tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post1757978286855493014..comments2023-10-29T02:44:43.200-07:00Comments on Random Thoughts In My Life: Buy a house?Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03866077134601099787noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post-19926995116538597022012-07-25T00:04:19.822-07:002012-07-25T00:04:19.822-07:00@ fan of casey: Part of the reason for buying a ho...@ fan of casey: Part of the reason for buying a house to rent in this area is that most houses go for $1200-1500 a month. <br /><br />@ Bruce: Glad to see you are still around! It has been a while! Thanks for those 2 things I wasn't even aware of!<br /><br />@ anonymous: Great points!Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03866077134601099787noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post-41720314454053191202012-07-25T00:04:18.764-07:002012-07-25T00:04:18.764-07:00@ fan of casey: Part of the reason for buying a ho...@ fan of casey: Part of the reason for buying a house to rent in this area is that most houses go for $1200-1500 a month. <br /><br />@ Bruce: Glad to see you are still around! It has been a while! Thanks for those 2 things I wasn't even aware of!<br /><br />@ anonymous: Great points!Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03866077134601099787noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post-15934826190974991062012-07-24T23:33:49.883-07:002012-07-24T23:33:49.883-07:00What is your motivation to do this? Is it to make...What is your motivation to do this? Is it to make a little money on the side or is it more for long term income? <br /><br />Either way make sure you know what commitment you're getting yourself into. While we all assume the market is going up from here you never know what its going to be like in 5-10 years for resale. The little income you make a month (of which you'll have to report on taxes) might not be worth the headache of being a landlord. Remember you're still responsible for maintenance and periods when the property is unoccupied while you're looking for a new renter.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post-7081443076098978052012-07-24T23:10:23.011-07:002012-07-24T23:10:23.011-07:00Hey Mike. A few things that you didn't take i...Hey Mike. A few things that you didn't take into account.<br />1. Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) - Will be required because of the lower down payment. I think it has to be a down payment of 20% in order to get out of PMI but it might be 10%.<br />2. Interest rate will be a little higher because it is not owner occupied so it will be considered rental property until you occupy it for a certain time period. Banks usually charge a higher interest rate for income properties and second homes.<br /><br />Anyway, I think real estate is always a good thing and current interest rates are the lowest they have ever been so it is a good time to buy.Brucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16484144734545098472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-349077619232459873.post-56032310208505807952012-07-24T02:16:23.104-07:002012-07-24T02:16:23.104-07:00Mike: You left out an important factor -- what wo...Mike: You left out an important factor -- what would a house like you are looking at rent for? Use www.zillow.com and it will give an estimated rent amount. Ideally you want the rent to cover your mortgage payments, property taxes, and insurance. Have the tenant pay the utilities and you are covering your main costs.<br /><br />The downside is you need to be careful in selecting your tenant, you don't want them ruining your house. Also there's the issue of them not paying. Evicting someone can also get messy.<br /><br />It seems to me that you already have so much going on, perhaps you should wait another year until things get settled at work. Interest rates still will be low a year from now and though prices are stabilizing somewhat, they are not expected to increase rapidly, so you can wait a little while longer.fan of caseynoreply@blogger.com