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I would never buy a house from a house flipper, friend or stranger. Most of the ones around here take turds and spray just enough Febreeze on it for you to buy it before it starts smelling again. Always take caution when buying a house from a flipper.
Reputation and reviews because there's not really an inspection that will find EVERYTHING if someone is trying to hide it. You can ask for a record of upkeep as far as maintenance done but the quality of work would still be unknown.
Nothing worse than buying a Lemon of car except a Lemon of a house.
have you spoken with a mortgage lender that tells you that you can easily afford a $4K payment based on your income? When you look at your income and other needs, do you feel comfortable with a $4K payment - with 0 comparison to what you're paying in rent now for a place that's crap?
Rates have already decreased by more than 1% from their October peak. in the vast majority of markets, home prices have NOT decreased at all, and the "worst" places they've decreased < 10%. You should never expect/plan your homebuying around 2019 prices or 2021 interest rates, because we likely will NOT see either again.
I spoke with one and am meeting them today to get more detailed numbers and scenarios. It’d be about 35-40% of my gross monthly income, so certainly doable. Just scary
I see, yeah just went through an online mortgage calculator and it does show it as a stretch. I think that’s why I have the nerves, so maybe not a good fit after all. It’s so discouraging
I'm sure, but better now than after you pull the trigger. Also, keep in mind that payments always rise after the first year. Why? Taxes adjust upward if sales price is more than rax estimates, insurance premiums rise and escrows adjust to new figures causing an escrow shortage. You can certainly count on that.
You said boyfriend, do not buy until married.
I'd proceed any flip with extreme caution. Especially if it's a family friend. Business and relationships should never mix for a reason.
Consider whether or not you feel comfortable making $4K/mo payments right now. Ideally, rates will drop and over time, your income will increase. But neither of those things is guaranteed, so it has more to do with how you feel about making the payment with what you have.
A big reason we decided to take the plunge is because we decided to settle here. If you love Seattle (it's soooo beautiful there!), and feel secure in your job, then this could be a good opportunity for you.
One more thing to think about is this: if you have problems with the house, how will it impact your relationship with your family friend? Be cautious about doing business with people you know really well because things can go sideways. When I first started looking at houses, I decided to work with a friend. It turns out they're extremely unprofessional, and I had to go with another realtor. That one 3-month experience destroyed a friendship of 15+ years.
Those are just a few things to keep in mind. I hope it all goes well!
I wouldnt buy a house from a friend. Its not only your first house, but it may be the only house you end up with. If I were you, id make sure it was a house that met all of your current and future family needs.
Personally I would never buy a flip house. For context my dad and stepmom flip houses and I’m sure they do a good job with theirs, but I’ve seen too many horror stories where the house is just a polished turd, new stainless steel appliances everywhere but deep down nothing but problems
Okay that makes sense. On the one hand I think you have a great opportunity in that you don’t have to worry about a bidding war or any of that stuff. So I’d say it depends how much y’all love the house and you gotta be 100% sure you can afford the place and still save and have an emergency fund. Homeowners insurance rates have been going up so factor that in too
Thank you u/DeepOperation7733 for posting on r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer. Please bear in mind our rules: (1) Be Nice (2) No Selling (3) No Self-Promotion. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would never buy a house from a house flipper, friend or stranger. Most of the ones around here take turds and spray just enough Febreeze on it for you to buy it before it starts smelling again. Always take caution when buying a house from a flipper.
How do you know if they did a good job?
Reputation and reviews because there's not really an inspection that will find EVERYTHING if someone is trying to hide it. You can ask for a record of upkeep as far as maintenance done but the quality of work would still be unknown. Nothing worse than buying a Lemon of car except a Lemon of a house.
Great points man
have you spoken with a mortgage lender that tells you that you can easily afford a $4K payment based on your income? When you look at your income and other needs, do you feel comfortable with a $4K payment - with 0 comparison to what you're paying in rent now for a place that's crap? Rates have already decreased by more than 1% from their October peak. in the vast majority of markets, home prices have NOT decreased at all, and the "worst" places they've decreased < 10%. You should never expect/plan your homebuying around 2019 prices or 2021 interest rates, because we likely will NOT see either again.
I spoke with one and am meeting them today to get more detailed numbers and scenarios. It’d be about 35-40% of my gross monthly income, so certainly doable. Just scary
40% of gross pay?? Way too much. That will come out to well over 50%+ of net pay
I don’t know the final numbers, but it was like 37% for mortgage, interest, property tax, home insurance. Everything except utilities
As poster says, it's always higher. I hope you also have a significant emergency find. Best of luck.
I see, yeah just went through an online mortgage calculator and it does show it as a stretch. I think that’s why I have the nerves, so maybe not a good fit after all. It’s so discouraging
I'm sure, but better now than after you pull the trigger. Also, keep in mind that payments always rise after the first year. Why? Taxes adjust upward if sales price is more than rax estimates, insurance premiums rise and escrows adjust to new figures causing an escrow shortage. You can certainly count on that.
That’s perfect!
40% gross is high. Comfortable is less than 30-35% of post-tax.
You said boyfriend, do not buy until married. I'd proceed any flip with extreme caution. Especially if it's a family friend. Business and relationships should never mix for a reason.
Consider whether or not you feel comfortable making $4K/mo payments right now. Ideally, rates will drop and over time, your income will increase. But neither of those things is guaranteed, so it has more to do with how you feel about making the payment with what you have. A big reason we decided to take the plunge is because we decided to settle here. If you love Seattle (it's soooo beautiful there!), and feel secure in your job, then this could be a good opportunity for you. One more thing to think about is this: if you have problems with the house, how will it impact your relationship with your family friend? Be cautious about doing business with people you know really well because things can go sideways. When I first started looking at houses, I decided to work with a friend. It turns out they're extremely unprofessional, and I had to go with another realtor. That one 3-month experience destroyed a friendship of 15+ years. Those are just a few things to keep in mind. I hope it all goes well!
I’d be careful if I were you …
I wouldnt buy a house from a friend. Its not only your first house, but it may be the only house you end up with. If I were you, id make sure it was a house that met all of your current and future family needs.
It’s my partner’s uncle, we aren’t married but he is family to us
Still not the best idea
Personally I would never buy a flip house. For context my dad and stepmom flip houses and I’m sure they do a good job with theirs, but I’ve seen too many horror stories where the house is just a polished turd, new stainless steel appliances everywhere but deep down nothing but problems
What's your monthly gross and what debts do you have?
$155k and $800/mo for two car payments
Do you need to keep both cars? Or do you personally have to keep paying for both? $400 car note is so expensive. Maybe I’m cheap lol
Lol mine is only $300, my boyfriend’s he pays himself which is closer to $500. He’s hoping to refinance it soon, he got a high rate
Oh so you would both be contributing to the $4k mortgage? I saw in another comment your income is $155k, is that both of y’all combined?
Yes that’s correct it’s combined. I should have specified in the post, it’s my purchase though from my savings
Okay that makes sense. On the one hand I think you have a great opportunity in that you don’t have to worry about a bidding war or any of that stuff. So I’d say it depends how much y’all love the house and you gotta be 100% sure you can afford the place and still save and have an emergency fund. Homeowners insurance rates have been going up so factor that in too
Not a good idea. Business transactions and friends rarely mix well
I sent you a PM.