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Does the amount you're putting down affect how a seller sees the viability of your offer? I'm in a situation now where I rent a house at a ridiculously low price. However my landlord is very old and in poor health, and if he passes the last thing I want to do is try and find another piece to rent. We've been saving for a bit now for a down payment, but still only have around 40k. Looking at houses in the 400k range I would have no problem affording a mortgage at 3 or 5 percent down. If possible I'd much rather put less down and keep my cash reserves for closing and the usual bullshit I would find in a newly purchased home.
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Feb 11, 2022 23:48
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nwin posted:Anyone prefer one website over another for general house hunting? I like Redfin, because it’s an actual brokerage in addition to search engine things seem a bit more standardized to MLS data. That being said MLS can be often wrong.
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Feb 11, 2022 23:51
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A Proper Uppercut posted:Does the amount you're putting down affect how a seller sees the viability of your offer? Potentially. In my state, the state standard Offer To Purchase form/contract includes financing information, such as principal you're borrowing, rate, and type of loan (conventional, FHA, etc.). This gives the seller some sense of how likely you are to obtain financing. If you're putting down 3%, then the seller might think that you're in a financial situation where you might not qualify and won't be able to close, which ultimately is a waste of their time (even if they keep earnest money). If 2 buyers bid on a property for the exact same amount, one being 20% down and the other being 3% down, the 20% down is probably going to win because the seller would assume they're more likely to obtain financing (i.e. they're borrowing less money, which is more likely to be approved by a bank all else equal). You can bolster your offer by including a pre-approval from a lender, or offer more total money, or higher earnest money. That said, your real estate agent will know your local market and should be able to give you better guidance. Sometimes you're competing against a wall of cash offers and won't win unless you offer a ridiculous sum, other times you might be fine with a low down payment.
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Feb 12, 2022 00:03
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If you can put 10% down you can finance with a conventional loan with PMI. Probably a better interest rate.
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Feb 12, 2022 00:07
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nwin posted:Anyone prefer one website over another for general house hunting? Redfin, Realtor and Zillow all just list stuff on the MLS. As stated Redfin are a broker so if you try to contact someone through it you will get a response unlike Realtor and Zillow which just list realtors in their system who don’t respond in my experience.
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Feb 12, 2022 00:14
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canyoneer posted:Anyone had to do something similar? What did you end up doing? I ended up renting, and eating $9.49 tacos. I was in a similar situation, though, and had any of my offers been accepted I would have been just under 20% down with a boatload of equity tied up in my current unsold home. An offer contingent upon the sale of my current house would be laughed into the fireplace. If the offer is good dollar-wise, and there isn't an all cash offer within striking distance, your 10-20% offer will have a good shot. The issue with me was PMI and what to do with the equity once I sold my current home. I was going to bank with a lender that allowed for a mortgage recast; pay PMI for like 2 months, sell my old house, then make a big payment on my new home loan and recast to a 30 year. Without recast, the mo. payment is a bit higher, but you'll pay very little interest and shorten the duration, which is a good idea but not what I wanted. I don't think loans are worthwhile just to get you up to 20%, since 10% vs 20% might as well be the same offer. Do get rid of PMI asap, though. Magicaljesus fucked around with this message at 00:39 on Feb 12, 2022 |
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Feb 12, 2022 00:35
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How far away from highways and busy roads does a house need to be to avoid most of the nasty pollution? How much did y’all weigh “distance from air polluters” in your search? I recognize that it’s 2022 and there’s pollution and plastic everywhere.
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Feb 12, 2022 01:13
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Ornery and Hornery posted:How far away from highways and busy roads does a house need to be to avoid most of the nasty pollution? I don't know if that's really answerable with a rule of thumb, because a lot will depend on weather patterns and geography. Check the air quality index for a zip, and you can browse on a map for different monitoring stations https://www.airnow.gov/
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Feb 12, 2022 01:24
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I coulda sworn an environmental scientist once told me the rule of thumb is 1000ft from a highway
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Feb 12, 2022 01:32
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A Proper Uppercut posted:Does the amount you're putting down affect how a seller sees the viability of your offer? However, you can still make it work if you sign an appraisal contingency waiver and prove you have the funds available to back it up, even if you're putting down a smaller amount.
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Feb 12, 2022 03:00
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bawfuls posted:I coulda sworn an environmental scientist once told me the rule of thumb is 1000ft from a highway I'll repost what I posted earlier in the thread: Insurrectum posted:Within 500 feet of a major highway has the worst outcomes, with 1000 feet as the outer limit where studies have shown potential health impacts (asthma and other lung issues, mostly). Other factors you need to worry about with regards to health risks: Here's a PDF (from the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District) explaining some of the overall findings: https://www.ourair.org/wp-content/uploads/pub-health-and-hi-traf-roadways.pdf
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Feb 12, 2022 03:06
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Ornery and Hornery posted:How far away from highways and busy roads does a house need to be to avoid most of the nasty pollution? How much wind is there in your area Like, San Francisco and Los Angeles, this number is going to vary wildly, even neighborhood from neighborhood in SF Los Angeles it might be twelve miles, San Francisco might be 80 feet, might be 300 feet, might be 2500 feet 1) is the neighborhood in a bowl shaped area 2) does the wind speed regularly not get above 20mph? If the answer to either of those is yes you're at a much higher risk of air pollution. If you live within 500 ft of a country highway probably not a big deal It Depends
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Feb 12, 2022 03:08
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A Proper Uppercut posted:Does the amount you're putting down affect how a seller sees the viability of your offer? Yeah, when we were buying a year and a half ago, the seller was worried about an appraisal gap and asked if we could match the 50% down that the other offer had. We could and the lender assured that we could structure the loan however we wanted on the back end with them. The terms in the offer we presented were not necessarily binding, we just had to be able to show proof of funds and willingness to put extra down if it was needed to get the loan basically. We didn't end up getting that one for other reasons but I thought it was interesting that the seller was looking at the down payment %.
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Feb 12, 2022 11:18
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Alarbus posted:Yeah, Milwaukee seems to have really good Mexican food options/styles. Our current area of Southeast PA seems to be improving only in the last few years, it was dire when we moved here. It didn't affect our buying decision then because the whole area was bad. I think you weren't looking hard enough. SE PA has a relatively high Hispanic population, owing to the agriculture and especially mushroom farms. There are tons of hidden gems lurking in nondescript buildings. Chester County is a particular hotspot.
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Feb 12, 2022 18:47
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SmuglyDismissed posted:Yeah, when we were buying a year and a half ago, the seller was worried about an appraisal gap and asked if we could match the 50% down that the other offer had. We could and the lender assured that we could structure the loan however we wanted on the back end with them. The terms in the offer we presented were not necessarily binding, we just had to be able to show proof of funds and willingness to put extra down if it was needed to get the loan basically. We didn't end up getting that one for other reasons but I thought it was interesting that the seller was looking at the down payment %. Our offer on the place we bought last year was accepted because we were putting 50% down. They had another offer for more than we offered, but the financing was worse so our offer looked more attractive.
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Feb 12, 2022 18:51
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nwin posted:Anyone prefer one website over another for general house hunting? I like using all 3 of Zillow, Redfin, and Realtor. Each provides different information and search options
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Feb 12, 2022 20:48
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Ornery and Hornery posted:How far away from highways and busy roads does a house need to be to avoid most of the nasty pollution? I've walked away from houses that were too close to the freeway, even though there were huge sound barriers that completely negated all noise. Specifically, I did not want to be that close to such a major source of pollution. IIRC the studies finding increased likelihood of dementia found that there was a distance at which the risk falls off, but I don't remember what it was; less than a quarter-mile I think. The metric I used was "if I can see the traffic, then it's too close" e: With the rise of electric vehicles this risk is probably going to decrease over time, they not only don't pollute they also don't usually generate brake dust QuarkJets fucked around with this message at 20:57 on Feb 12, 2022 |
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Feb 12, 2022 20:55
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The thing to keep in mind re: pollution concerns is that it’s something that will keep people froM wanting to buy your house in the future. Obviously your health comes first but it’s a material defect even if it’s bullshit. Take power lines: you can cite all the nerd poo poo in the world saying power lines don’t cause cancer but you’ll work have people avoiding offering on your house because “power lines cause cancer.” The truth doesn’t matter, it’s about perception, and you don’t want to tie your financial future to something people are going to perceive as being of lesser value. Now homes shouldn’t be primary stores of wealth etc but lol welcome to America. Tldr I wouldn’t buy near a freeway just because that’s a house that will be harder to move in the future.
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Feb 12, 2022 21:10
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We got our place because we had better financing with a lower offer. There was a higher offer (like $50k over ours) but it was 5% down and the financing proof was sketchy.
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Feb 12, 2022 21:15
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Rasputin on the Ritz posted:The thing to keep in mind re: pollution concerns is that it’s something that will keep people froM wanting to buy your house in the future. Power lines are also ugly as gently caress
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Feb 12, 2022 22:03
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QuarkJets posted:Power lines are also ugly as gently caress And loud, especially when it rains. Whether you think it "gives you cancer" or not, it's still gonna make an otherwise "A" property a B or C property.
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Feb 12, 2022 22:08
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canyoneer posted:Anyone had to do something similar? What did you end up doing? I did a 401k loan. Paid it back as soon as the funds hit my account from closing on the sale of the old place.
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Feb 12, 2022 22:20
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Pretty much the only valid reason to use a 401(k) loan and the only WAY to use one (pay it right back ASAP).
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Feb 12, 2022 22:25
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We might be on the cusp of making our first offer. We've found a local lender we like after soliciting prequalifications from a couple of them but we haven't looked at any online lenders at all. I feel like proper due diligence would entail at least getting one or two letters on whatever our offer price ends up being -- what's current conventional wisdom on local vs online lenders? I should note that we're in the Seattle metro outskirts so the competition is pretty ferocious -- one of the big draws for the local lender is that they're known for closing quickly.
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Feb 12, 2022 23:32
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So far it seems like better.com has been generally good and has great rates across the board for online lenders, but in person will vary depending on what you can bring to them from places like better, as leverage.
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Feb 12, 2022 23:56
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Motronic posted:Pretty much the only valid reason to use a 401(k) loan and the only WAY to use one (pay it right back ASAP). Yep. I think I only had the loan outstanding for about three months, and it only cost me a $125 fee since what little interest I was charged, went back to the account anyway. I needed more time between the two transactions than any contingent-upon-sale loan would have allowed.
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Feb 13, 2022 00:53
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I have some confusion about duplexes (also triplexes, quadplexes) - what the realtor I talked to said is that if you have a building with two separate living spaces with separate entrances, either top/bottom or side to side, it's a duplex if one person owns the whole building (and presumably lives in one part and rents the other, or rents both and lives elsewhere), but it's a condo if each person owns their own half. but I sometimes see things classified differently this would be a condo, because while it's a duplex building, you own one half and someone else owns the other half. you and this other person would presumably have some agreement for managing the exterior and grounds https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3612-Colfax-Ave-S-APT-101-Minneapolis-MN-55409/82647648_zpid/ this would be a condo as well, in the quadplex style https://www.redfin.com/MN/Minneapolis/2011-Emerson-Ave-S-55405/unit-201/home/51268920 however this building is presumably a condo, but it's listed as a townhome - I'm not sure what the difference is here, or in the case of any side by side condo https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2220-Irving-Ave-S-Minneapolis-MN-55405/2000857_zpid/
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Feb 13, 2022 18:18
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You'd have to look at the deed and covenants to be sure You missed two on your multi unit bingo: tennancy in common (TIC) and co-op
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Feb 13, 2022 18:27
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Can you pull title records online where you are? For example in Los Angeles County you can map an address to an apn, then look at the plat map online for the apn. If a given property is two separate things there would be two different tax records/titles. That might shed light on the situation if it's a semantics thing between condo vs townhouse vs duplex and you're just talking past each other. Zillow or redfin may list the apn's (or whatever they're called near you.) Make you can find 2 for the given two units.
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Feb 13, 2022 18:28
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yep - I realized in that last really bougie listing, the whole building is for sale. so that should technically be a duplex and be classified as multi-family i think edit: the above is wrong, since it's a townhome, it has separated entrances, and two separate addresses (2220,2222), instead of 2220 unit #1, 2220 unit #2 for example a condo would perhaps just have one entrance with a common hallway and/or stairs that leads to doors for each unit the one on colfax appears to actually be not two units, not four units, but actually six units, with two of them being really small/cheap spots in the basement. presumably each garage has space for three cars. same with the one on emerson. actionjackson fucked around with this message at 18:49 on Feb 13, 2022 |
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Feb 13, 2022 18:36
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I own a live in duplex that I just bought. Its a Whole Thing. Just FYI if you're going down this route be aware that you inherit the lease, including all terms, and there are significant tax/mortgage rate considerations that are different from a single family (or a condo).
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Feb 13, 2022 19:04
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Upgrade posted:I own a live in duplex that I just bought. Its a Whole Thing. Just FYI if you're going down this route be aware that you inherit the lease, including all terms, and there are significant tax/mortgage rate considerations that are different from a single family (or a condo). do you rent out one part? I would not want to do that, just clarifying the differences in definitions
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Feb 13, 2022 19:20
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actionjackson posted:do you rent out one part? I would not want to do that, just clarifying the differences in definitions We inherited a lease for the next 6 months but will not rent it out after that. Instead we'll have my MIL move in. For us this was driven by wanting to keep an eye on her but also giving her her own space, and in my city you cannot build ADUs or MIL units. But yes typically if you're buying a duplex/triplex/4plex you're renting out the units to cover part (or all) of your own living expenses. Laws governing rental property are very very different city to city, let alone state to state. Upgrade fucked around with this message at 20:02 on Feb 13, 2022 |
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Feb 13, 2022 19:54
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actionjackson posted:I have some confusion about duplexes (also triplexes, quadplexes) - what the realtor I talked to said is that if you have a building with two separate living spaces with separate entrances, either top/bottom or side to side, it's a duplex if one person owns the whole building (and presumably lives in one part and rents the other, or rents both and lives elsewhere), but it's a condo if each person owns their own half. It can only matter in a few ways. It depends on if you are buying the whole building or just a unit. Your mortgage interest rate can vary if it is a SFH, Condo, or townhome. You insurance will also vary if you can get an HO6 or HO3 policy which the lender will dictate. The HOA/covenants will also be different. If you are buying a single unit this will all make a minimal difference. Those first two you posted would be considered condos, the second a townhome. The second is a duplex and it will be owned by two different people, very common, It will probably have a party wall agreement instead of a formal HOA. Multi family requires a bit more due diligence than SFH but it isn't a huge issue. E: Also your realtor is wrong that a duplex has to be owned by one person or it is not one. All a duplex is, is two separate living units in one building. spwrozek fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Feb 13, 2022 |
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Feb 13, 2022 20:44
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thanks, that's how I felt about duplexes, but in the end it's not really a huge deal. In terms of looking at houses, I would expect a duplex where you buy the whole unit to be under multi-family, where a duplex with two halves owned by two separate parties as a condo. but for clarity let's just say "duplex style condo." In this case, we have one building with a common entrance, for example a hallway down the center, and a door to each unit. so you could have a condo without any shared walls, technically speaking. I guess then the hallway would be considered common space to be managed somehow. according to this article, a duplex is required to have the whole building by one person, where what I'm calling a condo or duplex condo is different (they refer to it as a twin home) quote:A duplex is sometimes confused with a “twin home,” but they’re not the same type of real estate. A twin home may look like a duplex: two separate homes sharing a wall. But with a twin home, the lot line actually runs through the common wall—so on each side you have an individual home on an individual lot, even though they’re connected. actionjackson fucked around with this message at 00:02 on Feb 14, 2022 |
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Feb 14, 2022 00:00
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I can't recall where, but I saw someone recently talking about people with large stock portfolios (tech workers) leveraging that to be able to make all cash offers on homes and then right after taking out a more convential loan. Is that actually that common? How much does that end up costing them?
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Feb 14, 2022 23:38
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Teabag Dome Scandal posted:I can't recall where, but I saw someone recently talking about people with large stock portfolios (tech workers) leveraging that to be able to make all cash offers on homes and then right after taking out a more convential loan. Is that actually that common? How much does that end up costing them? When you make a cash offer what you're really doing is waiving the finance contingency: saying that your offer isn't contingent on having a bank approve your loan. You want to have the 'assets' in place to buy the house in cash -- even if once your offer is accepted you go out and get financing. I don't know how many people who are making cash offers are buying in cash cash (I guess the closing terms would hint at that). Because of this my agent kept trying to have us "borrow" money from a relative who had cash to be able to put in cash offers -- and when I'd go "OK, but what if for some reason the bank doesn't approve our loan?" her response was "well... then you'd have to pay in cash">
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Feb 14, 2022 23:43
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Teabag Dome Scandal posted:I can't recall where, but I saw someone recently talking about people with large stock portfolios (tech workers) leveraging that to be able to make all cash offers on homes and then right after taking out a more convential loan. Is that actually that common? How much does that end up costing them? Sounds like you're talking about margin loans. Another reason to do this is so they don't have to realize gains. Someone was suggesting to do this to me, and they were saying the interest rate was like 1.5%. I have no idea how it interacts with conventional financing, so I had no interest in looking into it further
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Feb 14, 2022 23:45
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gwrtheyrn posted:Sounds like you're talking about margin loans. Another reason to do this is so they don't have to realize gains. Someone was suggesting to do this to me, and they were saying the interest rate was like 1.5%. I have no idea how it interacts with conventional financing, so I had no interest in looking into it further That sounds like it. After one google search Fidelity is advertising 4.25% on loans between 500k and 1 mil but maybe there are other products out there. I guess maybe I would worry the appraisal wouldn't be high enough to pay off the margin loan?
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Feb 15, 2022 01:23
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Teabag Dome Scandal posted:That sounds like it. After one google search Fidelity is advertising 4.25% on loans between 500k and 1 mil but maybe there are other products out there. I guess maybe I would worry the appraisal wouldn't be high enough to pay off the margin loan? For people with multi-million dollar stock grants from FAANG or whatever, it's not really a concern for them. It's very common for awful tech bros and basically unheard of outside of that short of other very rich people.
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Feb 15, 2022 01:29
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