, I'd not know them from Adam (or Eve) if they walked by in the street.

Still, there are quite a number of times when walking over to a cubicle would solve a problem much faster than OCS/Skype, phone or email.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Is it easy to negotiate working from home when you are starting a job? Working from home will be hell with two small kids at home he'll need to find somewhere else. It just doesn't work honestly.

Rennigade it's a new job so I'm not sure if it's okay to ask to telecommute.

97guns $3k in rent doesn't buy crap here. Based on prices of homes it's not going to buy a home plus everything else. I'm hesitant to pull the trigger because I wonder if we're in a slight bubble and the market will flatten for a few years. In which case rushing to buy doesn't matter. And yes renting is throwing away money but I want to make sure we like what we buy and not just buy for the sake of buying if that makes sense.

[97guns]

Loan Summary on $300K and zero down at 3.45%

Number of Payments 360

Monthly Payment $1,325.82

Total Principal Paid $300,000.00

Total Interest Paid $231,295.08

Total Paid $531,295.08

[LivingAlmostLarge]

But $300k doesn't buy a house so then what?

[97guns]

But $300k doesn't buy a house so then what?

not even with the 1+ hour commute?

[dawnwes]

But $300k doesn't buy a house so then what?

How much would the house you are renting sell for?

[LivingAlmostLarge]

The house we are renting would sell around $650k. 2 years ago it sold (was bought my landlord for $450k on zillow and tax documents 11/2014). Neighbors just bought for $675k across the street 4/2016. Last summer similar home sold for $570k 7/2015. The prices are a little crazy right now. 2 houses down the 4 bd sold for $715k 4/2016. It just rented for $2650/month the $715k house. So i'm not crazy with these prices. It is what it is. Hence why I think we're in a bubble because prices are escalating too fast.

We're paying $2400 to property manager and it's high end. Neighbors next door pay $2300 and few houses down $2050. I know we pay a premium for the dog. According to all the calculations from all rental blogs people who landlord need to be counting on appreciation, not rental cash flow.

Friends are renting homes selling for $850k for $3k where we are. So it's all out of whack the rents with price of homes.

And this is still less than what we used to pay where we lived. So i'm not complaining just explaining why the numbers aren't working out for buying. I'm struggling to want to buy because $3500 rent get us a home around $1M.

I'm not sure what to think about prices. But I am not about to get into a bidding war. The commute driving is probably 1 hour. Public transit is where it's 1.5 hours because of transfers. If we move closer we could eliminate a transfer. That appears to save a lot of time.

[Nutria]

How much more would you value a shorter commute? We rent for $2400 (not sure if it'll go up talking to landlord now) now and commuting is 1+ hour driving and probably closer to 1.5 hour public transit. Moving in would be $3200-3500/month but 30-45 minute driving and 40-50 minutes public transit.

All that effort for a 15-30 minute reduction in commute seems unreasonable. (If the drop was from 2 hours to 45 minutes, that would be something else.)

[tripods68]

How much more would you value a shorter commute? We rent for $2400 (not sure if it'll go up talking to landlord now) now and commuting is 1+ hour driving and probably closer to 1.5 hour public transit. Moving in would be $3200-3500/month but 30-45 minute driving and 40-50 minutes public transit.

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/10/06/the-true-cost-of-commuting/

This is a great blog from MM on true cost of commuting...

[sv2007]

How long are your commutes? Did you consciously pick it? Do you mind it? Have you moved because of it?

My last job was 30mins w/o traffic and 1.5hr (can be even more) with. Fortunately, it was more a WFH job so I only drive it about once a week or 2.

Besides that job, my commute has always been 3-10 minutes; we live pretty central.

I hate commuting even when I'm on my bike, which makes it a million times better I still hate it. It's unneeded waste and stress.

I'd definitely move or change jobs if I'm faced with a 1hr+ commute each day.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

DH sat and finally calculated all times for commuting. He refuses to suck it up and stay put. it would be 65-75 minutes on the bus without including walking and driving to park and ride. So 75-90 minutes minimally with everything being perfect.

We're looking at more a 30 minute bus ride/shuttle if we move and 5-10 minutes radius of driving there or he could bike depending on where. This is more in line with what he wants.

We aren't keen on buying in a new neighborhood and hate the idea of changing schools again but when we moved we had no idea how long commutes were. And unfortunately our oldest went to kindergarten.

Again we could be making a mistake but i'm really nervous about jumping in and buying and prefer to rent and try things out.