Anyone else holding off on buying a home?

[Laker]

DW and I were totally ready to buy a home a year ago..we had savings and were constantly watching HGTV, attending open houses etc. Over the months, we have really cooled on home buying and instead are trying to rid ourselves of debt.

We are currently renting a 2 bed 2 bath townhouse, and are considering starting a family. We have decided that if she gets pregnant, we may just look for a bigger home to rent. The general feeling is fear towards being tied to a home that is no longer guaranteed to appreciate. Also, with the economy and uncertainty due to Obamacare, we are basically terrified to make a long term commitment.

Anyone else or people you know just give up on home ownership?

[houseelf]

OMG, Basically everyone in Cinci, which is why we can't sell our home.

[Auspicious]

Definitely have not given up on home ownership, but we are definitely holding off, renting next year even though we don't "need" to, not sure how long we'll continue to rent, proceeding with much caution regarding the commitment, only planning to buy a home we'll live in twenty years, etc.

[lovelight]

If I could go back for a redo, I would definitely hold off. We are now tied to a house, which has gone down in value since we bought it only a few years ago, and it played a big decision in where we ranked as top choices for residency. I think we may be eternal renters whenever we decide to sell this house.

[DCJenn]

So glad that the markets both in San Antonio and in DC have held up (at least in my specific locations) I would probably buy still but we already have the kid and pets thing- it's damned near impossible to find a rental that allows ONE 50 pound dog, let alone two plus three cats and a kid.

However, I have already informed my husband that once we have an empty nest, we're selling and moving to a condo- and someone else can mow the grass.

Jenn

[diggitydot]

I think I depends. Our area wasn't a part of the bubble and hasn't lost nearly as much in terms of value compared to other communities. There's a funky mix here of residents who sold homes VERY quickly (within a week or two of listing -- and in mainly our neighborhood!) and those with houses on the market f-o-r-e-v-e-r. The difference between the two groups seems to come down to location and updating fixtures/appliances/etc.

We're planning on purchasing another home for the next move in about 16 months.

[corn poffi]

Oddly enough, my BF had no intention of buying, but we got a lead on a truly amazing condo deal. It actually would end up being the same per month to pay the mortgage as paying the rent, plus he'd probably be able to sell it for at least what he paid for it. *knock on wood* It's in a prime location, and the units are lake/river view or city view. The unit he's looking into is brand spanking new. Unless something crazy happens, he SHOULD be able to sell in 5–7 years. Thanks to the bubble bursting, the initial developers dropped the project. Now it's been picked up and the new developers/investors just want to sell all the units they can. A full building of condos sold below market value is better than an empty building!

Given, it's not a house, but a condo, and the deal is ridiculously good. Like half-off. It's crazy. If we hadn't found this deal, neither of us would have ever considered buying.

Nothing is set in stone though. We're kind of in the "this must be too good to be true" stage right now. Property values in his residency city are dropping like crazy. It's a good buyer's market, but I'm still not exactly sure that buying is the best investment. I'm a rookie when it comes to all this, so we'll see what happens!

[Deebs]

If looking at a condo, make sure it's fully occupied! We know so many people who invested in condos in Chicago, only to have their associations skyrocket because of low occupancy and few units splitting maintenance costs.

[corn poffi]

If looking at a condo, make sure it's fully occupied! We know so many people who invested in condos in Chicago, only to have their associations skyrocket because of low occupancy and few units splitting maintenance costs.

Oh, we totally checked that out! Since they are really trying to sell these bad boys, they will guarantee the condo fees in the contract. I'm not sure for how long, but I'll make sure we know the exact amount of time/amount before anything is signed.

[Vishenka69]

I see why anyone would have cold feet over homeownership. Renting in our area is comparable to mortgage payments. We're planning on staying put for a while, so although the value has dipped a bit, we're not upside down and have time to recoupe.

[SoonerTexan]

I'd love to buy---we could buy a nice modest little home and pay much less than we are in rent. Perk of being in Texas, though.

[GrayMatterWife]

Anyone else or people you know just give up on home ownership?

I have absolutely zero desire to buy once we move for attendinghood. It has little to do with the economy, though. I have now owned for 7 years, and I don't particularly enjoy it. I want less maintenance, less investment, less headache. I just want a couple of years off from home owning.

[v-girl]

We bought our house in '98. While our mortgage payment has only gone up $100 since then (taxes), the value of the homes in our neighborhood went up $30K because of the rapid growth in our town. Glad we bought when we did because you can't find much with a payment less than $1K/month now. It would be hard to house a family of 5 for $950 around here now.

[rubybullet]

We own our home currently and are moving. We decided that if we tried selling it, it might sit on the market for a long time and then we would have rent in another location and a mortgage payment here. So, if someone 5 years ago told us we were going to be moving, there would have been no way that we would have bought a home. I guess it is still a good thing when it comes to write offs for taxes though! and that is what I am thankful for.

[Vanquisher]

We got such a fabulous deal on our house that it would have made no sense for us to continue to rent.

#1. We could sell our house today for a 6-figure profit.
#2. We know we will be here indefinitely.
#3. We need stability for our kids. With renting a house, I've seen lots of renters get screwed when owners stop makibg payments, and they are forced to leave.
#4. The market is at or near bottom. If you find an amazing deal in a good location, you probably won't lose money if you decide to sell in a few years. No guarantee you will make money either, but you probably won't be upside down.
#5. You can deduct mortgage interest and property taxes.

If it doesn't make sense for you to buy, it doesn't. For us, it did.


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