life help: Should I buy a house for my family? - Help.com

william.m.miller
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Should I buy a house for my family?

I will be living in this area I’m at now for almost 2 years, and then i will move again (military life), but I’m tired of paying rent, and I think buying a house would be a better idea, but like I said I will be leaving in two years, and would then have to try and sell it, or rent it out. My wife and I have already gotten approved for a home loan, but I’m still a little apprehensive on this issue. We are having a baby soon, and I need to cut down on costs, but having my own home for the baby to move into, is what we want, as I would like to build it a nursery, and everything. We are both first time home buyers, and don’t know if this is the smartest move. I can afford it though. I don’t know, maybe I’m just concerned about the amount of money involved.

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文lil_bit_shie文 offline Verified User (9 months, 1 week) Long Term User Shouts: 248 #
Gloversville, NY, US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (3 minutes after post)

the amount of money involved is your concern? well… i have to say that when i bought my house.. i was the happiest person ever… its yours.. and the money that you are paying for it.. in the end.. you own it.. rather than giving it away to someone else.. that is how i felt about it..

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william.m.miller offline Verified User (3 months, 1 week) Long Term User Shouts: 3 #
US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (4 minutes after post)

Thats how I feel as well, but I’m still a little concerned is all. I hate paying rent, it feels like I’m just throwing money away.

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bonnie offline Verified User (3 months, 1 week) Long Term User Shouts: 4 #
An Unknown Location | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (5 minutes after post)

I agree with lil bit shi.

I don’t know much about the US housing market at the moment. If it looks like a good investment go for it. There is nothing like the feeling that your home belongs to you and not a landlord.

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Help me with: Never give up hope.
文lil_bit_shie文 offline Verified User (9 months, 1 week) Long Term User Shouts: 248 #
Gloversville, NY, US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (7 minutes after post)

plus, owning your own house.. you are able to do what you want when you want.. such as building that nursery… painting and doing what ever with out having to get permission to do so.. you probably wont be in the army forever.. and will want a home to settle into once you are done… and look, it will be paid on quite a bit by that time..

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babacup offline Verified User (5 months, 2 weeks) Long Term User Shouts: 182 #
Indianapolis, IN, US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (1 hour, 44 minutes after post)

If you know you are going to be moving in two years, I do not know if it is a good idea. I have been in my house for 4yrs and am about to move. We are trying to decide to sell or rent it out. With the way the market is for sellers right now, I do not think we can make any money off of selling it. If we brake even, it will be like we were renting for these years. Only we have to go through this selling process which is stressful.

If we rent it out, we may be able to make money off of it in the future. There is a lot of risk with renting too. If something brakes, we are still responsible for fixing it. My mother rented out her house and it was destroyed. It cost her more to fix it then it the house was worth. But to keep her credit good, she felt like she had no choice but to invest the money into fixing it.

So I would only buy if you know that is where you are going to living for many of years. Since you are in the service, you can get a no money down loan. Which is awesome, but you can only do that once, so make sure it is worth the investment.

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cutepixy offline Verified User (8 months) Long Term User Shouts: 31 #
An Undisclosed Location | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (4 hours, 29 minutes after post)

ok if you have kids . i would recomend you to do it because it is good for kids to have stability in their lives . i mean i’ve moved alot and i love doing so but i’m in this psychology class and they say it is good to have stability when you have kids. but if you don’t feel ready to buy a house don’t because if you know you won’t be able to pay the bills that will really suck for you.

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Help me with: Math, how I loath thee
apollo offline Verified User (3 months, 3 weeks) Long Term User Shouts: 1 #
San Francisco, CA, US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (5 hours, 31 minutes after post)

Unless you plan on living in one place for 30 years, you’re better off renting. The break even point for buying vs. renting is just under 30 years, depending on how much extra you pay on your mortgage.

If you’re expecting to be moving on in two years, you definitely don’t want to buy. Rent a house, if you need that much space. But, you are not going to want to be at Fort Lewis because of orders, while you’re trying to sell a house in Killeen, Texas, or whatever your specifics are.

A friend of mine wrote a post called “The Real American Dream” where she breaks down the math.

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文lil_bit_shie文 offline Verified User (9 months, 1 week) Long Term User Shouts: 248 #
Gloversville, NY, US | 2 months, 4 weeks ago (10 hours, 26 minutes after post)

apollo wrote:
Unless you plan on living in one place for 30 years, you’re better off renting. The break even point for buying vs. renting is just under 30 years, depending on how much extra you pay on your mortgage.

If you’re expecting to be moving on in two years, you definitely don’t want to buy. Rent a house, if you need that much space. But, you are not going to want to be at Fort Lewis because of orders, while you’re trying to sell a house in Killeen, Texas, or whatever your specifics are.

A friend of mine wrote a post called “The Real American Dream” where she breaks down the math.

actually, you can get a mortgage for 15 years… the payments arent really all that much more each month.. and it gets paid off quicker.. that is how i did it with my house at 25 years old..

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christian_since1 offline Verified User (4 months, 2 weeks) Long Term User Shouts: 13 #
Lebanon, TN, US | 2 months, 3 weeks ago (10 hours, 56 minutes after post)

I believe it would be according to what kind of deal you can get because the first few years you are paying mostly on the interest. Of course if after two years you could not sell it you could always rent to someone…. then again I have rental properties and it can be a headache. Check the market out in your area, see how many people are trying to sell homes in the neighborhood you are thinking about buying in. Have you thought about a fixer-upper? Again in that you can get into trouble. I like you do not like to rent so I do know where you are coming from.
Another thought, if you get transfered will your family be able to come with you if not then this may be a more profitable thing to do.

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