LS-ONE_DAY

Posted this in racer's lounge but figured I could post it here as well so that people familiar with the areas I'm looking at and concerned with could provide more insight.

I'm beginning to look at buying my first home. I think renting is dumb, it's really just flushing my money away in my opinion. I'm 23 living at home with my parents but I want to move out within the next 6-12 months. With the job I have right now my father said I should be able to afford something up to $320,000. I don't want to risk getting something that expensive because I'm also hoping to get married within the next 2 years and having all the other expenses of life that could get dicey. I'm looking at something between $135,000-$250,000, pretty big range I know, but home values drastically change in my area depending on county (I'm looking at 3-4 different counties, all pretty close to each other though). I've found several that aren't necessarily the most appealing looking on the outside in terms of color/design but interior wise they are really nice, pretty much all hardwood with newer kitchens and a garage is a must, 1 car minimum but I'd prefer 2-3, I know 3 is pushing it. Also, a big thing for me is the neighborhood, I want to live somewhere that I don't have to constantly be on my guard and that it's fairly well kept. A major point is that I work at a defense contractor and job security isn't what it used to be so I'm a little nervous about that but trying not to worry about it much. What I'm looking for is some advice in general about home buying from you more experienced members, from financial advice (I'd probably go through my credit union for financing), home inspections, common things to look out for, etc.

Currently I live in Westminster, MD, and I work in Columbia, MD, about 38 miles from my house, looking to move a little closer, in the Mt. Airy, Woodbine, Sykesville/Eldersburg, Baltimore county areas (found some in Windsor Mill and southern Pikesville).

1BDHWK

iTrader: (18)

My suggestion......Don't do it!

I own a home here in MD. It's expensive. This state taxes the **** out of home owners. I should have just rented.

If you lose your job, then what. You forclose, and are eph'd if you want to buy down the road.

If the value of the home drops (99% chance it will) you will be stuck with it unless you have the cash in hand to sell it. Or you are stuck short selling, and that will hurt your credit also. Home buying is just not what it used to be.

On a side note...I also own a home in FL. And I'm sure you saw home values there plummet. So, I own a home in FL because of the value, not because I want to.

CamaroRacing12

iTrader: (5)

subscribed... looking to do the same thing. im 24 and living at home currently. Looking to get married within 2 years as well. Have a steady job and make $55k - $65k per year. In Northeastern Mass. Plan on renting a room to my old college roomate if i do buy.

jetaws6

iTrader: (3)

Taxs vary a lot through the states though. Maryland all around is one of the most expensive in the US. Advice for md would be different for mass.

Biggest piece of advice. Live below your means. If 300k is your max buy something at 250k

LS-ONE_DAY

Yup I already planned that much. I would never jump to a maximum number.

deft

iTrader: (7)

Get a good real estate agent. Good ones help out lots and make the process smooth. A bad one can make the process much much worse.

We ended up dropping the initial agent we worked with because she laughed at us attempting to low ball on a house. The one we went with ended up working for us to get a lower price. Also you can tell your agent exactly what you told us that you want and generate a list of homes that fit that...they have the same access to information you do but their systems are a little bit easier to use.

Take your time and visit each house, some people go home shopping for a year before they make an offer on anything. Again if your agent is worth it, they will also be patient.

I bought a house that really didn't need any work, and I don't regret it. A few years in and we may have only spent $600 to fix up small things here and there. Depending on what you find, you can skip the home warranty. We ran the numbers and realized it was kind of a rip off for us.

LS-ONE_DAY

Thanks, I have a guy at my church I'm friends with that is a real estate agent, that would probably be a good place to start. I'd like a place that doesn't need much work, the places I'm looking at from pictures appear to be in great shape on the inside and moderate to nice on the outside, of course pictures can be deceiving, I'd be mostly concerned with poor foundation, electrical, plumbing, insulation, and mold. I think those are most of the costliest repairs.

C5kid

iTrader: (12)

Look at EVERYTHING in the house. Wife's friend recently bought a house, only to find the radiators only heat half the house (oil furnace, w/ radiators), central air ducts had mold (est. 3-4k repair) and a few other things needed repair. So get a good home inspector, and pay close attention to what he does and looks at in the house. Don't be afraid to have him look closer or ask alot of questions. I wasn't suppose to go on the roof w/ my guy, but I said too bad, if I'm goin to buy this place I wanna see EVERYTHING!

Don't strap yourself on the payment. If I took a loan out for what the bank said I was approved for I would be a F'N retard!!! That is how the country go into the mess it is. Have plenty to plunk down, you can avoid PMI points (it's insurance that you can make the payments?!? mind blowing, they charge you more to make sure you can pay it.....) The wife and I were patient, had lots stuffed away and dealt w/ a small town bank that we had been with forever. So the bank knew who we were, knew we were good and both of us had excellent credit. The real estate agent insisted we go to "their" guy for the best loan. I already knew I was approved through my bank, but played along. I about pissed myself laughing after "their" bank gave us the rates and terms. He said I wouldn't find anything better, I said sure.... Shop around, up here in PA, PSECU has some killer rates still going. But I think you have to be a PA resident

Do bi-weekly payments if you can. You can knock a few years off your loan if you have a steady income and can manage your money to make a payment every two weeks. You end up making like 2 extra payments a year doing it that way.

Have money set aside for an emergency!! It was no one's fault, but about 6months after moving in the well pump gave out at my house... Guess what, there is a min of $600-700 to do it yourself. It wasn't worth turning into the insurance because we have a $500 deduct and it was the middle of Feb, we had to get it fixed ASAP!!!

Don't be scared to put up a fight, I haggled over who paid for the home inspection and sewer check (we have a septic system and I wanted it checked & cleaned out before we settled) The one thing I still laugh about to this day is at the closing the real estate said "I have a question and pleased don't be offend, are you two jewish? Cause I've never seen anyone haggle like you's two" I laughed and said no, but I wasn't going to pay anymore then I had to.

TNTramair

iTrader: (15)

1) hire a home inspector for any house you're seriously considering.
2) shop around for the best rate...someone will allways do better, you just need to search.
3) have some money saved up for an emergency..but if you get a good home inspector from the get go, he should catch any potential future emergencies.

everyone else pretty much summed it up and C5kid makes some good points!

whitew01ws6

iTrader: (12)

Begum in Westminster and my mom is a real-estate agent

whitew01ws6

iTrader: (12)

Begum ??? Stupid iPad

stevo92z28

iTrader: (22)

C5Kid pretty much summed it up.

Home inspection and make sure it's a good one. I paid $400 i think for it and the guy spent at least couple hours with me. I wanted to be there to learn and understand. I climb on roofs for a living so naturally i wanted to go up but i also have a crawlspace and i'm a super pansy of those big spider crickets so i didn't go under. I had trash literally beer cans, barbed wire fence??, other ancient junk that all had to be cleaned out. Also a lot of moisture from lack of gutters and such. I really came out well on my house i feel. My only requirement was a garage. I ended up with almost a 1/4 acre lot, cape cod with a massive 3+ car detached garage with plenty of ceiling height for a lift. 4BR just 1 bath! lol

The other thing was i was approved up to a 275k loan or so...i settled for a 130k house. Not a chance in hell i was about to spend what they "told" me i could afford.

Save, save, and keep saving. I went with a FHA loan which was only 3.5% down but there is so many little things your house will need most likely.

MD has super high taxes, i looked into PG county which was full of cheap houses...for a reason it's pretty ghetto. I ended up moving to Prince William county in VA and was a much better choice.

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

I was approved for a $198k mortgage when I was only making 51 a year. I knew better and bought a short sale in Waldorf md, in Charles county for $149k. It's 45-55 minutes to Columbia, where my office is, but I leave at 5:20 am and take route 5 to the beltway. My house was a basket case, and I did EVERYTHING myself. I've put probably $15 grand into it, and some of that work would not have been needed if I had not been a TOTAL ******* NEWB and let my real estate agent recommend his friend for the inspection, but I was in a new place with no family around to help. I've done floors everywhere, paint everywhere, all new trim, gutted and redid the bathroom, new countertops, all new electrical, plumbing etc. I think that's the only way to do a house right now in this economy, put sweat equity into it and turn a profit.

BTW, even making over double what I was making when I was quoted that mortgage, we are by no means rolling in it. Houses are EXPENSIVE, between repairs and furnishing an entire house, plus being a 23-26 year old and going out and having a life... **** isn't as easy as your parents and tv and old people tell you. Unless you are making $125 plus, with no student loans, stick below $230 if you want to have a life.

CamaroRacing12

iTrader: (5)

wait you make $110k a year and struggle? That doesn't seem right.

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

Mortgage and all normal bills that are associated with being on your own like cable, cell phone with data, garbage, water, electric, natural gas, car insurance come out to around $2000 a month. Add in student loans and a used car payment, and if I was only making 60k a year, or $1500 a paycheck, I would have no money left over. My mortgage is $1122 a month with 4.75% loan for $147k and I pay $1200 to be equivalent to bi weekly. I will add that the renovations plus paying for a wedding add to the financial burden, and both of you are talking about getting married. And Tony, I'm sure your Italian family is huge and New England weddings are EXPENSIVE.

stevo92z28

iTrader: (22)

The bills just keep on rolling...which is why I'm rolling in an fbody and not a vette lol. I was single and 23 when I purchased my house and make less then the guy above me. It's hard and had to cut back on a lot of my hobbies. I'm just now starting to get back to where I was few years ago...comfortable.

BLK02WS6

iTrader: (2)

All of the above are good points! I would add to hire your own home inspector - don't let your real estate agent "get" you one... They often suggest inspectors that they are "in bed with" to get the inspection done quick and dirty - learned that lesson the hard way and found out about the problems too late to do anything about it...

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

^^^^ that's EXACTLY what happened to me

CTSVBiggie

iTrader: (1)

Home prices in MD are insane. Pick an area that didnt blow up too much and especially in an area that has recently declined too much.

When I bought, we picked our area based on our commute to work(8miles) and it was a area that didnt decline much after thehousing bubble died.

LS-ONE_DAY

That's the problem I work in Howard County in Columbia, Howard County is expensive as hell. I like Carroll but it is a little high also.