Well, Im preapproved so now Im shopping...

And not finding shit!

All the homes in my price range are either in shitty areas, shitty or perfect but TRAILERS!

Im getting lured by the condo bug. Its so tempting. A bit smaller than I wanted but Im finding these homes are pretty much just as small.

Homes:
http://pub.realtyweb.net/cgi-bin/vie...684000000&id=1

Condo:
http://nfl.drhorton.com/plan.aspx?planid=19542

Pros: No need to buy lawn equiptment, etc or worry about painting or fixing any of the crap that will be wrong b/c it will be brand new with warranty. They are also in a neighborhood I think is up and coming.

Cons: Association fee, about 5 minutes further of a drive, smaller, no garage

Argh

 

When we looked for our first place we found the same thing. 20+ year old homes, small, but expensive as hell.

Then we looked at condos. Nice, about the same size as some of the homes, newer, but no garage, and felt more like apartment living.

Finally we decided on a townhouse.. and got into a desirable community as they were building a new section. It was the largest thing we looked at, had a garage and private yard (although it was only like 50 feet of backyard) and was brand new.

The townhouse was a great combination of a home and a condo. It had the best of both worlds, and worked out great. Not sure if you have any townhouse style communities down there... but it may be worth a peek...

 

I'm in the same boat, SakiGT, I'm looking for a home in Orlando and everything is either out of my price range or old and in a really crappy neighborhood. I agree the problem with the townhomes are fees. Some of them are so high, i could just get a bigger mortgage and buy a better house....

 

Townhomes in my area are very expensive...at least $150,000 pre construction. I simply cant afford them right now.

The yard thing isnt an issue, and while I would prefer to have a garage I would hate playing musical chairs with cars and parking spots if one car was blocking another yadda yadda yadda.

Im looking at the condos tonight as NONE of the homes appealed to me at all. Ill definitely take pics.

 

I wish I could call 150k for a townhouse expensive That's what my sister and i bought and it's been good so far. Yardwork requires more effort (time or money) than you might think. With parking, everyhouse gets 2 spots right infront of their house, and if you have extra cars, they go in the overflow part. I don't really see people stealing each others spots.

 

I'm in the same boat as you guys, and double true to the 150,000. You can't even get something nice for double that where I am looking. I might move to alaska

 

Sounds like the condo is looking nice. Im not looking for instant gratification, I could live in a run down house, but its really hard to find roomates when for the same amount they could live in a better area.

 

Wow... I'm in the same boat as the guys above on this statement. My mortgage was more then that buy quite a bit

But I hear ya.. you have to go with what you can afford. Question though... could you not afford $150k? If you put down $30k you'd be mortaging $120k. You'd be looking at around $760/mo. Now, I don't want to get into personal finances and I'll admit I do not know what salaries in your area are... but maybe that is something you can work with.

 

i cant find much under 250k in my area....and if i put 25k-30k down, im still looking at a 225k mortgage....thats a high monthly payment.....

 

Not that I cant "afford" it...technically the guy on the Lendingtree commercial could "afford" his new Jeep, huge ass house etc.

It puts me in a not-so-comfy zone. Currently, with my salary (Lets just say Im under 25k) I can afford $125,000 on my own. Once I graduate and start making more money I can alot the extra amount to savings and 401k (which I havent done yet).

2/2 in a good neighborhood is enough for me. Less room to fill with useless shit anyways.

Edit: With taxes and insurance and my $25000 dp a $125,000 home is around $850

 

^^ True.. and you never want to get outside of the comfort zone. I just hate to see first time home buyers settle on a place. A lot of time, for a little more money they can afford a lot more... and put themselves in better position for the future.

A friend of mine was going to spend about ~$230k on a townhouse that was like 18 years old and small b/c he thought that was all he could afford. If he had done that he would have hardly made any money on the place. Instead he bought a new house for $330k... but since it was new construction and took 9 months to build, he could save up more money... so in the end his payments (I should say their b/c he's married) were the same as they would have been in the other place. Not only that, but with construction wrapping up in the community he's already made about $25k on the house and he only closed in December. If he was in the other place he would have been lucky to make that much over 10 years... not to mention the other benefits (house with land, brand new, and so on). This way, when he looks to upgrade in 5-10 years, he'll make good money and be in great shape...

 

So...I looked.

The larger 2/2 is sweet, but that goes without saying. I cant afford the extra $200 plus a month (right now) so its out.

The smaller 2/2 is very tolerable for what I get. Theres simply nothing comparable in the area. Silviagto came with me. The number of units available are dwindling and the exact unit I want is available. The woman was kinda weird but I guess I made a good impression on her b/c she told me to wait until Thursday b/c she would know if any special deals would happen on Saturday...so I wait.

Im going back with my future roomie and b/f Thursday. I may deal then. *nervous*

Smaller space = less shit. I would need a couch and breakfast table with chairs, max. Should be interesting to see how this goes...

 

Definetly look into condos, forget the house thing, you will have plenty of time to get one.

Condo dues cover home owners insurance and other maintenance items which you will have to pay if you would own a single family.

We have several developments in your area and also in Orlando Area, just need to look.

Some buildings are offering 1st with no condo fees.

 

Why not continue to rent and save more money? What is the rush to buy?

 

^^^^^ I agree. Any chance you can hang out where you are for another 6 months or so? Last thing you want to do is buy something that 1) YOU don't like and 2) that someone ELSE may not like when you go to sell in the future. You do not want to get stuck in a less than desirable place or have it be a money pit.

 

Because of this:

https://acurazine.com/forums/money-investing-17/rent-vs-own-335391/

I have to move in 6 months...either into a house or rent. Right now I make shit for money and work in the healthcare field. If I buy now I get the advantages of both...If I wait until I can afford the larger place easily it will once again be out of reach b/c of the benefits not being there. I will not get the $25,000 down payment assistance or the killer intrest rate.

Its a great place for me. The larger would be better if I had a roommate but once I switch jobs I wont even need one, really. If she wants to stay, so be it. But the smaller place I can pay for in the worst case scenario: I stay at my broke ass job and I dont get a roomate.

In the meantime, I got another listing from my realtor! Its a double-wide out in Middleburg (about 45 minutes towards Bufu, Egypt) outside of Jacksonville. AND its only 127,000

 

What other fixed expenses will there be? condo fees, electric/gas, cable, parking?
add it all up again. Then suck it up and realize that you gotta suffer now with living with a roomie for a few more years till you get established careerwise. A condo is a good investment especially at your young age.

 

No parking
Association fee is $135

But....

Just called the lady again about a car washing area (there isnt one, yet) and she told me that they are offering $3000 off on the unit I want and 6 months no fees.

Im leaving in an hour to get the rest of the info and sign a contract.

Ive also got the biggest stress headache ever.

Wish me luck

 

Good luck!!

The night before we closed on our first house in NY I was up throwing up all night. Every hour I got sick and about 4 hours in it was just bile. Yummy. I wasn't nervous, just stressed b/c the closing was delayed 3 weeks and we had to move our stuff from our apartment to my parents garage and live in our apartment for about a week with nothing in it but some pots, pans, bathroom stuff, and an air matress.. plus pay extra rent.

So a headache is nothing!

 

I just had a whole Hershey's Dark Chocolate bar. I feel 100x better.

 

What do you mean by No Parking? No reserved parking for your unit? No parking lot/spaces? The last thing you want to do when you come home late and tired is search for a parking space if the area is crowded.

If that isn't an issue then good luck

 

i think she meant no parking fee

 

Well its mine

On top of the money off and what not...

Free upgraded tile instead of the plastic crap.

And the lady liked me so she used her "discretionary" money she has to spend on a client for the month on me. I got a $1600 2 sided refrigerator for free

I am so glad this is on its way to being over with. Ive been totally stressed out for 2 weeks between this, Rachaels wedding, my graduation and my huge car show.

 

Congrats!!

Now you just need to find some poor saps to help you move

 

Very nice!! Pics??

 

Congrats that's a great deal with the fridge.

 

I am not taking pics of the model. Its all frilly and pink. Im pretty sure my camera would break from the ugliness

Buuuut. Heres the layout
http://nfl.drhorton.com/plan.aspx?PlanId=12766

And with everything my total was $121,0xx. What a steal.

House party in June!

Thanks AZ! Silviagto was like...where the hell did you learn all of this. I surprised her when I said 99% of it was here. Lots of good information for the newbs considering purchasing.

 

Nice. DR Horton builds around here too. My parents looked at some of their houses when they were hunting. Good stuff!! :

 

BTW, don't stop the negotiating... even when it comes to the options. We got about $20k worth of stuff thrown in after it was all said and done even after negotiating price. Just b/c it's new and you're not doing a "regular" person to person sale don't think you can't negotiate...

 

Oh, and lastly... what lot number will your unit be? We lived on a pond in our last community (townhouse) and it was nice. Very private....

 

Grats on your purchase, you wont regret it

 

A girl posting in Home and Garden?? :wink:

Just kidding, congratulations. Sounds like you got a great deal.

My brother is kind of in the same situation. Him and his wife are trying to decide if they want to build their "dream" house now or buy something to fix up and live in for a while, then rent it out in the future. Either way it looks like it's gonna be a tough decision and I'm gonna be doing a lot of free home improvements for him

 

This is my for the now purchase. Next will be a home for raising little monsters. My dream home is after that. If I decide I want to stay in Jacksonville Ill start looking at land in about 10 years for it.

The division is a narrow teardrop with parking on the inside and forrest all around it. I am right where the tear drop begins to widen. Second level, b/c I didnt want anyone ot be able to walk onto my balcony.

JB - Theres not much more to negotiate. I got upgraded appliances and the tile for free. The only thing I could get more would be the cabinets but frankly, I like the cheaper ones better

If anything Im going to negotiate at the Haverty's outlet store

 

Congrats, I am saddened by how nice that layout looks for 120k.

 

Really? Guess they're all done differently. We had to choose everything. Countertops, appliances, cabinets, faucets, fans, tiles for each bathroom, grout color, where we wanted hardwood floors, carpet colors, every lighting fixture, fans, cable outlets, phone outlets, high-hat (recessed) lighting, paint color and on and on and on.....

We were in the sales office for about 3 hours doing construction options, the actual design showroom for 6 hours, and the lighting place for 4.5 hours. And, from what we were told, we were fast. Many people took days to make their selections!! I guess since we just built our last place in 2003 we already knew what we wanted and what we didn't want, and just chose everything quicker.

 

Just a heads-up... get your "dream home" next. If you don't... you'll never get it. Trust me... almost everyone i know always says dream home is after the kids. Well, guess what... after you have kids, you have no life. It's all about them. And all of your money goes towards them. Then, once they start school, you'll feel horrible moving them away from the neighborhood they grew up in, or from their school district, or whatever. My parents are in their mid-50's... and they just got their dream home now... after they retired. Most of the people in the expensive houses (well, they're all expensive, but the higher end homes) in our community are over 40 years old... some older. They are empty nesters and they're just getting their dream homes now. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of families... but they bought some of the "smaller" models and they love their homes, but they were not able to buy their dream homes b/c of the kids. If you don't want a dream home until you're much older, then you'll be all set... otherwise, get what you want, get yourself settled, then move on to kids....

Use this place as a starter (and it looks like a great start)... then use that for bigger and better things.

Of course that's just my which doesn't really mean shit... but thought I'd share

 

Oh no. Everything is pre-selected. Which is fine. The only options are the appliances, tile, cabinets, and carpet (I think you can get different kinds). Less stuff for me to stress over

And your two cents about the dream house is helpful. I really want to build a Spanish-style house (with center courtyard) and in Florida Im sure it will be easier to find someone to do that.

Its just that building it would mean Id stay here until I died. And that kind of permanacy scares the crap out of me We'll see.

 

^^ hehe. I see your point. Well... either way you're off to a great start. Be sure to keep us updated on the progress

 

the best part that saki fails to mention is that its 5 minutes away from me

I went with her to look, theyre really nice.

Id love to have one of those condos.. but with two dobies, its not fair to them.. but finding a place with a decent yard is kind of hard in jax

 

Good stuff, this is the right choice right now. You don't need a house, no time for the house anyway.

You will have plenty of time to get a house and no worries, you will be able to afford it, especially in your area.

This place is an excellent size and price, only $126 per sq ft. I am paying over $200 per sq ft in Altamonte Springs outside of Orlando, so this is really good for a brand new place.

Find out what condos fee include

Also, check to see who is responsible for paying title ins and doc stamps at closing? Typically on the seller side, but in new developments some builder push it off to buyer side


Ask them in they will collect two months up front for HOA dues?

Do you have financing in place? I would not lock in yet, but do like a 90 day rate cap if the lender offers it. I do that for all my condo buyers in these developments.


Good luck, you will love it.