....and we're off...

We officially start house hunting this weekend. I've been looking online for about 6 months and we decided that since prices certainly aren't going down we'll start looking now. We don't have much saved for a Down payment so we might have to do one of those 103% mortgages or something like that if we find something right away. Ideally I think really want to find something in Sept/Oct when we will have a sizeable Down Payment but it doesn't hurt to look now.

I'm scared and I don't know why.

I think because when we got engaged I made a few calls and boom we were off planning and we set this ball in motion and on the rehearsal day I was like 'How did we get to this point?' We started the ball rolling and it became this force with a life of it's own I loved every minute of it , it was just overwhelming at times.

and I feel like house hunting just started the same way all of a sudden I made a call and boom we have a realtor and we're going to see 3 houses on sunday eek!!!!

Yup thats what happens. Danielle and I thought it would be fun to go look at a few open houses 1 month ago, and since then I would say we have looked at 20 houses or so. We actually found one we really loved in North Babylon, and we really liked the area too, but Danielle looked into the school district and found out it wasnt that great...So we passed on that house....

We went and got pre qualified this week but now we dont know if we should wait until we have a bigger down payment....It is so much money, and we still want to be able to go out to dinner and go on vacation and stuff....And our rent isnt bad at all...So maybe we shall wait.

Then I was thinking about a townhouse or a co op...but I dont know....

Good Luck on your search....It can get a bit stressful at times, but try to enjoy it. There is a house out there for you, and maybe you will find it sunday, and maybe not....I heard the average person looks at 60 houses before they actually find the perfect house for them....60 houses is crazy....

What areas are you looking in?

Scott

If you can wait a few months and build a decent sized down payment... do it.

Don't do the 103% mortgage if its not entirely necessary. Your offers will look weak to sellers cause you have no down payment. In fact I don't think any seller will want to deal with you if they can't get cash at contract (unless its a property that they are just unable to move).

Plus... you will get raped on a 103% mortgage interest rate. Like at least 6%. Maybe close to 7%.

With all that said... it still doesn't hurt to look around at houses and keep your eyes open now.

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Posted by FireIslandLove

What is a 103% mortgage? TIA!

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Its a mortgage for the full purchase price of the house (100% Loan - Value)... and the extra 3% is to cover your closing costs.

Its the true definition of a 'no money down' loan. But its usually a very unwise financial decision.

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Posted by Danielle&Scott

Someone at work is paying just the interest on her mortgage for the first 5 years...Isnt that a bad idea? She only put 5% down....and after the 5 years she is still going to have to start paying off her mortgage...Basically paying interest isnt taking care of any of her mortgage right?

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not necessarily. w/o the extra payment towards principle, you have the option of saving or investing the money. plus you still have the tax deduction benefits. HOWEVER, you can be slammed w/ a high interest rate after the initial 5 years.

w/ a fixed mortgage you pay towards the principle each month, but it is minimal.

Interest only loans are also a very bad financial decision. What if the house doesn't appreciate in value and you have to sell within a few years? Your screwed.


My opinion is... if your only choice to buy a house is either interest-only, 40yr loan, or 103% loan... you are out of your league. Buy something cheaper or don't buy at all.

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Posted by DjPiLL

Interest only loans are also a very bad financial decision. What if the house doesn't appreciate in value and you have to sell within a few years? Your screwed.

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same thing holds true no matter what loan you choose. no one wants to sell at a loss, but it CAN happen in this market. if you haven't built a reasonable amount of equity in the home (reagradless of type of loan), you will DEFEINETLY suffer. IMO, interest-only is a great alternative for many, but NOT all.

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My opinion is... if your only choice to buy a house is either interest-only, 40yr loan, or 103% loan... you are out of your league. Buy something cheaper or don't buy at all.

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i agree.

Holy Cow (trying to avoid using expletives)

I am truly stunned at the asking prices for houses in Nassau County. We saw 3 Levit houses all 360-400K for a freaking doll house! and we saw a few in Bellmore 410-485

Tiny little plots and the barely room for a dining room in little capes. Houses that need the electric updated and the roof redone. Are you kidding me? I knew prices on LI and in Nassau are inflated but I really didn't think by that much.

Before anyone suggests Suffolk, I'll just say we both currently, and even after we have kids at least one of us will be working in Manhattan and we refuse to have over an hour (hour and 15minute tops) commute.

I think this has sealed it, we are leaving. Maybe Charlotte, maybe a Boston Suburb, any other suggestions? Need high tech jobs for DH. Has to be east coast and not FL.

Such a shame that we can't stay, we both love to be around friends and family, and love our jobs, we contribute to our community in many ways, we are well educated and gainfully employed. How is it that we can't afford to stay? LI's gonna lose us and probably many like us.

ETA: Oh! and advice well taken - there is no reason we should go for the 103% mortgage or even 100% on something that isn't what we want. Between not feeling like the value is there and being worried about the real estate bubble bursting it's way too risky and stressful. We'll have a comfortable DP in the fall and we are no longer in a hurry for a house here and it will take time for us to orchestrate a move.

You only just started looking...Why dont you just give it a chance and look around. The average person looks at 60 plus houses before they actually find the house that is right for them.

Danielle and I have looked in Merrick, Bellmore, Wantagh, Levittown, Bethpage, west babylon and North Babylon. We found the house that we love in North Babylon. Out of the 25 houses that we looked at, we actually found one that has everything we want....except a garage...which can be added in the future...there is room for it.

I know Danielle and myself would not want to leave our family and friends behind....even though prices in other states may be cheaper and bigger in property, I wouldnt want to be farther away from everyone....I know there will be a lot of people here that say you should move out of NY state, but I am not one of them...

I am sure you will find a house for you...There is a house out there for you...You just have to be patient...Check out a real estate agent and have them look for you....Look on mlsli.com and all the other real estate websites....you will find something.....

Scott

Thanks Scott, we decided we will give it a shot and spend 1 weekend a month looking from now until the fall. If per chance prices start to drop we'll step up the effort. We are considering Babylon but I don't know anything about the school districts there.

I think though we've mostly decided to leave, if it's this hard for us how will our kids ever be able to do it?

I'm totally being drawn to yards measured in acreage and not feet, with taxes below $3500

It's more than just prices, we're tired of the traffic and congestion, the light pollution, taxes, and other things that I just don't think I want debate about but we can certainly live without.

Don't get me wrong, I think this is a great place to grow up and to those who have houses or plan to buy I don't think it's wrong, the schools here are unparalleled and the opportunities that Manhattan provides are incredible. It's just not worth a 1/2 million (more if you consider your payments after interest) and a 30 year struggle to us.