Category: Let's talk
Good morning. I've been on the zone for a long time and my hubby and I are buying our first home. Just was curous to see how many other home owners do we have here? Did you get a condo or a single family? We chose a condo because of the features and shuttle to the metro in the DC area but I thought it would be cool to see what others chose.
Single family
Awesome. It has been a crazy experience with the looking, closing, and figuring out the condo fees and all. Thanks for your post.
Single family, or duplex.
Single family, not my first choice, but the condo/duplex market where I live just didn't impress me. The ones I looked at were way over priced in my opinion. There were issues with all the ones I looked at in the range I was willing to pay were sub-standard. Many were older and needed a lot of work or were in problem areas.
I settled on a single family in great repair near shopping, gym, public transportation, etc. for a great price.To the original poster, yes, the home hunting/buying process will make your head spin. Glad you found one you like in a great area. I like the D.C. area. Great shopping,dining, and entertainment so congradulations to you and your family.
I've purchased and lived in several homes, both condos and single family homes. If you have questions, I have experience. Good luck!
My reason for liking duplex is once you've got it repaired, you have two units.
You live in one side, rent the other side.
If you get to the point you are ready to move up, now you have two rental properties.
Most times while living in one side, your tenants pay for your place, so you can live cheaper and invest that savings.
Of course, you have to have the willingness to learn to fix things, or seek out people that do work for good prices.
I've owned several homes, and I didn't find the buying process that difficult.
More like, you have what is required. Credit, down payment, documents.
Anyone doing this in my opinion is best researching and getting all they require together before they start buying, or shopping.
All good points.
We purchased our first home 2 years ago. Actually were in a land contract for 10 years previous to this, but decided against staying as our family grew and it was getting small.
We are in ohio and in all honesty lucked up. We stumbled across a 4 bed 5 bath home with in door pool and hot tub aprrox 6 thousand square feet for 130k. While the house needed some love it was extremely livable and we were able to get many of the things that needed updated done right away. I guess the moral of my post is there are great homes that sometimes you can kind of run in to. right time right place in our case.
make sure you pay for an inspecter. its worth it
remember that your realtor is on the side of the buyer.
The funny thing is, I've been saying for most of my adult life that I would never want the responsibility of owning my own home, since even setting aside the taxes and things, if something breaks in your home it's on you to either fix it or get it fixed, not to mention the landscaping. After all it's a little hard to mow your own lawn if you can't see what you're doing. LOL. But lately I've been having a change of heart and begun to think maybe I would like to own a little house of my own, just enough room for me, a cat or two and the occasional visitor. Of course I realize that's probably just a pipe dream seeing as I'm on SSI but it's a pleasant pipe dream nevertheless.
Buy one without a lawn. Codo, townhouse.
Still have taxes, and in some cases asociationfees, but that can be avoided in the right twon house.
If the lawn was small enough, you can mo it.
Learn to fix and repair. Lots of pleasure in that really.
Yeah, I'm still trying to research the sorts of options available around here. But there might have to be a little lawn at least since my folks would be visiting and they have dogs.
Still, it does seem like an option worth looking into.
Bryan, perhaps find a job and get off SSI completely? Then reevaluate your wants.
I'm sure he'd love to, but that isn't always possible?
Houses can be purchased with social security actually depending on where you live, and what you like.
Oh, and dearest Chelsea.
Do not turn in to one of these blind folks that says, because I have a job, everyone else is just sitting on their asses?
You've not made it yet dearest, and sometimes, just maybe possible, these jobs only last for a short while, and well.
Be blessed, lucky, but don't be critical.
I absolutely hate it when people get that way when before they didn't have a pot to piss in nor a window?
Smile.
I totally agree with Wayne on this one. Most of us would be working if the opportunities were there and we had a level playing field.
I agree.
Us that have been in the workforce for years, and who've had to change jobs and such understand this, but the newbies feel just because they are in one of these training programs, and might, just might get hired, or us that work in sheltered jobs, or ones created for the blind, don't understand it seems.
Having a job, beinging able to earn your living, own a home, and such things plain feels good, but it just doesn't make you that person that is now smarter, more motivated, or whatever.
That level playing field would help, but we've got hills, bumps, and even deep holes in ours, so.
Sometimes, I don't even know if we've even got a field to play in.
Laughing.
Get a job. Sounds like the kind of thing one would judgementally shout to a slovinly forriger on the street. I can't add anymore than what has already been stated here except to express my meaningless and irrelevant disappointment.
Thank you Wayne. LOL. It's probably good that you got to that coment before I did, or I'd probably have said something stupid. I do, in fact, have a job now, albeit extremely part-time. The work is very intermittent and the pay isn't the greatest but it brings in a bit of extra cash from time to time. But it took over ten years to land what work I do have and not for lack of trying. But I think I'm going to shut up for now, at least about that particular issue.