Time to move
02-19-2009, 12:18 PM
#1
Needs to clean up
Thread Starter
Time to move
We are planning on moving to a different township, mostly due to better schools. However while I was looking for a place to rent I found that there are no propesionally managed Apartment complex. The rentals available are private folks renting out their Condos (some of which were intiatly Apartments and later sold on converted to condo).
While checking the Rental price of those condos, I checked upon the selling price and found that the Rent & PITI are almost the same.
So we endedup asking ourself the classic question of Rent vs Buy.
We had planned to buy our first house in about 3 years, so changing the timing of the Buy is something I am not fully prepared for. So help me rationalize my steps a bit.
Although I should easily prequalify for a significant amount of money, I do not have a lot of cash to do 10% money down. I am guessing the first time home buyer programs will allow me to get away with no money down plus I can roll in the closing costinto the load. I want to spend something more inline with my rent figures. The reason being we have some debts that I want to work out towards eliminating over the next 3 - 5 years...
Since this came up so suddenly, I am trying to compose a task list so help me out.
1) Find an Agent : Should I go to the bigs guys (Century21, Pruendential, Coldwellbankers) or a small agent. What are the benefits of one over the other.
2) Find a lender : Should I go to the Banks directly or work with the Agent to find a lender. Are there any lenders whom I should research who will be benefitial to for a first Time buyer.
3) Review Houses : Over the past 48 hours I have searched the MLS and other search available online and found Condo that are within my price and requirement. Should I ask the Agent to show me those first or whould he be able get more listings than seen through various online sites. I am open to short sale too..
Any things after this is irrelevant but just wanted to mention incase I missed anything
4) Make offer
5) Counter offer or Approval
6) Closing
7) Movein
All help & directions appreciated.
While checking the Rental price of those condos, I checked upon the selling price and found that the Rent & PITI are almost the same.
So we endedup asking ourself the classic question of Rent vs Buy.
We had planned to buy our first house in about 3 years, so changing the timing of the Buy is something I am not fully prepared for. So help me rationalize my steps a bit.
Although I should easily prequalify for a significant amount of money, I do not have a lot of cash to do 10% money down. I am guessing the first time home buyer programs will allow me to get away with no money down plus I can roll in the closing costinto the load. I want to spend something more inline with my rent figures. The reason being we have some debts that I want to work out towards eliminating over the next 3 - 5 years...
Since this came up so suddenly, I am trying to compose a task list so help me out.
1) Find an Agent : Should I go to the bigs guys (Century21, Pruendential, Coldwellbankers) or a small agent. What are the benefits of one over the other.
2) Find a lender : Should I go to the Banks directly or work with the Agent to find a lender. Are there any lenders whom I should research who will be benefitial to for a first Time buyer.
3) Review Houses : Over the past 48 hours I have searched the MLS and other search available online and found Condo that are within my price and requirement. Should I ask the Agent to show me those first or whould he be able get more listings than seen through various online sites. I am open to short sale too..
Any things after this is irrelevant but just wanted to mention incase I missed anything
4) Make offer
5) Counter offer or Approval
6) Closing
7) Movein
All help & directions appreciated.
02-19-2009, 02:46 PM
#2
is learning to moonwalk i
The first thing you need to do is slow down. Loans are not as easy to get as they were a couple of years ago and with no money down, you are going to have a very tough time finding one. I could be wrong, but I think you will need at least 3.5% down to qualify for an FHA loan. Closing costs will need to be paid by someone - you can ask the seller to contribute some money depending on the loan program. Also, depending on what profession you and your wife are in, you may qualify for special programs. In California, there is a teachers program. Not sure where you are or what they may offer.
Check your credit. Add up all of your debt and calculate how much that debt is as a percentage of your income.
Don't forget about things like PMI, insurance, HOA fees, property taxes. Those are things that aren't usually included when people compare rent vs purchase prices.
Once you get all of that taken care of and if you are still interested in purchasing, go to a few open houses in the area you are interested in. Talk with the agents showing the perperties. IMHO, that is the best way to find an agent you like. Cold calling from the phone book is a crap shoot. A good agent should also be able to give you some guidance on finding a loan. Typically, you will get more options and flexibility by going through a broker and often get better rates than going to the banks directly.
I don't mean to take the wind out of your sails, but just want you to be more prepared and realistic. Good luck and keep us posted.
Check your credit. Add up all of your debt and calculate how much that debt is as a percentage of your income.
Don't forget about things like PMI, insurance, HOA fees, property taxes. Those are things that aren't usually included when people compare rent vs purchase prices.
Once you get all of that taken care of and if you are still interested in purchasing, go to a few open houses in the area you are interested in. Talk with the agents showing the perperties. IMHO, that is the best way to find an agent you like. Cold calling from the phone book is a crap shoot. A good agent should also be able to give you some guidance on finding a loan. Typically, you will get more options and flexibility by going through a broker and often get better rates than going to the banks directly.
I don't mean to take the wind out of your sails, but just want you to be more prepared and realistic. Good luck and keep us posted.
02-20-2009, 12:32 PM
#3
Needs to clean up
Thread Starter
Moeronn, Your comments are very welcome. You are talking absolute sense. This thing has caught me by surprise, but I definitely do not want to bite more than I can chew.
As for Monthly outlay and We have taken our rent and reverse engineered into how much offers we should put. I have taken the following into consideration Principal, Interest, PMI, Property Tax, Homeowner/Condo Insurance, Condo fees
Also since the Condo fees are around $170 - $200 we are also looking at SFH which are around $25K - $35K more as that would in effect make for the same monthly commitments.
If all else fails I won't feel bad as I originally didn't plan to buy a house until a few more years.
As for Monthly outlay and We have taken our rent and reverse engineered into how much offers we should put. I have taken the following into consideration Principal, Interest, PMI, Property Tax, Homeowner/Condo Insurance, Condo fees
Also since the Condo fees are around $170 - $200 we are also looking at SFH which are around $25K - $35K more as that would in effect make for the same monthly commitments.
If all else fails I won't feel bad as I originally didn't plan to buy a house until a few more years.
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