Buy house we rent or wait for choices in the fall?

[~bs]

Well, that's a closed chapter. It has nothing to do with the choice are trying to make now.

You made a real estate decision in the past, you're looking to make a real estate decision now.

*shrug* I'm just saying... and sometimes past mistakes can be repeated if we don't learn from them.

[syracusa]

You made a real estate decision in the past, you're looking to make a real estate decision now.

*shrug* I'm just saying... and sometimes past mistakes can be repeated if we don't learn from them.

Well, if you are suggesting that sometimes renting could just be better because renting can never lead to a short-sale, this will not work for us. We have to buy no matter how you twist it. In this area with good schools, rents are not only much more expensive than a mortgage rate for the same thing - but what is worse, they are very temporary. Eventually, the owner wants to sell. We can't keep being nomads forever.

That being said, what we are looking at now is a very different situation from what we had in the past. The short-sale was a townhouse in an area with bad schools - which we had gotten into before we had kids. When recession hit, those types of places were the hardest hit.

Now we are looking for a single-family house in a top schools area - which area was one of the most cushioned against the effects of Recession. It is also an area predicted to continue to do very well for many decades. If this area goes down, everything else will have done so even more so.

Continuing to rent is just not an option for us.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I find it funny that everyone is saying the same thing wait. And that pretty much everyone on the thread is thinking the same thing...you just went through a short sale two years ago and are now again rushing to buy as soon as possible. And again everyone is saying rushing a decision is never a good idea.

It seems like you have a justification for everything and everyone and are defensive against every opinion that is not in proper alignment with yours.

That anyone wanting a big house is bad. That perhaps people afford and work for the big house because they don't like traveling. That it's wrong to not work because you need two incomes for financial security. However many families on this board would argue that they are financially secure on one salary. And they someone live well without being "bored housewives who don't raise their kids and use nannies instead." That some people choose to live on less by not working.

Hence when a couple people suggest you had a short sale = bad real estate decision in past, perhaps take a step back and slow down, you say we've been renting, we have good credit, we need to buy. Boy are you lucky that you even had short sale. That you walked away without paying off your full debt that you initially borrowed.

[syracusa]

I find it funny that everyone is saying the same thing wait. And that pretty much everyone on the thread is thinking the same thing...you just went through a short sale two years ago and are now again rushing to buy as soon as possible. And again everyone is saying rushing a decision is never a good idea.

It seems like you have a justification for everything and everyone and are defensive against every opinion that is not in proper alignment with yours.

That anyone wanting a big house is bad. That perhaps people afford and work for the big house because they don't like traveling. That it's wrong to not work because you need two incomes for financial security. However many families on this board would argue that they are financially secure on one salary. And they someone live well without being "bored housewives who don't raise their kids and use nannies instead." That some people choose to live on less by not working.

Hence when a couple people suggest you had a short sale = bad real estate decision in past, perhaps take a step back and slow down, you say we've been renting, we have good credit, we need to buy. Boy are you lucky that you even had short sale. That you walked away without paying off your full debt that you initially borrowed.

You're going off on so many tangents here, it's making me dizzy.

Yes - we had a short sale: just like many other people who were severely hit by the Recession. It was not because we had made a "bad real estate" decision; it was because my husband lost his job during the Recession, we had to move cross country, and prices of townhouses went down in a spiral.
This is exactly why we received the hardship and were allowed to do the short sale in the first place; so kindly get off your high and righteous horse and do your moralizing somewhere else.

We have been renting for four years now and just because we had a short-sale in the past, doesn't mean that we should continue to pay insanely expensive rent rates in an area with good schools, where the vast majority of people own and pay a whole lot less in mortgage payments for the same house we are renting now. We do have excellent credit again, same it was before the short-sale (exactly because we have never been the irresponsible "dead-beats" you are insinuating we are) and we have quite a ton saved for a down payment. In addition, we will be going for a mortgage light years below what we would qualify for - per mortgage broker and his pre-approval letter. We would not wait any longer to buy than Fall anyway.

If you are going to give advice based on your personal insecurities, resentments and axes to grind, then thanks - but no thanks.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

You don't want advice you want people to just agree with whatever you say. It's been that way in every thread you write.

Second, I'll address the elephant in the room everyone is thinking but not saying. You had a short sale a few years ago. You say due to a job loss and had to move. How much in value did your home drop? Did you not put any money down? Did you have an emergency fund? Did you try to sell the home before you ran out of an emergency fund?

People on this forum all the time say buy when you have 20% and 6 month EF. That way you have a buffer if the home value drops and you need to sell. Also if you have to sell unexpectedly you can walk away without a SHORT SALE because you have enough equity to cover it.

So you are determined to buy in September because rents are expensive. You are resentful that you have been forced to rent for the past two years because you moved cross country and it's the reality of your new location (no idea what's true or not, it's what you post).

Your posts come across as arrogant, know it all, resentful, and envious. Envious of people who "depend on one income and live lavishly. Resentful that other people are buying more home than they can afford, but we don't really know their situation."

So the majority of people say wait. It's a big decision, lot of money. You say well we're not dead beats who had a short sale, we had the misfortune of a job loss. So woe is us we are unable to buy because of the short sale. If you wanted the freedom to purchase when you moved perhaps it would have been wiser to have put down more on the home or paid it off faster or examined other options than a short sale. You could have rented it out at a loss and paid the difference until you paid it off enough to sell it for the mortgage.

I am judging because you did have a short sale. Because you put people in short sales and foreclosures as dead beats but you are not, you are "different" and special.

I would have to say the only people who are being financially responsible are those who aren't going into foreclosure or short sales.

[syracusa]

You don't want advice you want people to just agree with whatever you say. It's been that way in every thread you write.

Second, I'll address the elephant in the room everyone is thinking but not saying. You had a short sale a few years ago. You say due to a job loss and had to move. How much in value did your home drop? Did you not put any money down? Did you have an emergency fund? Did you try to sell the home before you ran out of an emergency fund?

People on this forum all the time say buy when you have 20% and 6 month EF. That way you have a buffer if the home value drops and you need to sell. Also if you have to sell unexpectedly you can walk away without a SHORT SALE because you have enough equity to cover it.

So you are determined to buy in September because rents are expensive. You are resentful that you have been forced to rent for the past two years because you moved cross country and it's the reality of your new location (no idea what's true or not, it's what you post).

Your posts come across as arrogant, know it all, resentful, and envious. Envious of people who "depend on one income and live lavishly. Resentful that other people are buying more home than they can afford, but we don't really know their situation."

So the majority of people say wait. It's a big decision, lot of money. You say well we're not dead beats who had a short sale, we had the misfortune of a job loss. So woe is us we are unable to buy because of the short sale. If you wanted the freedom to purchase when you moved perhaps it would have been wiser to have put down more on the home or paid it off faster or examined other options than a short sale. You could have rented it out at a loss and paid the difference until you paid it off enough to sell it for the mortgage.

I am judging because you did have a short sale. Because you put people in short sales and foreclosures as dead beats but you are not, you are "different" and special.

I would have to say the only people who are being financially responsible are those who aren't going into foreclosure or short sales.

Nothing but cheap self-righteousness and resentments about general views I expressed on other threads, that have nothing to do with the question I asked here.
You don't know an iota about our past personal circumstances and how and why we were ultimately forced into a short-sale; but you continue to beat your dead, self-righteous horse so you can feel better and take it "off your chest". Too bad for you; and so sad.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

He just darn wants more house; and while I love "nice" as much as the next human, I also understand that I don't want to work my bones off forever for monthly payments. I just want as small of a mortgage as possible so we can pay it off as fast as we can, while I still work full time (the next four years) - and then I want us to be left with serious financial security and disposable income to bust in Europe over the summers; plus I don't want to work so much for so many years to come just so we can continue to afford "monthly payments". I dream of being able to allow myself to be idle and slow-paced. Yes, as in "lazy" and "siestas".

Bummer that it looks like we have a bit of a mismatch in life philosophy.
Then again, I am European and I grew up with "small, conservative, paid off, keep the change, enjoy life and don't forget God made work as a punishment, not as a virtue ".

By contrast, he is American and he grew up with "nice house = success = nice life".

I think I am going buhzirk.[/QUOTE]

I see you judge american "values of nice house = success = nice life" and european values is "small, conservative, paid off, enjoy life, and work is punishment." Obviously european life is much more virtuous and better.

And everything I said I know I was just saying what was implied earlier with "tossing money away in a short sale..." Just no one else want to point out the obvious financial mistake. If your plan was so great then everyone would agree. Instead most people on the thread said to wait.

And previously you said all these American women stay at home, use nannies, afford big homes, but can't afford their homes and financially unstable. Truth is no one knows how stable people are. Perhaps people have large inheritances. Perhaps they made a ton of money in the dot.com or business. Perhaps they worked for a company and made enough when it went public to afford their lifestyle. No one really knows and judging people based on where they live or how they live isn't possible.

After all based on your assumptions I don't work and I have two kids, I live in a house much more expensive than the one you want to buy, I probably am living close to the edge of financial ruin. And yet somehow my DH and I haven't had a short sale, we pay our bills, save, and live what I consider a nice life. We enjoy only one person working. We are rarely in a rush and my kids are healthy and happy. And if we lost our job? We'd sell our home which is not underwater nor likely to be since we put down 20% and have paid off more.

[syracusa]

He just darn wants more house; and while I love "nice" as much as the next human, I also understand that I don't want to work my bones off forever for monthly payments. I just want as small of a mortgage as possible so we can pay it off as fast as we can, while I still work full time (the next four years) - and then I want us to be left with serious financial security and disposable income to bust in Europe over the summers; plus I don't want to work so much for so many years to come just so we can continue to afford "monthly payments". I dream of being able to allow myself to be idle and slow-paced. Yes, as in "lazy" and "siestas".

Bummer that it looks like we have a bit of a mismatch in life philosophy.
Then again, I am European and I grew up with "small, conservative, paid off, keep the change, enjoy life and don't forget God made work as a punishment, not as a virtue ".

By contrast, he is American and he grew up with "nice house = success = nice life".

I think I am going buhzirk.

I see you judge american "values of nice house = success = nice life" and european values is "small, conservative, paid off, enjoy life, and work is punishment." Obviously european life is much more virtuous and better.

And everything I said I know I was just saying what was implied earlier with "tossing money away in a short sale..." Just no one else want to point out the obvious financial mistake. If your plan was so great then everyone would agree. Instead most people on the thread said to wait.

And previously you said all these American women stay at home, use nannies, afford big homes, but can't afford their homes and financially unstable. Truth is no one knows how stable people are. Perhaps people have large inheritances. Perhaps they made a ton of money in the dot.com or business. Perhaps they worked for a company and made enough when it went public to afford their lifestyle. No one really knows and judging people based on where they live or how they live isn't possible.

After all based on your assumptions I don't work and I have two kids, I live in a house much more expensive than the one you want to buy, I probably am living close to the edge of financial ruin. And yet somehow my DH and I haven't had a short sale, we pay our bills, save, and live what I consider a nice life. We enjoy only one person working. We are rarely in a rush and my kids are healthy and happy. And if we lost our job? We'd sell our home which is not underwater nor likely to be since we put down 20% and have paid off more.[/QUOTE]

You have certainly earned the right to be ignored.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Nope you are jealous and quite mean spirited. Lol. You think you got the advice here but the truth is if you follow what people write they say save 20%, EF, and live below your means. If you put down 20% you have cushion to sell. Then an EF means ifd you lost your job you could cut it to the bone budget and with unemployment maybe make 6 months last 12. Then after six months sell the house at up to 20‰ loss and move or rent.

By not rushing a home purchase and being cautious you can minimize the chances of needing a short sale or foreclosure.

Lots of people can stay in their homes with a job loss. An lot of people took better jobs and moved, but the bottom line is people with financial wisdom know not to buy when they are moot settled and have their financial house in order.

Much like this thread. If you can't see the sarcasm in that previous post about throwing away money on a short sale. I just pointed out the truth that everyone else was too polite and hinting at say. Instead they said rent.

[johntomba]

Build some more wealth before buying again. And DONT buy the house you are renting. You think it's great because you live there already, but you need to be objective and see the sale through the eyes of a future buyer.

[syracusa]

Build some more wealth before buying again. And DONT buy the house you are renting. You think it's great because you live there already, but you need to be objective and see the sale through the eyes of a future buyer.

John,

There is no sense in us "building more wealth" and continuing to pay very high rent rates in this area - when the mortgage for this house would be almost HALF of what we pay in rent right now. Nevermind the prices in this area are projected to rise significantly over the next year (they've already started, in fact) and chances are interest rates won't stay that low either for much longer.
We have well over 20% to put down on the house and will go for a 15 year mortgage - which mortgage will be merely 1.5 our annual income (extremely affordable). Our credit score is also back to excellent and we have zero debt - so we really don't see the point in us waiting, as long as we will HAVE TO buy in this area eventually anyway, for children's school.

This is NOT an area where many rent out (it is, in fact, extremely hard to find anything for rent); so we will not be able to avoid buying here forever, unless we want to be shuffled around from place to place by owners who want to put their house up for sale after no longer than a year or two of renting it out. Also, the house we are in, just like the very few houses for rent around here, are NOT houses that the owners use as rental property, in general. They never rented it out before us. They rented it to us for only 2 years because we approached them while they had it on the market - and because the market was completely frozen at the time and nothing was selling anyway, they thought they could make some extra money by renting it to us for two years - and they sure did!
They knew they were going to put it back up for sale as soon as our lease was up.

We said the same thing initially: that we will not buy the house we rent because "there's always better" out there. So we scoured the market up and down for months in a row, with the most objective eyes and ready to move on to "better". We had in fact given up completely the idea of considering the one we are in.
We looked all over the place, learned about every neighborhood, saw tons of houses ...and we had to eventually admit that everything we saw in our price range IS NOT as nice and well-maintained as the house we are in right now. You CAN get more, of course - in terms of more space, more new-ness, etc if you increase your price range by 100,000 or more. This we don't want to do anyway as we want to keep the mortgage very affordable. There are already bidding wars in our area with sellers getting more than what they asked for, whereas we were able to negociate this house, without agent involved, to get it at a very good price.
We know this house in and out and it has many advantages, including the fact that the owners had prepared it for the market: new roof, new AC units, nice flat yard (a rarity in this area), etc.

Besides, avoiding the incredible stress and expense of moving twice more, after having moved 4 times over the past four years... and having kids change schools three times in a year - only for us to end up getting largely the same thing at a worse price - all of this speaks for itself.

It finally became a no brainer to us after months of looking to see "what else" is on the market. Sometimes, as they say, "love really is closer to home than you think it is".

When we saw a house the other day, 125,000 more expensive than what we want to pay, in a neighborhood we had our eyes on... being snatched in a few hours - and it didn't even have everything we would have hoped for at this price - that helped us make the final decision.

The grass is clearly NOT greener on the other side and is getting less and less green every day.

Never mind that the house we're in now has the best location for us - of all the houses we could get in the area.

We are very content with the decision to buy the house we have been renting over the past two years.