Adcadet
Storage Freak
Already got a credit report, which was accurate. Just got pre-approved for a mortgage today, and our credit scores are excellent (wife and I).
Mortgages
- Thread starter Clocker
- Start date
Chewy509
Wotty wot wot.
Is your math right?
215000 / 30yr / 12mth = ~$600 month
or with a 7.6% interest rate fixed 30yr = ~$1500 month
PS. 7.6% is roughly avg here in Australia at the moment, with median housing around $300K for a 3-4 bedroom house... Avg family income is around $70K - $80K. (both husband and wife working).
ddrueding
Fixture
Chewy,
$215k is 5% of the price: $4,300,000. Yes, two commas
With a 6% 30yr: ~$24,000/mo
This is why I'm not happy.
Our postal code has the lowest average house price in the area: $1.45M. That is because it includes East Palo Alto; a serious crime center on the other side of the highway. My GF's car insurance went up 30% because she moved 4 blocks and changed zip codes. The cheapest decent homes in decent areas are in the $1.7M range.
Average Price in Palo Alto: $1,262,961
In Santa Clara County: $747,698
In California: $514,572
IN USA: $254,310
Too bad I'm so in love with the area....
$215k is 5% of the price: $4,300,000. Yes, two commas
With a 6% 30yr: ~$24,000/mo
This is why I'm not happy.
Our postal code has the lowest average house price in the area: $1.45M. That is because it includes East Palo Alto; a serious crime center on the other side of the highway. My GF's car insurance went up 30% because she moved 4 blocks and changed zip codes. The cheapest decent homes in decent areas are in the $1.7M range.
Average Price in Palo Alto: $1,262,961
In Santa Clara County: $747,698
In California: $514,572
IN USA: $254,310
Too bad I'm so in love with the area....
Adcadet
Storage Freak
Damn. I've got a classmate heading out to Stanford...guess he'll be renting.
ddrueding
Fixture
I have a really nice 1bd/1ba in a good complex for $1300/mo. including power, water, gas, and trash. The best deal in the area IMO.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
In contrast, all my monthly expenses (gas, food, rent, insurance, electricity) + my expensive media-collecting habits - don't quite work out to $1000 a month...
ddrueding
Fixture
Fuel for my car alone is ~$700/mo. Groceries for the two of us (not counting eating out 3-4 times a week) is ~$1000/mo. This is pretty comparable to San Francisco, except that the weather and people are nicer, and you have more space. A six-figure household income is practically mandatory for comfortable living.
Chewy509
Wotty wot wot.
Chewy,
$215k is 5% of the price: $4,300,000. Yes, two commas
With a 6% 30yr: ~$24,000/mo
This is why I'm not happy.
Our postal code has the lowest average house price in the area: $1.45M. That is because it includes East Palo Alto; a serious crime center on the other side of the highway. My GF's car insurance went up 30% because she moved 4 blocks and changed zip codes. The cheapest decent homes in decent areas are in the $1.7M range.
Average Price in Palo Alto: $1,262,961
In Santa Clara County: $747,698
In California: $514,572
IN USA: $254,310
Too bad I'm so in love with the area....
Holy f**k! Sorry didn't realise housing was soooo expensive on your area. :crap:
Holy crap. Your gas $ is my house payment. That seems like a good reason to move closer to work, as well as the fact that you must spend a good portion of your life just driving.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
If you're a guy, I'm afraid that I can't help you.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
I live comfortably, and, until January, my household income was only five figures.
Fuel for my car is $0, because it doesn't exist. We *might* spend $50 on transit a month (minus vacations, etc.). And that's not mentioning what I'm *not* spending on maintenance and insurance.
Groceries are about $500 a month; eating out probably falls within the rounding error.
You need to drive less and eat more sensibly. Then, you'll be able to afford that house.
Stereodude
Not really a
Odds are he can't. He lives in California and probably can't afford housing closer to his job. That's the beauty of living in California.
I'm sure you can, you know how. It's no different than how you act.
I'm amazed at how much less a 15 year mortgage costs than a 30 year.
Based on a $140K loan, you pay almost $100K more in *interest* (total interest of ~$170K) with a 30 year than you do on a 15 year (total interest about $76K for the 15 year).
Based on a $140K loan, you pay almost $100K more in *interest* (total interest of ~$170K) with a 30 year than you do on a 15 year (total interest about $76K for the 15 year).
Adcadet
Storage Freak
Yup, that's why I'm paying cash for my second house. I figure it will only take a little while after I finish training. Like maybe a decade.
What's that honey, you say you want that second house before our unborn children are in their mid-thirties?
Ok, nevermind.
What's that honey, you say you want that second house before our unborn children are in their mid-thirties?
Ok, nevermind.
Pradeep
Storage? I am Storage!
Yup, that's why it pays to put in as much money as you can into your mortgage payments as paydown on the principal. Just a couple of hundred more each payment drops the duration of the loan subtantially.
Here's a calculator to show the effect for your particular circumstances:
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/mortgage-calculator.asp
I like this one...
http://www.gmacmortgage.com/calculators.do?method=mortgageLoan&chosenLink=mortgageLoan
They have a bunch more tools here:
http://www.gmacmortgage.com/calculators.do?method=init
http://www.gmacmortgage.com/calculators.do?method=mortgageLoan&chosenLink=mortgageLoan
They have a bunch more tools here:
http://www.gmacmortgage.com/calculators.do?method=init
timwhit
Hairy Aussie
I've been considering selling my car for awhile now. I haven't driven it since December. It will be paid off in about 15 months and I have no incentive to pay it off any sooner as the interest rate is .9%. Insurance is about $90/month.
I would probably drive it more, but parking is such a bitch where I live. If I wanted to buy a parking spot I am looking at $35k or ~$200/month to rent. I've been mulling it over for a couple months, but can't seem to make a decision one way or the other.
David:
I don't know how you spend $1000/month on groceries for 2 people. I know California is expensive, but I have my doubts that grocery prices are appreciably higher than in the city of Chicago, where I can spend $2 on a dozen eggs. Are you shopping at specialty grocery stores? Do you eat sushi for every meal?
At least what you pay for your apartment doesn't seem exorbitant. That is around what people pay in my neighborhood. A normal 1 bedroom is usually between $1000-1400.
I would probably drive it more, but parking is such a bitch where I live. If I wanted to buy a parking spot I am looking at $35k or ~$200/month to rent. I've been mulling it over for a couple months, but can't seem to make a decision one way or the other.
David:
I don't know how you spend $1000/month on groceries for 2 people. I know California is expensive, but I have my doubts that grocery prices are appreciably higher than in the city of Chicago, where I can spend $2 on a dozen eggs. Are you shopping at specialty grocery stores? Do you eat sushi for every meal?
At least what you pay for your apartment doesn't seem exorbitant. That is around what people pay in my neighborhood. A normal 1 bedroom is usually between $1000-1400.
Pradeep
Storage? I am Storage!
You may want to look at Zipcar if there's one parked around where you live. Seems very affordable, given you only pay when you use it, insurance and gas included.
ddrueding
Fixture
Groceries are specialty. She's Russian and likes Russian foods and I like high-quality meat. So between the small Russian shop and steaks at Whole Foods, the bill increases dramatically.
Fushigi
Storage Is My Life
Ditch your car and rent a car when necessary. Not Zipcar necessarily; Avis and whatnot are fine and are available most places. Enterprise if nothing else as they do door-to-door pickups. Car payment + operating expenses + insurance + parking are probably way more expensive than paying $45-60 a day once or twice a month when you go someplace.
Pradeep
Storage? I am Storage!
True, the Zipcar only makes sense if you are ducking out for a couple of hours, for an extended trip then a normal rental place is better.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
Who needs a place to live when you can be fat and eat piroshkis all day!
Well, as I expected, I ended up going with GMAC. They are just too easy to work with and have an office that's in my building less than a 2min walk away.
I was able to get 6.125% on a 20 year fixed with <$700 in closing costs. Since I stayed with GMAC, already have 56% equity and my latest appraisal was only 3 years ago, no re-appraisal was required. So, that saved me a few hundred bucks as well.
I'll crank in an extra $167 per month in a money market account (GMAC Demand Notes, currently earning 6%) and have enough saved up to pay off the balance of the mortgage in 15 years. That should save me about $27K in interest expense.
To my pleasant suprise, both my wife and I have FICO scores >805. I didn't know that good FICO scores let you get good rates on just about everything from car/home insurance, credit cards, & car payments as well as mortgages. I guess living well within your means can really payoff sometimes. A little luck helps too (We've been lucky to not have any major issues in our lives that would affect us financially.)
I was able to get 6.125% on a 20 year fixed with <$700 in closing costs. Since I stayed with GMAC, already have 56% equity and my latest appraisal was only 3 years ago, no re-appraisal was required. So, that saved me a few hundred bucks as well.
I'll crank in an extra $167 per month in a money market account (GMAC Demand Notes, currently earning 6%) and have enough saved up to pay off the balance of the mortgage in 15 years. That should save me about $27K in interest expense.
To my pleasant suprise, both my wife and I have FICO scores >805.
I didn't know that good FICO scores let you get good rates on just about everything from car/home insurance, credit cards, & car payments as well as mortgages. I guess living well within your means can really payoff sometimes. A little luck helps too (We've been lucky to not have any major issues in our lives that would affect us financially.)
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
No doubt, in many areas, some people who bought houses 1-2 years ago have probably thrown away as much or more $ than renters do every month.
I feel lucky that we at least got to enjoy a couple years of appreciation before prices started to fall. The estimate from my Realtor is that my house is worth about the same or slightly more than what I paid for it 3 years ago. Oh well, in the end, at least I will own the place that I live in free & clear (except for taxes).
I feel lucky that we at least got to enjoy a couple years of appreciation before prices started to fall. The estimate from my Realtor is that my house is worth about the same or slightly more than what I paid for it 3 years ago. Oh well, in the end, at least I will own the place that I live in free & clear (except for taxes).
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Between that and this morning's exchange about eating dogs, I think I need the brain-bleach.
sechs
Storage? I am Storage!
Dog tastes like pork? So does that mean that people taste like dogs?
Adcadet
Storage Freak
Well, after many counter-offers, my wife and I have accepted a counter-offer on a home in Rochester. It's not perfect, but it has everything we think we need and many things that we want, and at a price we can afford.
Pradeep
Storage? I am Storage!
Congrats! Is this your first house? Make sure you get an inspection, and you should be all set.
Adcadet
Storage Freak
Yup, first house. The owners had it pre-inspected two days after was first looked at it (we saw it after it had been listed for 2 days IIRC). We have a friend of the family who is a home builder in that area, and asked him if we should get our own inspection, and he basically said no, and our agent has used that inspector before. I've got a copy of the inspection report, and it seems very comparable to others that I've seen, and he did point out some problems, most of which the owners agreed to fix.
Adcadet
Storage Freak
A local bank has a "physician loan" program that most of the residents at Mayo use - zero down, they don't look at student loans to calculate your debt ratios (good, since my med school loans are larger than my mortgage!), reasonable closing costs (about 1.8% of the loan amount), and no need for me to start my residency before the loan. They only offer 3/1, 5/1, and 7/1 ARMs, and the rates are competitive. My residency is 3 years long and I hope to stay down there for fellowship so I could be there for 3-8+ years. I'm leaning towards a 7/1 ARM as the price difference between the 5/1 and 7/1 is about $300/year and I like the safety of knowing that I've got a good rate for a long time. Depending on the rate today, I may lock in my rate - looks like 10 year bonds went down yesterday so we'll see what they did.
mubs
Storage? I am Storage!
Congratulations, Adcadet!
Adcadet
Storage Freak
Great. We're not done yet:
- the real estate agent slipped back in a contingency in the original counter-offer that she explained to as was a "courtesy" and didn't really impact anything. We only discovered this as we're about to sign the final purchase agreement
- my mortgage broker originally quoted me a 0.5% loan origination fee but for the past month was quoting me interest rates as if I had taken a 1% origination fee, and never told me. It was only when I got the official Good Faith Estimate did I see the 1% fee.
- the real estate agent slipped back in a contingency in the original counter-offer that she explained to as was a "courtesy" and didn't really impact anything. We only discovered this as we're about to sign the final purchase agreement
- my mortgage broker originally quoted me a 0.5% loan origination fee but for the past month was quoting me interest rates as if I had taken a 1% origination fee, and never told me. It was only when I got the official Good Faith Estimate did I see the 1% fee.
ddrueding
Fixture
I hate sleezy people.
Adcadet
Storage Freak
The sad part is, even with the full information about the rates and origination fee (basically a way to charge points as far as I can tell) they still have the best deal and I would have gone with them anyway. This bank is a private bank and they require you to open a (free) checking account with them and they're very upfront that they offer this loan because they want to become your personal private bank. But after this, I think we'll be sticking with our online bank and Wells Fargo for everything but that stupid free checking account which I'll never use.