I'm pre-qualified for a loan. My realtor says I could be in within 30 days...with a huge mortgage. By myself. With school to pay for. I think I might throw up.

I'm skeered.

Wow, congratulations!

Have you decided to dive in? If you're unsure, take time to think about it. Don't let the realtor push you into anything you're not sure of...I found out the hard way, they only really care about making the sale!

If you really want to buy, then enjoy the tax breaks and pride of being a homeowner...it's a great investment!

Thanks, Naomi.

Just hold my hand.






(I like your new avi )

be werry werry carefwal. Don't get in over your head. Carefully check out the neighborhood and the neighbors.

Party at Heather's next month!!!

Woooo! Bring presents! I want an iPod, a new computer, some heavy duty headphones, a holster for my sabersword...



Thanks for the advice, Yoss!

Is it in M-burg area?


Don't worry Boo...I'll hold your hand

Yes, I can't afford racist ol' Hagerstown.

Thanks Boo. Hold my hair when I lose my cookies too.

...k

OMG!

LMMFWAO!!!

Don't go Heather We'll miss you here in Htown... besides you'll have to knock out half of your teeth to live WVa

Gman, I haven't lived in Htown for three years. I've been in WV since I've been on this board.

Egg on my face.. I always assumed you lived in downtown Htown.. sorry

How about come back Heather... We are the new and improved Htown

yeah, we'll even name a street after you ...

Heather Alley

If I can offer a piece of advice:

Check out rental prices in areas where you're looking to buy. The data show there's a really large spread now between mortgage payments and monthly rentals -- and renting means you're free from repair bills, roof replacements, etc. The current real estate bubble in the extended DC met only is fueling that spread.

Buying isn't all it's cracked up to be -- even with the tax deduction and the appreciation of house values. In fact, Americans probably are sub-optimally disposed to buying over renting. If you find a steal of a deal, or are a bad saver, or else are at a place in your life where you need to have a home, buying is a good thing. But if those conditions aren't attaining, don't be in a hurry to put yourself in $200k of debt.

Tom's right, Heather. And if it really is making you feel sick, maybe it isn't the right time for you.

It should make you feel happy & excited...not sick & pukey

Everyone is pulling me in conflicting directions and I don't know the first thing about real estate. I'm getting, "listen Heather, I know you and blah blah blah", then someone else says, "they are being overprotective, you can do this."

I keep going back to this: why should I toss so much out the window on rent every month when for a little more, I could buy something and have something to show for it later.

So then I look at my options...homes I can afford. It's townhouses or homes in crappy neighborhoods or fixer uppers.

I really just want a small house on a small piece of land where neighbors aren't sitting in my lap and watching my comings and goings, (and I can blast Prince and dance around without fear of people knowing ).

I hate the thought of a townhouse, but I feel like I could tolerate it in effort to be smart and invest, instead of tossing money out the window every month.

But then I think, why am I considering buying something so large and long term that I want the least?

Geeesh. Somebody make me a drink.

Edit: I meant "everyone is pulling me in conflicting directions" as in family, friends and co-workers. I hadn't meant to direct that at y'all.

I had some anxiety when we bought our home.

It seemed overwhelming--a HUGE amount of debt. (And my home was a fairly inexpensive fixer-upper...). It was an emotional thing for me.

I agree with TF: research.

Buy a few basic books, cruise some financial websites like bankrate.com, fool.com, smartmoney.com.

It's important to be informed when making this kind of big financial decision. But don't be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone, either.

Good luck!!!

real estate, in my opinion, is always a good investment.

but not if it taps you out so badly that you don't have enough money to enjoy the other things life has to offer.

if you buy this house,

will you have enough money to fix your car if it breaks down,
will you have enough money to call the plumber to unclog that sewer line,
will you have enough money to pay your car insurance,
will you have enough money to catch the latest Star Wars movie,
will you have enough money to buy that 12-pack of beer...

Finally! Someone talks about the necessities of life!

That quote just reminded me of the VW (i think) commercial with the couple dancing in their apt. and the neighbor below banging on the ceiling. Then they buy a house & a nice stereo and start dancing in their house!

ANYWAY, IMO...you're young... I think you could probably wait til you have your student loan paid down a bit, maybe you'll be getting a raise, etc., and in a year or two you may be able to find your little house instead of the townhouse.

Go with your gut feeling

I don't have student loans. I pay for school out of my pocket. I'm getting a raise in August.


That's what I've been saying for years. In two years, I'll have more money saved up and the prices will always go up just out of my reach!

::Going to find thread from two years ago when I was going to buy something then.::

Heck...go for it then!

Then you can sell it in a couple of years and buy your house with land!

Last time I tried this. I sounded the same too. Asking for someone to hold my hand. I'm such a retard.

Next time you blast Prince, turn him up loud enough that I can hear. (We Prince fans gotta stick together.)

Many people make the argument about rent vs. buy. From what I've read, if you rent and you save & invest all the additional money that you would have spent to cover your mortgage, homeowners insurance and upkeep (rule of thumb depreciation on a house is 30 yrs, I think), you would come out ahead by renting if your investment returns reflect the general market trend over the past several decades.

However, that leads to questions:

(1) Are you really that disciplined a saver? If not, consider buying.
(2) Are you financially secure enough to withstand the financial risks of homeowning (e.g., bad neighborhood, roof leak)? If not, consider renting.
(3) Do you have non-financial reasons to buy (e.g., ready to start a family; found a really great place; have decided to take up nude sunbathing)? If so, consider buying. If not, consider renting.

The good news is that it's doubtful that you would lose out, regardless of which direction you go. The key, I think, is to take appropriate actions given whatever choice you make. If you elect to keep renting, set up a good personal savings & retirement plan. If you elect to buy, become active in the homeowners association (and keep in mind that academic research indicates most homeowners associations actually harm residents' home values by overspending).

If I can offer one final piece of advice (to everyone), it's to pick up and read the book A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Princeton finance professor Burton Malkiel. It's written for "normal people" and describes how to put together a good personal savings & investment plan (including whether or not to buy a house) while avoiding the many dopey investment strategies you often hear. As Malkiel says at the beginning, he can't tell you how to get rich quick, but he can tell you how to slowly and surely build financial security. I can't recommend the book more highly....

Nude sunbathing? Better wait and get the single family home on a little land Heather!

Although I'm sure the guys in the townhouse community wouldn't mind!

uh, what was that address again?

Good luck with everything Heather! I have never been a homeowner before but I'm sure the process can be intimidating!

Nude sunbathing???? no wonder you have a stalker . how is that little perv anyway? Does he still watch you or have you shot him already?

Heather,
There's a bunch of good advice from your friends here - the first year is always the hardest. Yoss's questions are very valid, especially if you're not the handyman type and you buy a fixer-upper.

My first husband and I bought a 1-bedroom condo in 1977, and it wasn't long after that that I became pregnant, so we kept the condo and bought a townhouse.

He just sold the condo last winter, at 400% more than we paid for it. However, had it been a 2-bedroom, he'd have done much better; my advice is get at least 2 bedrooms. Some day you'll want to move up, and 1 bedrooms don't sell as quickly.

I just bought a townhouse in Hagerstown. Moved from Montgomery county talk about expensive. The prices in hagerstown seem to only be getting higher. I paid 170,000 in hagerstown which is a deal compeard to Frederick or Montgomery county believe it or not.

The neighbors aren't the greatest but not to bad. I figure the more people that buy these homes now at these prices can't be bad off so the neighbor hoods will start turning around.

Anyone know of any running trails in Hagerstown?

Welcome to the neighborhood, outsider!

Marty Snook/Halfway Park off Halfway Bl and Downsville Pike has some good trails. They used to have a circuit out there for some cross-training, not sure if it's been kept up or not. City Park on Virginia Ave., is also a pretty good place to run.

Buying a house is like having children if you wait until you can afford it you'll never do it.

Bozman, you may also try the C&O Canal in Williamsport, or the rail trail out toward Hancock if you don't mind pavement. Fairgrounds Park has a paved trail, but there isn't any shade, so it gets really hot really fast in the warm months. I've never been on the AT, so I don't know if any of it is runnable.

Heather,

My wife and I just went through this for the first time.

Remember this when purchasing. You pay for the neighboors not the house and its always better to have the smallest house in the nicest neighboorhood then having the biggest house in a crapy neighboorhood.

I'm a special ed teacher and my wife just had a baby, we are stretching too, the secret is don't stretch too much and get shady financing that sounds great now but will bite you later.. Actually my rent was 1200.00 a month for a 1 bedroom in Mont. County my mortgage for a 3 bed 1.5 bath end unit is only 15.00 dollars more.

Nude sunbathing? Who?!

He wasn't a stalker; he was a peeper. I've had the blinds pulled ever since I realized he was peepin', so I don't know he still peeps or not. Haven't heard a peep outta him.

I have a baseball bat if he decides to come over again.

No, I'm not a good handyman. That's for sure.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I don't know what I'm going to do now. I'll keep you posted.

ummm, I think he has one too...

We're in the planning stages of building our house and it's already a stress filled thing !!!

If you think buying a house is stressful wait til you get married

That's one headache that is easily avoided for me. I really don't see the sense in getting married, especially when the odds of it not working are so great. Why chance it? I'll be content just living in sin with my man. Don't need to sign anything in blood binding our souls together for eternity. Spooning with me every night is good enough.

No one should even think of marriage before 30 years old.

My new wife says husbans are like pancakes... you always have to throw the first one out.

Also check if they have an HOA and what the fees are and what the regulations are. I still own a condo in Hagerstown that I bought when I got out of college. I lived there 6 months tops. The HOA rules (that I didn't know about) were driving me crazy. Heck I don't live there and they still drive me crazy.

GMAN:


You married a very smart woman, GMAN. Listen to her, and you'll do well.

Personally, there won't be a third for me - I'll get more dogs and goats instead - less bother!

What's that? You're a Prince fan? Surely you're pulling the leg of my assless pants.

Here I go. I'm doing it. But with a house. Not a townhouse.

Wish me luck.

kewl!

Good Luck!

Check the sex offender registry...

*Fingers Crossed*

Good luck.