So nervous about buying a house

  • Thread starter Thread starter vluvski
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Before we were certain DH’s job was right for us, I was keeping an eye on prices in Augusta, GA where I worked. We could have had a brand new brick construction with a 2 car garage for 130. Housing prices are SO DEPRESSING here.

The general plan would be to spend 3k to get the trash moved out of the yard and put the kitchen sink back in the upstairs apartment for us to live in, then use my income (I’d have to get a job pronto) putting in a thousand a month to have contractors do plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and hanging cabinets. Putting up drywall, putting down floor, painting- all things I know I can handle. Thing is, if we were to be surprised with a baby, we’d have a really tough time keeping things moving. It’s kind of amusing to picture myself screwing in drywall or laying down hardwood between nursings, lol.

BTW, by high 300s I meant 350+. Houses in the neighborhood have sold between 320-380 in the last two years, and this house is on a corner lot, has a garage, partial basement, and is one of the bigger homes. I’m very confident that if I got a job in my field and if we didn’t get pregnant, we could be totally finished with renovations in under two years with at least 30% return on investment.

At that point we’d both be itching to fill the place with lots of kiddoes and have the option of moving to an area with better schools, which is out of the question right now.
 
For “normal” people, fixups take much longer than those 2-day or two-week flips you see on television.

When my wife and I bought this house we are in, all it needed was paint and wall paper on the first floor. (We had the floors professionally sanded.)

We bought all the stuff and set to work. It took longer than one weekend. We had PLANNED on one massive weekend.

By the time we got the last of the wall paper done, seven years had elapsed!!

:rolleyes:
 
vluvski said:
DH and I want to buy a house. We found one that seems to fit our needs. A fixer with a (seemingly) livable apt upstairs and gutted downstairs.
We’d wipe out half our savings on closing costs, and then there are so many unknowns about renovating a property.
We have to make a decision pretty much this week due to pressure from other potential buyers. Fervent and immediate prayers appreciated, advice or thoughts as well. I’m just so nervous!!
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This is a buyers market. Why not offer a price contingent upon the seller paying the closing costs and even the downpayment? As the buyer you have the leverage over the seller. Your only serious competition right now are investors who know that this is the best time to buy but they are interested in creative buying as well. Go for it. These things go in cycles. Right now the buyer has the edge. Since you have some resources don’t miss the opportunity. The investor won’t.

CDL
 
In my experience, if you are that unsettled about it, it is not the right decision. When you pray and seek God in decesions, the right decision comes with this amazing peace (even when it seems like the crazy choice!)

There is a common American ideal that you have not succeeded as a grown up if you do not own your own home. Remember, while owning a home is not wrong, it also does not really matter in the big scheme of things (BSOT = seeing your family, yourself, and as many other people in the world as possible in Heaven).

When it is God’s design, you will find the right house at the right price. Til then, trust and don’t be afraid!
 
Well, we might have had the decision made for us. It turns out the condition of the property makes it unsuitable for approval for a conventional loan, and we don’t have a downpayment for a construction loan. The idea was to use our cash flow to pay for repairs rather than a loan. Guess the lenders don’t like this idea.
 
vluvski said:
Well, we might have had the decision made for us. It turns out the condition of the property makes it unsuitable for approval for a conventional loan.
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Any single family home in the Baltimore area for 199K is suspicious, IMO! We’re in AA Co and prices are nuts. It is depressing compared to other areas of the country.
—KCT
 
Can you get a sellers financing? Can you rent with the option to buy at some place whether there or another house? I note that no one responded to my suggestions. I am a small time RE investor. I have some experience. You have made some obvious investigation in what you could do with the property. I’m simply offering some ways that you might finance it. You don’t have to go the conventional route.

CDL
 
Gregory,
Thanks for the suggestions. The current owner is an investor who bit off more than she could chew, so the idea of having her pay anything probably won’t work.

I did turn up one financing option that involves a no downpayment construction loan, but the payments are more than we can afford on one income. A mortgage consultant is looking into options, but is pretty doubtful. What we want to do, and pretty much what we can afford to do, is take out an 80/20 loan for the purchase price only, then use cash flow from my (projected) income to pay for renovations. That way our loan obligations are not more than we can handle if we happen to get pregnant.
 
I see what you mean. From your description it does look like a good investment but if it’s too much it will sink you. You really have thought this through and I applaud you for it.

CDL
 
We bought a fixer in the Midwest. It took us three times as long to fix as we’d estimated, and four times as much money. In the end we were so burned out that we hired professionals to finish up. Buyer beware!
 
Haha, I can feel your pain. I’m still trying to find a good apartment (of any size) for less than 1000/month. Getting out of PG county would be nice too…
KCT said:
Any single family home in the Baltimore area for 199K is suspicious, IMO! We’re in AA Co and prices are nuts. It is depressing compared to other areas of the country.
—KCT
Click to expand...
 
Could things be falling into place???

I just got a job offer for 50k/yr, and my grandfather has agreed to discuss the possibility of loaning us the downpayment to make our loan obligation managable on one salary once the work is finished.

Is this really happening?
 
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