home ownership thoughts
I go back and forth about my living situation. Right now, I live with my parents in a nice house. I have my own room and bathroom. I usually don’t buy the groceries, and I don’t pay for utilities.
All told, the savings is pretty remarkable.
Then again, I’m just investing that would-be rent/mortgage money in the stock market, which arguably may or may not offer a better return than home ownership would. Every now and then, I start looking around at real estate. It’s become one of those down-time habits: check Facebook, look at my bloglines, hop online for new property listings. One particular house is quite nice. It’s a little out of my immediate budget and likely won’t be for sale next year when I could more seriously consider it. However, it’s fun to dream.
Out of curiosity, here’s a poll: how old were you when you bought your first home, and what did it cost?
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8 Responses to “home ownership thoughts”
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I just bought my first home earlier this year, and I’m 41. The house was $107,000.
I was 26 when I “ordered” it, but I didn’t move in till I was 27. It was 192,000 after all the upgrades and that sort of thing. I’m thinking of selling it now (about 5 years later) and I’m guessing I’d get 290,000-310,000 for it, so as an investment it’s been great - but prices for all other real estate have gone up too, so it’s not like I’ll be able to find much for under 200k again.
I’m mostly thinking of selling it so I can travel for a few months and not have to worry about paying for a trip *and* paying my mortgage as well. Home ownership sure beats renting in my mind, but if you’re living rent-free (or close to it) at home, and have any aspirations to do some travelling, or even live in another city for a while, you might be better off waiting till you accomplish that before settling down.
I want to buy a place, but the prices for a 2Bd/2Bath ranges from $320,000 (low-end) to $500,000+ (luxury condos). I’m 22 right now, and would love to be in a position to buy a place before I’m 28. Or maybe even sooner if I can swing it.
I’m 24 now and almost bought a condo last year (when I was 23). We’re talking I was to the point of having a mortgage approval and everything. The price was I believe $325,000 after some discounts I got for the fact that I already lived there (my apartment building was converting to condos). The full price was $345,000. I’m glad I didn’t do it then, because it’s probably worth $290,000-$305,000 now. The new area that I’m living in is more pricey ($400,000+ for condos like the one I almost bought) and I’m thinking about going back to school, so I’m now looking to buy in 2010 when I’m 27 if I don’t go back to school. I’m not sure what exactly will happen on the home ownership front if I do go back. Now for the sticker shock… all prices above are for small to medium sized 1-bedroom condos in the suburbs. If I wanted to live in the city (which I sort of do), I’d have to pony up another $200,000.
I bought 14 months ago at age 22. The ONLY reason I was able to do this is my boyfriend had been out of school for two and a half years and ponied up for downpayment/closing costs. Our condo cost $142,000, which is really expensive for Kansas City :-).
Too bad I don’t plan on living in the midwest too much longer. At least I’ll have a nice rental property and a reason to come back occaisionally.
At age 28 I bought an ancient (1729!) house in a Boston suburb for $205K. The first night in the place I had major buyer’s remorse and told my boyfriend I wouldn’t live in the house for more than 2 years. And now, 10 years later, I still own it and, even with the drop in house prices, it would sell for more than twice what I paid, so I guess it was a good deal money-wise, but it’s still been a ton of work to maintain.
My fiance and I purchased our condo this year (it is actually in Downers Grove, small world huh?). But I didn’t move there yet, not until our wedding next April. It is a 2 bed, 2 bath with attached garage for $155k. The garage is a good selling point someday since only 2/3 of the units came with a garage space.
Oh, I’m 26 and my fiance is 27.