Condo Update Redux

[Vladimir]

Despite obvious information to the contrary the negotiators say it now turns out the bank never accepted the extension- followed quickly by an email that 'as they said its never a guarantee,' except for where they said they have the signed paperwork from all parties (I understand when we ASK for an extension its no guarantee, assumed once we had it that it was pretty solid )...

Waiting to call my family friend Realtor and run it by her. I want to send them an ultimatum that it is closed by the end of month or I walk, but I want to make sure I do not jeopardize my earnest money. Already lost out on the $700 for the appraisal we ordered based on their confirmation that we had the extension...

Sigh.

[Vladimir]

Decided no need to wait, the date is the 26th if we don't have extension by then, nothing I say should jeopardize my earnest money. Fortunately my job now is basically to call bull on people, so it is a nice change to do it someone that isn't a customer who is paying my wages at the end of the day haha!

Team,

I am confused about the extension, per the email below we did receive extension to January 26th. If the bank did not approve it where did the date of the 26th come from? This needs to be resolved this week. I have been begging my parents and now-signed-up roommate for more time, and promised all parties it would be resolved this month.

Despite previous indications that Well's Fargo lacked any motivation to sell this property we forged ahead, including my decision (based on the below) to approve and pay for the nearly $700 appraisal. Please let me know what I can do to help ensure we have extension in time to close per our schedule.

Thank you,

[geds]

Vlad - you have been through more crap on this real estate deal than any I have ever heard of! I hope things finally smooth out and work out for you - and soon!

[Vladimir]

Backed out of the condo deal. Got too ridiculous. Went and saw one today but it was more like $140,000. Spent like four hours looking at apartments it is such a sham. It is all bait and switch and things are just too expensive it is such a crock. The one we looked at today was $1,600 a month... I make about $2,000 a month AFTER taxes, I can't afford that crap. Obviously my share is half but then toss on utilities and crap.

Just living at home forever. Maybe I need to just bite the bullet and buy one of these crappy condos for $90,000, deal with having one bathroom, and save some money that way.

[geds]

So sorry it didn't work out Vlad! Keep your chin up and keep looking - some good will turn up. Think about all of the money you are saving in the meantime!

[Vladimir]

Originally Posted by geds

So sorry it didn't work out Vlad! Keep your chin up and keep looking - some good will turn up. Think about all of the money you are saving in the meantime!

Not much. All this crap requires a lot of beer and vodka to put up with.

[Vladimir]

It's hard to stay positive.

Maybe a crappy $90k 2bed/1bath condo is the way to go. Payments on that would be $800 a month, split that in half and holy crap.

[geds]

Originally Posted by Vladimir

It's hard to stay positive.

Maybe a crappy $90k 2bed/1bath condo is the way to go. Payments on that would be $800 a month, split that in half and holy crap.

Well, look at it this way, most of us started out with something smaller and not as nice as we would've liked. The market is down now and is slowly beginning to recover - at least that's what the fish wrapper said today. If you believe that, an investment today will increase in value as your wages and net worth improves. So in a few years you will have enough equity to sell and move up to the house of your dreams.

Just make sure the purchase you make now is in a neighborhood that is not declining. Otherwise, you'll wind up with little to negative equity and be unable to make the move discussed above.

The fish wrapper said lots of folks are predicting banks will be releasing a bunch of foreclosures on the market in 2012, so it should remain a buyers market for a while yet. I recommend holding off and keep looking.

[MJ1]

Try Costa Rica






work from home..LOL

[woolleyworm]

Best advice I've ever heard on real estate buying is this:

Pick the neighborhood you want to live in and buy the cheapest place possible in that neighborhood.

It doesn't matter if it's a fixer upper or a not quite to your needs. Those things can be changed, remodeled and repainted; you have no choice in your neighbors, so choose wisely.

A friend bought a place in DashPoint a few years back and paid $70,000 for it. It was just a 2bdrm place on a 1/4 acre and it was an overgrown dump. 2 years, some hard work and about $40,000 more into the place for remodeling and he has a twostory 4 bdrm that looks amazing and now is in the $320-340k range. He did much of the work himself, but you can bet that 2yrs of busting his butt is well worth the equity he got out of it and a house that he enjoys spending his time in.

[Vladimir]

I like the Costa Rica idea, if only I had a job where I could work from home .

At play are a few facts...

1- I (like everyone my age) got screwed by the economy (good economy, went to fancy schools and came out of it into this, making a small fraction what we had reasonably anticipated making), I would love to finally stick it to the times and take advantage of the low housing prices. Economy may improve, prices will go up, and I can guarantee you my salary will not overnight.

2- All said and done I would rather rent. But I can actually buy for less money a month (I have the down payment so thats not a concern), AND build the equity. Some of these crap places I can get into for $800 a month after HOA fees- that is $400 a person. Compare that to the $800 a month per person to rent a decent place (granted nice)

3- I really do not want to buy something I regret in a few years because I haven't really built enough equity to sell it yet without taking a loss.

4- I really do not want to rent for a few years, have my pay go up 50% and the economy go up 100%, be exactly where I am now except with less options real-estate wise.

5- All things remaining the same, at my current pay and rental prices I will be able to save almost NOTHING while renting, IE I cannot "go rent for a year to save some more money to open new options".



When I say crap places, I mean crap places. Picture a decent apartment, under 1,000 sq ft for $1,600 a month. Now imagine the kind of place $90,000 buys. There are absolutely no houses in any areas I want to be remotely close to in my budget.

Rolling the dice either way, do I rent and hope I get a couple nice promotions quickly and the economy doesn't improve? Or do I buy and get stuck in something I dislike, though save money and build equity?

EDIT: I could jump on the low-income subsidized thing, but I really dont want to live alone, how boring.

[Vladimir]

I give up, I will just let everyone know when its over. Back in the deal now. They got the extensions and one weekend of apartment and condo shopping was enough misery to have me excited to jump back into the deal. Because the loan is essentially approved (only document we were missing was proof of extension) should be able to close hopefully even this week. So stupid lol.

[mjp28]

Originally Posted by Vladimir

I give up, I will just let everyone know when its over. Back in the deal now. They got the extensions and one weekend of apartment and condo shopping was enough misery to have me excited to jump back into the deal. Because the loan is essentially approved (only document we were missing was proof of extension) should be able to close hopefully even this week. So stupid lol.

And don't be afraid to play hardball with them, throw out offers you want to pay, hey you've got nothing to lose.....meanwhile just save your money.

You never know what will come up.

[geds]

You know what they say Vlad - the third time is the charm! Maybe this time it will all work out for you - I certainly hope so!

[Vladimir]

Originally Posted by geds

You know what they say Vlad - the third time is the charm! Maybe this time it will all work out for you - I certainly hope so!

Funny, that is exactly what the negotiators said!

Originally Posted by mjp28

And don't be afraid to play hardball with them, throw out offers you want to pay, hey you've got nothing to lose.....meanwhile just save your money.

You never know what will come up.

I do not have the time though. I certainly thought about it. At the end of the day if I knock $10,000 off the price that only saves me $60 a month. Cut that in half for renting a room out and the $30 ($60 max) a month is not worth losing the deal!

[geds]

Well Vlad....did you get to close? Inquiring minds want to know!