• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

Share your first time home buying experiences

Status
Not open for further replies.
mmntech

mmntech

Lifer
So I've tentatively gotten a new job. I'll be working the news desk at a major cable station. I'm pretty excited. I'm just waiting for them to put my package together and make the official offer. This has got me thinking a lot about where I want to live once I start. So, I've decided to start saving and buy a house. Ideally I would love a small town house condo. It's just me so I don't need anything big, but I don't want a high rise apartment condo either. I grew up in a small town so I like my space. Since I'll be making roughly $40,000, I figure $250,000 is my maximum for a mortgage. Keep in mind housing is much more expensive here than in the US, and this actually isn't a lot, but enough for what I want.

I currently live with my parents. Got enough saved up in the bank and my portfolio to scrounge together a 10% down payment. Why do I want to buy instead of rent? Sure it will cost more but renting to me is throwing money out the window. With the markets what they are and the interest rates so low, it's a sound investment. I'm almost guaranteed to make some kind of return, especially if I want/need a bigger house in the future. I've already got some great financial advice from my parents. It's still a year out at least but I've gotta start planning early.

So, what's your experience with buying your first home? Any tips for me?
 
hire your own appraiser. the real estate agent is not your friend.

where in Ontario? i was in Scarborough mall this past weekend. nice place
 
I want to see the responses but am too lazy to make one of my own.

Edit: I just did respond! Yay me!

Edit #2: Holy cow, that seems like a huge loan for a $40k income. You better triple check you can afford it. Mortgage, tax, hoa fees, maintenance, etc., etc.

Edit #3: When I bought my first house I didn't realize I'd end up living there over a decade. Things I should've cared more about involved my changing needs (wife, then kids) that I didn't give any weight to at all when I bought. So either have a solid plan for moving on or consider thinking more into the future than I did.
 
Last edited:
2003 and countrywide only checked one credit agency by my request. That's when I knew the housing market was screwed

Bought a NYC condo/coop. Paid the re agent $1000 to set the deal up between me and the seller for a lower price
 
Dirigible said:
Edit #2: Holy cow, that seems like a huge loan for a $40k income. You better triple check you can afford it. Mortgage, tax, hoa fees, maintenance, etc., etc.
Click to expand...

It's par for the course up here, unfortunately. In suburban areas outside of Toronto, town houses and high rise condos generally go from $230,000 to $270,000. The rare place will go for under $200k but it's literally a crack shack or trailer. A fully detached home costs $400k. Inside the city itself, they're considerably more. My cousin paid $600k for her shoebox of a house. It's less than half the size of my parents'.

Canadian real estate is very expensive for some reason.
 
1) Went through referals and found a nice agent who's been in the business for over 30 years, in the same area. Checked out SFH and condos in desired zip code.
2) Went through referals and found finance guy who's been in the business for over 30 years, in the same area. Got lowest 30 year fixed rate.
3) Put in offer, got the inspection guy to check out what the dealio with the place and write up repair order. Submit repair order to seller's agent w/ demands. Got most of the stuff fixed, and got credit for others that didn't.
4) Entered escrow. Wrote them a big ass check. Bought insurance and stuff for the place. Waited for all papers to sign on both parties. Closed escrow.
5) Got my keys, painted and raid bomb the place, move in.

Took me about 2 months from looking to moving in. Seller's agent lives in the same condo village as me. She's a hot MILF.
 
mmntech said:
It's par for the course up here, unfortunately. In suburban areas outside of Toronto, town houses and high rise condos generally go from $230,000 to $270,000. The rare place will go for under $200k but it's literally a crack shack or trailer. A fully detached home costs $400k. Inside the city itself, they're considerably more. My cousin paid $600k for her shoebox of a house. It's less than half the size of my parents'.

Canadian real estate is very expensive for some reason.
Click to expand...

How does it compare with rental prices? Just because it's the going rate doesn't mean you can afford it. That starts you off with a pretty huge % of your income going to housing.

I bought my house in Denver, CO, for about $250K. That same house would cost probably $450K in Boulder, CO, just 35 minutes away. In fact I worked in Boulder and was very happy to commute than spend a fortune to buy a place locally.
 
250k on 40k? Who would make that type of loan? Are you putting 50% down?


BTW: Canada is where the US was in 2006. Your housing market is in an extreme bubble that is going to burst in the next 3 years. Buying now is not a good idea. Save for the next 3 years and then buy.
 
Last edited:
Unless you have a zero income tax rate and there's no property tax in Canada you can't afford a 200k piece of real estate.
edit: Also keep in mind that real estate purchases should always be judged against rent levels. One of the signs that the US was in a bubble was that the rent to price ratio deviated from historical norms.
 
40k wont be enough for 250k house unfortunately. I make over 60k and my max was 200k. I guess it could be doable, but it would be VERY tight. You have to consider all your other expenses such as utilities. City taxes alone are close to the mortgage payment, for example. Then hydro, gas is typically over 100 per month, then insurance etc... it ads up. The mortgage payment is going to be like a quarter of your actual expenses.

What I did is I went to the bank and asked for a mortgage approval. Bring a pay stub that has regular hours on it (no overtime, or any extras). They'll ask you questions and stuff and give you different mortgage options (variable, fixed, different terms etc) pick what you think is best for you. They'll tell you how much you can afford. Keep in mind that the figure they give you is somewhat optimistic. You don't want to be eating only ramen and Kraft Dinner. 😛 Need to leave some breathing room.

When you do decide on a house and then go for the mortgage, you'll then have to decide how much to put down, and can probably decide the term (I forget if that was set at the preapproval or not). The banker will suggest you the best amount. Basically find the best balance. You can put all the money you have saved up, but how much of a difference will that make on your payments compared to the minimal? So those are things you'll want to decide at that point. If you are lucky you'll get a good banker that you can deal with for the whole process. Find a good real estate agent as well, it makes life easier. Mine was great, and the whole experience was actually quite fun. He also had good tips for me about the whole process, that helped me a lot. Got a $100 gift certificate at the end too, he was a really nice guy. He was not in it only for the money.

Keep extra cash for any renovations, your furniture etc... If there's renovations that can wait, then do wait. The first year or two will be very tight. Pay off any debt that you may create such as furniture etc...

At the end it's all worth it though. Good luck!
 
Rage187 said:
250k on 40k? Who would make that type of loan? Are you putting 50% down?


BTW: Canada is where the US was in 2006. Your housing market is in an extreme bubble that is going to burst in the next 3 years. Buying now is not a good idea. Save for the next 3 years and then buy.
Click to expand...

he only has enough for 10% down for the townhouse.
 
You need to rent. $250k on $40k just isn't realistic if you plan on leading a normal life, you will be the classic definition of house poor.

I'm in the middle of buying my first house and it's been a giant pain in the ass. It's not only a foreclosure but a govt owned forclosure. Talk about having some silly hoops to jump through, it's rediculous. But for the price I'm getting it for it'll be worth it in the long run. 3.5% fixed for 15 years is nice too.
 
is that 40k take home net pay or your gross pay? Big difference in which it is.

Just for reference i got a 220k home with zero down (FDA loan...bought points instead, save more in long run) and with insurance and taxes its ~1305 a month.

Like other have said make sure YOU add in the cost of things like electric, gas, water, garbage, internet. I know when i was going for my mortgage they didnt even care about those costs but rather just the mortgage+insurance+taxes.

Also of note is just to realize just moving in is going to cost you money. Things like having the carpet cleaned while the house is empty is nice but still an extra 100-200 bucks. I know when i moved in i probably spent close to 1k just on cleaning and buying things to stock the house up a bit. i actually spent more but cause i wanted all new dishes/cooking stuff and things like that. Actual like move in needed things i was closer to 1k.


I guess im just saying...just cause you have say 20k saved for a house you gotta realize a good 2-3k of it is going to be needed for misc things like appraisals, inspections, and then some just to move in for.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top