OT - Buying a House

[UConnMike04]

I agree about going the condo route. I bought my one bedroom condo in ‘09 (Norwalk), moved in with my then fiancé (now wife) in 2015 and rented it to a little old lady (who was bat crazy, but kept it up and paid on time) for two years.

Sold it in July this past year, took a hit, but the $500 profit I was banking a month off of her made up the $8K I lost on the sale price (actually ended up $4K ahead bc I banked $12k off of her bc the place was fully renovated before she moved in so very little was needed when she lived there), and then my wife and I bought our first house in Monroe in Sept, and the sale of the condo allowed me to do all of the renovations needed while we stayed in our apartment.

Only part that sucked was my condo was too small for two people, so we rented after we got engaged in an Avalon (never again).

That’s being said, you’ll get more bang for your buck as a first time buyer with a condo at that price range. Also it will most likely need less work, and it’ll allow you to learn how to be a homeowner with a lot of the major issues not a concern (roof, property, etc). You will learn though how to manage inside issues (electric, plumbing, etc). Then when you are older, you can upgrade to a house and either rent your place or sell it.

Worked great for me, and while I love my house, I miss the convenience of my condo and the comfort of it.

 

[Samoo]

@Deepster

Goal is to stay there for 4-5 years minimum. The hard part is finding a house that needs a little bit of work (floors, paint, roof), but not too much to where they price it outrageously high.

Remember, you're not staying in it for life and will be moving again in your early thirties. worry about the potential value of the house rather personal amenities; leave that for the next one. And buy the cheapest house on the block, not the most expensive.

 

[Samoo]

After reading through all of these posts, it makes me glad that I moved to Indiana back in 05. Granted I'm from Waterbury and that is a crap fest in terms of taxes, but seeing how much a house costs back in CT through this thread is ridiculous. I don't know how you all can afford those prices along with taxes and upkeep and everything else that goes a long with owning a home. My home is 3200sq ft 4 bed, 2.5 bath on an acre and bought for $130. Glad I don't live there anymore.

Haha, I bought a $180K former crack house in NE Portland OR back in 2001; now I got me a half million dollar + house with only $60K additional invested in it. 1400 sf with only a bath and a half. 7 years into a 10 year refinanced mortgage - dumb Californians will pay almost anything.

 

[nadav]

Condo is a definitely something you must consider. If you aren't thinking schools or kids and it sounds like you aren't, why not get a condo in Middletown or Cromwell? Westlake, Cromwell Hills. You can easily rent it out in 5 years or sell it. I'm in Seattle, dealing with unruly neighbors like FriarJ, but those are my two cents.

 

[Deepster]

Condo is a definitely something you must consider. If you aren't thinking schools or kids and it sounds like you aren't, why not get a condo in Middletown or Cromwell? Westlake, Cromwell Hills. You can easily rent it out in 5 years or sell it. I'm in Seattle, dealing with unruly neighbors like FriarJ, but those are my two cents.

Not sure I agree with that part.

 

[auror]

Remember, you're not staying in it for life and will be moving again in your early thirties. worry about the potential value of the house rather personal amenities; leave that for the next one. And buy the cheapest house on the block, not the most expensive.

Similar to when ordering wine by the glass, go for the 2nd cheapest house on the block.

 

[nadav]

Not sure I agree with that part.

I should have noted that I'm talking out my arse...but from afar.

 

[ctchamps]

I mean simply through attrition the sticks look inviting in certain spots. But I cant live among all the reds. Cant do it.

Click this link. It shows town by town the percentage of voting for candidates. Looks like Salisbury, Sharon, Kent, Canaan, and Cornwall have sticks you can live with. Windham in the east or head to the southeast shore.

Connecticut Election Results 2016

 

[August_West]

Click this link. It shows town by town the percentage of voting for candidates. Looks like Salisbury, Sharon, Kent, Canaan, and Cornwall have sticks you can live with. Windham in the east or head to the southeast shore.

Connecticut Election Results 2016

I live on the Southeast shore. But thankfully just (by a mile or 2) on the west bank of the mighty and culturally divisive CT river.

 

[ctchamps]

But you live in Indiana.

The state where everyone asks who's your Pa!

 

[CTBasketball]

Has anyone tried renting a house out?

I also thought about 2/3 family homes.

 

[kobe]

i recently bought a house as well. it is 32 hundred square feet and I copped it for 32k and was able to get a loan for a 32 year mortgage. I probably will stay here til I'm 32.

32 32 32 32 32 32 32 32 32 32 32

 

[August_West]

32 hundred square feet and I copped it for 32k and was able to get a loan for a 32 year mortgage

stuff is cheap in Hilljack country.

 

[ctchamps]

stuff is cheap in Hilljack country.

Where do you want to head that the wife vetoed?

 

[methodology]

Has anyone tried renting a house out?

I also thought about 2/3 family homes.

Know a couple people who bought multifamily homes and fixed them up then lived there and rented out the other units. When they had kid they bought a single family and continue to rent out the multifamily as an investment property. They basically lived for free and made a few extra $$ while in the multifamily and now they more or less pay half of their single family mortgage as the renters cover the multifamily plus 1/2 the single family mortgage.

Being a landlord isn't for everyone though and finding good renters can be difficult.

 

[August_West]

Where do you want to head that the wife vetoed?

Oh , Ive already made up my mind. Im going to New Haven.

She just doesnt like that im narrowing my search to Fair Haven and the Hill (between Howard ave and Davenport) neighborhoods . I want to stretch my housing dollars for a bit.

 

[Husky25]

LOL East of the River.

West of the River is overrated.

East Hampton is nice because it is 20 minutes from everywhere. It svcked because it takes 20 minutes to get there. That, and the townie political cronies.

@CTBasketball As a 25 year old, I wouldn't think East Hampton is for you until you are looking to settle down and have kids. The taxes are not ridiculous (yet), but there isn't much (read: any) night life and as I stated above, you are 20 minutes from anywhere you would want to be. Much of the budget is funneled to Education (of course that is no different that any other town) and what is not seems to be funneled towards the Town Council's pet projects.

I lived in Manchester through my 20's. It isn't far from Hartford and going West is a lot easier than coming through the S curves or WeHa during rush hour (Coming home is a different story, but if you far enough West, Route 9 to 91 is an option). The interchange for 91 and Route 2 are on the East side of Hartford as well, so going South or East is a breeze.

 

[Corny2Amida]

West of the River is overrated.

East Hampton is nice because it is 20 minutes from everywhere. It svcked because it takes 20 minutes to get there. That, and the townie political cronies.

@CTBasketball As a 25 year old, I wouldn't think East Hampton is for you until you are looking to settle down and have kids. The taxes are not ridiculous (yet), but there isn't night life and as I stated above, you are 20 minutes from anywhere you would want to be. Much of the budget is funneled to Education (of course that is no different that any other town) and what is not seems to be funneled towards the Town Council's pet projects.

I lived in Manchester through my 20's. It isn't far from Hartford and going West is a lot easier than coming through the S curves or WeHa during rush hour (Coming home is a different story, but if you far enough West, Route 9 to 91 is an option). The interchange for 91 and Route 2 are on the East side of Hartford as well, so going South or East is a breeze.

East of East Hampton is Hampton, zip code 06247... small town with affordable houses and lower taxes, great place to grow up IMO

 

[Husky25]

East of East Hampton is Hampton, zip code 06247... small town with affordable houses and lower taxes, great place to grow up IMO

No it's not. East of East Hampton is Marlborough. Hampton is northeast of East Hampton. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay northeast (though more east than north). Like, three counties northeast.

 

[Samoo]

Oh , Ive already made up my mind. Im going to New Haven.

She just doesnt like that im narrowing my search to Fair Haven and the Hill (between Howard ave and Davenport) neighborhoods . I want to stretch my housing dollars for a bit.

I lived in Fairhaven on Quinnipiac Ave back in the 80's for a bit. Is the Barge still there?

 

[UConn_Top_Dog]

As a single young adult with no kids, DO NOT BUY A SINGLE FAMILY HOME, especially in CT. You will screw yourself. Your best bet is turn it into an investment move and buy a 2 family and rent out the other unit. By the time you marry and have kids (maybe 5 years) you will be close to paying off the entire thing if you have at least 20% down payment and pay the monthly mortgage payment plus putting extra toward the mortgage principle using your rental income. But go into the investment based on the home always being vacant so you are positive you can carry your own weight. Obviously it will be rented most of the time depending on the location, but its a good safety measure. Also make sure to have money saved up for unexpected repairs. If you are handy, go for a fixer upper, you will save a lot of money if you put the work in. Also, if you plan on moving from the area in less than 5 years, don't buy a house. I majored in Real Estate and Urban Economics at UConn and learned a lot from mistakes some of my family made if that has any baring.

 

[ctchamps]

Oh , Ive already made up my mind. Im going to New Haven.

She just doesnt like that im narrowing my search to Fair Haven and the Hill (between Howard ave and Davenport) neighborhoods . I want to stretch my housing dollars for a bit.

3.5 miles north (18 minute drive) is where I grew up.

 

[uconnfan68]

I mean you are right, but slower pace of living, lower cost of living, and pretty much no traffic. I live 20-25 minutes from Notre Dame and about 2-3 hours away from most of what I need or will want to catch (games, shows, etc.).

My county has 0% unemployment now. Will change when economy slows and will return to 20%+, but for now it is good.

And you gave the world Mike Pence and Dan Quayle.

 

[Bezzz]

Wolcott guy here. You can get into a solid starter for that money here. Depending on your work commute you might want to target on side of town or the other. Theres actually a pretty nice one in my neighborhood on the market right now. Im on the waterbury / souhtington / cheshire side. Id guess taxes on $250k would be between $4500 and $5000 a year. Pm if you want to talk further about the town.

I grew up in Wolcott 50+ years ago, Beach Road. Have a real soft spot in my heart for that town. But driving down RT 69 recently it looks like it's stuck in 1972.

 

[superjohn]

Oh , Ive already made up my mind. Im going to New Haven.

She just doesnt like that im narrowing my search to Fair Haven and the Hill (between Howard ave and Davenport) neighborhoods . I want to stretch my housing dollars for a bit.

Is she going with you?