A Wedding, a wife, a house oh my!!!

WaldSkins: Let me address your original question first with some sound advice:

1. PAY OFF THE DEBT FIRST! No questions asked. PAY THE DEBT OFF FIRST! As attractive as it might sound to fall into a no down payment situation with a house, and again, I'm in the same boat as you, don't put buying a home in front of paying off the debt.

2. Before you even think of saving for the house, you need to SAVE UP AN EMERGENCY FUND FIRST! Your goal on that is at least 3 to 6 months worth of living expenses. What if you buy a house and both of you lose your jobs? You gotta have an emergency fund. DON'T RELY ON CREDIT CARDS AS AN EMERGENCY FUND!

3. Once #1 and #2 have been satisfied, decide what your intentions are on a house purchase. Do you plan to live there for at least 10 to 15 years? You need to know this before you buy a house. Whatever the answer is, you definitely want to be saving back money to either purchase the house straight out (yes I know that's probably not realistic for most people) or for a down payment NO LOWER THAN 20%. Don't go into a house purchase without knowing what is you're wanting to do or what it is you're actually purchasing.

4. Once you have found the house you want to purchase, it doesn't matter if it's a starter home or if it's one you plan on being in for the rest of your life, you need to budget out your mortgage payments for a 15 YEAR LOAN! Trust me, you'll be paying nearly double for that house if you get sucked up into a 30 year loan. And also, don't budget it on both salaries, budget it for one salary. Most people go out and grab the 30 year loan thinking they can always double up on the payments, but almost nobody ever pays double on their mortgage.

Now, don't listen to people who say investing in real estate is not worth it. It IS worth it, but you HAVE to be smart about it. You can't go in over your head on a purchase. And for the love of everything that is burgundy and gold, don't purchase property in hopes of turning it into rental property UNLESS IT'S PAID IN FULL! That's a bad, bad move that can seriously get you into a bad financial situation.

Now, are there any decent apartments in a decent area to rent that are cheaper than $1000 a month? If so, move there! Even if the apartments are smaller, maybe not as nice, this is just a way for you to free up some money to get you started. If not, then one or both of ya'll might need to think about a second job - at least until the debt has been satisfied. There's nothing wrong in both contributing to the savings for a house, but like I said earlier, the payment for the house should be based on one salary.

Not necessarily true all depends on your cash flow. As long as you can float the mortgage when no one is there you can pull it off.

That is the point; you won't see anything. Unless you are think of staying in that house for 30 years it will not appreciate fast enough to be worth your wild if you just stay say five years in it.

I purchased a home in the peak of the market in 2006 and we will still make money on our home. Buying now in a down market is the best time to buy because thing can only go up.

I purchased a home in the peak of the market in 2006 and we will still make money on our home. Buying now in a down market is the best time to buy because thing can only go up.


You hope but nothing in the last 5 years has made me to believe that.

You hope but nothing in the last 5 years has made me to believe that.

Even if they stayed level for 5 years your better off buying.

Really it all boils down to risk and how much of it you are comfortable with.

Money, religion and politics are all things folks have huge varying opinions on so what you need to do is ask yourself how much are you willing to risk to in order to fill your needs.

I know folks that live in a two bedroom rancher but have the money to upgrade to something larger but are afraid of the risk involved, to me that is not living.

Then I know plenty more folks that live in houses they can't afford and they can't do anything because they are house poor, to me that is not living also.

So you just basically need to find your comfort level in the risk you are willing to take. No one here can make that decision for you.

Not necessarily true all depends on your cash flow. As long as you can float the mortgage when no one is there you can pull it off.

Repeat, it is a BAD, BAD move.

Repeat, it is a BAD, BAD move.


In your mind I have done it now counting the condo I bought in college for over 15 years, made great money on that place, over the entire time. I have two other small investment like that. I have had years where I have lost some money on them due to repairs or low occupancy but in the whole scope of the investment I have made positive dollars.

It is just a risk you personally are not willing to take that doesn't make it a bad idea or bad investment. There are many variables that come into play.

I much rather have those dollars wrapped in them then the current stock market.

I would not recommend it to everyone but I have the cash flow right now to make it a low risk investment.

In your mind I have done it now counting the condo I bought in college for over 15 years, made great money on that place, over the entire time. I have two other small investment like that. I have had years where I have lost some money on them due to repairs or low occupancy but in the whole scope of the investment I have made positive dollars.

It is just a risk you personally are not willing to take that doesn't make it a bad idea or bad investment. There are many variables that come into play.

I much rather have those dollars wrapped in them then the current stock market.

I would not recommend it to everyone but I have the cash flow right now to make it a low risk investment.

So now its a good idea?LOL

So now its a good idea?LOL
I know my advice original was for someone just starting out. If I had no investments and was just getting married I would not take that risk of buying a home and/or getting rental properties.

I think we are not seeing eye to eye where money can be made in the real estate market. you seem to beleive you can buy something then have it appreciate and make money. I don't see that as a good risk since the housing market is frozen or worst melting. My investments were ones I made because I moved kept the property and rented them out, all before purchased before 2005.

In hindsight there was a good amount of risk and most likely still is but I am willing to take it has panned out well so far for me.

To be clear I would not add anymore properties right now that would be too risk in my opinion for me. someone else may have a better cash flow and it be lower risk for them.

Pay off debt first. If the interest is not tax deductible, then you want it gone before you buy a house. So unless it's a student loan, pay off the debt.

Then save up an emergency fund. Sock away enough to cover 6 months of your basic expenses: rent, food, utilities.

Then save up to buy a house, never dipping into the emergency fund. I don't think you need 20% down, that's impractical for a lot of people. The long term appreciation on the price of the home will outpace the cost of personal mortgage insurance.

Just keep your monthly mortgage payment (including taxes & insurance) less than 33% of your net monthly income. Any more than 33% and you'll start to feel the pinch.