Home
Log in / Sign Up
    Private Messages   Advanced Search   Rules   New User Guide   FAQ   Advertise   Contact Us  
Forum -> Household Management -> Finances
Seriously how do people afford buying a house?
Previous  1  2  3  4  5  Next



Post new topic   Reply to topic View latest: 24h 48h 72h

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 11:49 am
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
We originally bought in BP with a partner. So we weren't relying on a tenant to cover our mortgage, we had an equally invested partner 50/50.
It's very scary to buy with the cheshbon of having a tenant. It's a risk. Many do it anyway.

(Like I said in my previous post we've moved on to bigger and better in NJ. It's been a game changer! )


I've been a tenant of someone who clearly could not afford the bills without us. It was a nightmare for us. These owners are the ones who fight tooth and nail every time something needs to be repaired because they cant afford the repairs. I get it! I am in the middle of a repair in my house, the week before RH, and I hope it *only* costs $500. And we will feel this pinch. I know its a 'thing' in Lakewood to buy something thats way more than you can afford and count on a tenant to be able to make the rest of the money for mortgage, and I just cant understand this cheshbon.
Back to top

amother
Beige


 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 11:55 am
watergirl wrote:
I've been a tenant of someone who clearly could not afford the bills without us. It was a nightmare for us. These owners are the ones who fight tooth and nail every time something needs to be repaired because they cant afford the repairs. I get it! I am in the middle of a repair in my house, the week before RH, and I hope it *only* costs $500. And we will feel this pinch. I know its a 'thing' in Lakewood to buy something thats way more than you can afford and count on a tenant to be able to make the rest of the money for mortgage, and I just cant understand this cheshbon.


Exactly and that's why we bought with a partner (which has its own risks but their definitely more invested than a tenant).
When we moved to NJ we were adamant about only buying a 1 family that we can afford on our own. The thought of a tenant and a missed month's (or more) rent is not for us.
Back to top

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 12:01 pm
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
Exactly and that's why we bought with a partner (which has its own risks but their definitely more invested than a tenant).
When we moved to NJ we were adamant about only buying a 1 family that we can afford on our own. The thought of a tenant and a missed month's (or more) rent is not for us.

What does it mean to buy with a partner?
Back to top

amother
Beige


 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 12:06 pm
watergirl wrote:
What does it mean to buy with a partner?


We bought a 2 family and split the costs 50/50.
1 gets 1st and basement the other gets 2nd and air rights to build up.
Back to top

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 12:20 pm
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
We bought a 2 family and split the costs 50/50.
1 gets 1st and basement the other gets 2nd and air rights to build up.

I've never heard of this before. Where I live, two family houses are duplexes - side by side with a shared wall. Interesting. It would seem to me that the basement would be worth more, no? And how do you deal with this when it comes time to sell? Do you both have to sell at the same time?
Back to top

Sebastian




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 12:21 pm
watergirl wrote:
I've never heard of this before. Where I live, two family houses are duplexes - side by side with a shared wall. Interesting. It would seem to me that the basement would be worth more, no? And how do you deal with this when it comes time to sell? Do you both have to sell at the same time?


the 2nd floor is usually a little bigger than the first floor.
Back to top

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 12:33 pm
Sebastian wrote:
the 2nd floor is usually a little bigger than the first floor.

Interesting!
Back to top

amother
Beige


 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 1:12 pm
watergirl wrote:
I've never heard of this before. Where I live, two family houses are duplexes - side by side with a shared wall. Interesting. It would seem to me that the basement would be worth more, no? And how do you deal with this when it comes time to sell? Do you both have to sell at the same time?


Why would a basement be worth more? You're literally living underground. The one with air rights can build up a beautiful second floor sometimes 3rd too. These are attached houses typical Boro Park style. I think it's pretty common here to buy 2 families together since the prices are so high.

Selling is a different story. Everyone works out their own details. I know a few people that sold their share when they wanted to move on. Either to the partner or to another person.
Back to top

Teomima




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 1:14 pm
You buy what you can afford. Maybe it's smaller than you like, or in a less than ideal location. Both of those were compromises we had to make when purchasing our home. But I've never once regretted it. The mortgage is less than rent would be for our same apartment.

Don't rush, keep looking, and buy only within your means.
Back to top

Amarante




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Sep 26 2019, 1:28 pm
Buying a home with a partner is fraught with potential issues so it should only be done if you have an excellent legal document outlining every possible exigency. And even with that, what happens if the unexpected happens - one person loses income and is unable to cover costs?

I would only do it with a close family member - either a sibling or a parent/child.
Back to top

amother
Firebrick


 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 12:37 am
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
As someone who just moved away from my fully attached small house in Brooklyn I respectfully disagree.
We don't NEED but it makes a HUGE difference! It's heathy for kids to run and play and breathe fresh air. Weve all lost some weight since we moved (my teenager included) since we do so much more walking and stairs when we need to get from one end of the house to the other LOL .
It's not like you're paying cheap for a condo in Brooklyn. It's waaay cheaper to buy an older house with a huge lot in NJ than to buy a small condo in Brooklyn.


Nothing in life is black and white. Some people ended up with higher living expenses in
Monsey and Lakewood.
Back to top

amother
Firebrick


 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 12:38 am
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
We bought a 2 family and split the costs 50/50.
1 gets 1st and basement the other gets 2nd and air rights to build up.


This scenario is currently common in the Brooklyn area where I live.

Good luck with your purchase!
Back to top

amother
Peach


 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 2:14 am
I also can't get it - especially in Israel where the mandatory down payment is 30 percent not 10 like it is in the USA I believe.

I'm young and we put away as much as we can right now. We aren't sure if we will ever be able to buy a house but I hope we will.
Back to top

amother
Goldenrod


 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 7:01 am
Going anonymous so I can give some actual numbers.

People talk about buying a house like it's a decision that exists in a vacuum. I think some people think that way because they see other people basically getting gifted houses, or a least down payments. But for most of us buying a house is part of the finantial narrative of a family. It's one decision in a long line of decisions. You don't wake up one day and decide to buy a house. You make lots and lots of little choices and some big ones and eventually your able to manage it.

Here's what we did:

Never used the money we received as wedding gifts, invested it the week after we got married and earmarked it for a house. That started out at around 8k, grew a little over the years.

Lived in a tiny two-bedroom apartment with lotsa kids and saved every penny we could. We budgeted militantly. Hubby when back to school, I worked full time, the aim being that we'd eventually both be able to pull a solid income. 6 years later we are very close to achieving that goal. I make about 120k a year. My dh should pull a starting salary of 90k based on job offers he's already recived. It's not rich, but its a solid, livable income that can afford a mortgage and we're hopeful that our income with increase with time and experience.

Recieved a 20k inheritance from a grandparent, and 5k from another grandparent.

Brought an old, oddly laid out, small (1,800 square feel. Small for Lakewood, but feels huge for us and has a basement and attached garage we hope to finish one day) house that needs a lot of work for 300k. We fell in love with the bones of the house and the price tag. When we bought the house the roof leaked, many of the rooms had no electricity and the 100 year old windows made it impossible to heat in the winter, not to mention the squirrels, mice, crickets and chipmunks who were constantly attempting to make our home their home. The kitchen has one sink, one stove and an old limping fridge we adopted from our neighbor. 3 of the 5 bedrooms are tiny; they can each fit one-two beds, but that is it. For reference, 1 of the bedrooms was not even listed as such when we brought the house, it was advertised as a closet. And that's just the structural stuff. The aesthetics of the house are a whole nother story. The paint is peeling in every room. When I sweep, the dust and dirt is speckled with paint chips that are constatly drifting down to the floor. The living room has a large hole in the ceiling. We are constantly re-gluing down the tiles in the kitchen and sweeping away the ever-crumbling ancient grout. 3 of the bedrooms are not sheetrocked; the walls and ceilings are made of plain whitewashed plywood.

We've owned the house now for about 2 years and have patched the roof, wired most rooms, replaced the worst of the windows. It still needs a ton of work, but this house is going to be beautiful one day. In the meantime, we are loving the space and the quirky, haunted-house vide.

I liked what someone said on the other 'how to afford a house' thread in which the OP wanted new construction in a specific location for cheap: you can't have everything. Pick your top two priorities (price? location? whatever). Be honest with yourself about what you can afford and what it's going to take to get there and start walking down that path. From what I read here on Ima it seems that people want a 'perfect' house right NOW. Most big goals in life take a lot of time and effort to achieve. A house is no different.
Back to top

Mayflower




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 7:06 am
Teomima wrote:
You buy what you can afford. Maybe it's smaller than you like, or in a less than ideal location. Both of those were compromises we had to make when purchasing our home. But I've never once regretted it. The mortgage is less than rent would be for our same apartment.

Don't rush, keep looking, and buy only within your means.


This. We bought a small house last year (after renting for over 10 yrs). We have a lot of wealthy friends and have gotten looks when they first came to visit us in our new house ("why didn't you wait till you found something bigger?").

But we are so happy we stayed within our budget, as unexpected expenses will come up.
Back to top

Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 7:36 am
Some apartments are one million
Some houses are 200 000
Back to top

amother
Beige


 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 8:11 am
amother [ Goldenrod ] wrote:


....snip
I liked what someone said on the other 'how to afford a house' thread in which the OP wanted new construction in a specific location for cheap: you can't have everything. Pick your top two priorities (price? location? whatever). Be honest with yourself about what you can afford and what it's going to take to get there and start walking down that path. From what I read here on Ima it seems that people want a 'perfect' house right NOW. Most big goals in life take a lot of time and effort to achieve. A house is no different.


Totally agree with this. I remember when we bought our house in Bp some friends/ family would say "oh I'd never buy on that street". Or "I'd never have my bedrooms in a basement ". And many other such types of nevers.
Well guess what? These nevers is what enabled us to buy the house at a price we were able to swing.
You can't have it all! You need to make compromises.
Back to top

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 8:20 am
amother [ Beige ] wrote:
Totally agree with this. I remember when we bought our house in Bp some friends/ family would say "oh I'd never buy on that street". Or "I'd never have my bedrooms in a basement ". And many other such types of nevers.
Well guess what? These nevers is what enabled us to buy the house at a price we were able to swing.
You can't have it all! You need to make compromises.

Exactly! It was very important to us to buy for various reasons after renting since 2004. We had what we needed for a basic starter home (its a small duplex/semi detatched - whatever you want to call it) that is not on one of the blocks we wanted and not quite in the exact area we wanted. No kids on the block but very very walkable to the kids friends and BH we have kids over just about every shabbos. We also got a lot of "why did you buy THERE?". But not from our close friends and family who were just as thrilled for us as we were that we were finally able to buy and put down roots. Renting is nerve wracking! You never know when the landlord will raise the rent, decide to sell, post about you on imamother... we had enough. IYH one day we can buy something in a better area but for now, we are thrilled to have our small starter home.
Back to top

Laiya




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 8:28 am
watergirl wrote:
Exactly! It was very important to us to buy for various reasons after renting since 2004. We had what we needed for a basic starter home (its a small duplex/semi detatched - whatever you want to call it) that is not on one of the blocks we wanted and not quite in the exact area we wanted. No kids on the block but very very walkable to the kids friends and BH we have kids over just about every shabbos. We also got a lot of "why did you buy THERE?". But not from our close friends and family who were just as thrilled for us as we were that we were finally able to buy and put down roots. Renting is nerve wracking! You never know when the landlord will raise the rent, decide to sell, post about you on imamother... we had enough. IYH one day we can buy something in a better area but for now, we are thrilled to have our small starter home.


And in the meantime, you have an asset that is earning equity and iH appreciating
Back to top

watergirl




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 27 2019, 8:50 am
Laiya wrote:
And in the meantime, you have an asset that is earning equity and iH appreciating

Right So many reasons to buy if you can.

Like I said to my ex MIL (who is like a mother to me), this house is not my dream house, but it is the house of my dreams. Is it the perfect house in the perfect location for the perfect price? No way! Is it perfect for us right now? Yes! I wake up every morning and thank HKBH for this gift. Stability. Its worth everything.
Back to top
Page 2 of 5 Previous  1  2  3  4  5  Next Recent Topics




Post new topic   Reply to topic    Forum -> Household Management -> Finances

Related Topics Replies Last Post
ISO house vacation rental with indoor pool in rockland
by amother
0 Today at 8:48 am View last post
Musical people, please weigh in…am I doomed?
by amother
30 Today at 7:38 am View last post
Budget for 500k house
by amother
34 Yesterday at 11:57 am View last post
Did you deliver MM or wait for people to come to you?
by amother
39 Yesterday at 9:43 am View last post
How do people make money?
by amother
11 Yesterday at 12:35 am View last post