Ha you guys. If you can make more money investing in the market why would you buy a house?

We bought a house 3 years ago. It has gone up 3x in value. There is no way we could afford to live here now. We have friends that are moving far away to afford living. So I am working my tail off to keep it and enjoy my family!

OT

Other than the truck driving like a heap of crap with this camper on the back the power is the same. The egts are delicate though. I don't think it weighs that much compared to what I have already hauled.

 

That means that any place to rent in the area has gone up 3x (or more) in the same period.
You'd be working even harder to pay continuingly rising rent; you're paying the same mortgage payment as you did when you closed, but you're making that payment on a house that's worth a LOT more than what you're paying. We couldn't afford to buy a house in our neighborhood now either, but we owe NOTHING on this place now, so that makes us richer than if we had not bought here.

It's similar to our generation of trucks. I bet most folks' trucks on this forum are worth a lot more than when they bought them. In some cases to where they couldn't afford to buy it now. Does that mean they should _not_ keep it? Of course not, just the opposite.

 

Good for you, Lee! It's an adventure, for sure, but well worth it in the long run. When my wife and I got married in '02 we searched high and low for an apartment or something to rent and found that it was cheaper for us to buy (there aren't that many apartments available around here to start with). So that's what we did. We bought a little bungalow on a half acre lot in town (it was only 786 sq ft If I recall correctly) and we lived there for the first 7 years of our marriage. We didn't make out like bandits, but we walked away with a little change in our pockets and we could do whatever we wanted to the place. I know there are those for whom renting is the way to go, but I'd rather have something I can call my own.

I'm happy to hear you found something. You'll have to be sure to post up some pictures once you close on the place.

 

I have bought six over my life and made money on every one of them. In the market downturns it makes you a little nervous but just hang in there. Do what Mad said for sure, it knocks down the interest pretty fast. Even if its only an extra $20 a month!

 

Thanks guys...


Got the inspection back today...not to bad, inspector said nothing alarming... but I am nervous about the original furnace and water heater (both 32 yrs old).

 

depending on local codes, you might be able to do most of the work yourself


I was able to do all of my low pressure lines and the plumber I know allowed me to prep up the water heater that he soldered it up.

 

unfortunately with FHA/203k renovation loan and the bank owned property I can't touch anything...

 

I will say buying my garage,er house was the best thing i have ever done. 15 years and i still am happy to come home tho my personal"castle".

 

The sad part is once I get this place I am not sure how much vehicle money I will have left...

 

We did the bank owned 203k loan. The bank owned part is the worst of it. Although the only thing we used money for is the roof. We got closing pushed 8 times I think. I got so bad that I called the bank and told them that if they didn't meet our next closing date, that we would be shopping elsewhere. They didn't seem to care, but that date held true. You've seen my place. It's a TON of work even if you buy one that's "done" but well worth it.

 

Out of the six houses I've owned the one in AZ is the only one that didn't require any remodeling!

 

I have no talent with carpentry. My dads genes skipped me I guess

 

I'm glad to hear you're moving ahead, Lee. That's an investment that will be worth it, believe me.

I remember that ordeal, Todd! You were serious about being ready t o walk away. I remember how fed up you were with the whole process. You've got a gem there now, though.

When we bought the farm, we bought the land and the buildings came with it. The appraiser specifically said that the condition of the buildings was such that they did nothing to add to the value of the acreage. Every house we have ever owned has gone under the knife in one way or another while we were there. We even did one, just to flip it for a profit. It's a lot of work, but you just have to dive in and get dirty.

 

I hate doing home remodeling and repair work. But I am capable and we are tight with money so I just have to do it. I can't think of any home repair that I hired done other than hiring labor to help with the roof recently.

I wouldn't worry about the water heater too much. They aren't that expensive. The furnace though, that would worry me some. Is it a NG or LP furnace?

 

Our furnace was aprx. $2K in 1994. It would be, what, $3-4K now? Over 30 (or more) years, that's pennies a day.