Any questions related to Home Ownership. There is a related specific tag for Mortgages. It is recommend you include a country, state tag, or location in your question.
13
votes
5answers
247 views
What factors are to be considered when deciding to go with a 15 year fixed vs a 30 years fixed?
What factors are to be considered when deciding to go with a 15 year fixed vs a 30 years fixed?
Pretty simple really; I could make the payments on a 15 year fixed, but at today's low interest rates, ...
13
votes
4answers
234 views
Owner-Financed home sale or Land Contract — how to handle the transaction and the ongoing entity?
My sister and I inherited a property in a rural, backwater area rather inconveniently located to where we live. We've got zero interest in keeping it. To wit, we put it on sale and now are recieving a ...
11
votes
10answers
1k views
Recent college grad. Down payment on a house or car?
So here's the situation I'm facing. I've recently graduated college but have been working for a while now. I've managed to save up around $10,000 aside for my "money to live" stash. And like most ...
11
votes
2answers
314 views
Seller refuses to accept offer on home until after inspection
I'm currently trying to buy a home (that happens to be a foreclosure), and the bank who owns it is allowing us an inspection period, however they are unwilling to accept our offer until after the ...
11
votes
1answer
807 views
What is the difference between Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and Ginnie Mae?
What is the difference between the various US housing agencies referred to as Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, and Ginnie Mae?
How were each of them affected by the sub-prime mortgage crisis (or, maybe the ...
10
votes
9answers
508 views
Why is a house “not an investment”?
I have heard a few people say that "a house is not an investment" as an argument to stay in an apartment. (To me, this seems like a stupid reason, but that is not my question.)
Of course, this is ...
10
votes
5answers
601 views
Previous owner of my home wants to buy it back but the property's value is less than my loan… what to do?
I've owned my home for close to 5 years and it's value is currently around $100k below my loan amount (according to zillow).
I hate living here, and I've wanted to sell it for a long time.
Today, ...
10
votes
8answers
7k views
In a house with shared ownership, if one person moves out and the other assumes mortgage, how do we determine who owns what share in the end?
Let us assume a shared ownership house, where everything is 50/50 in terms of deposit, monthly payments, bills, and eventually estate agent costs, and lawyer costs when the house is sold.
If the ...
10
votes
5answers
431 views
Purchasing an extremely affordable home with 10% down VS renting and saving for 20%
Background:
Current Rent: 710/mo or roughly 20% of my 3700 salary take-home pay.
Wife is currently in school and will graduate in two years, at which point she will likely be making a teacher's ...
10
votes
4answers
213 views
Homeowners: How can you protect yourself from a financial worst-case scenario?
Say your a home-owner, a first time buyer. You've just got your first flat and your about 1 year into your 25 year mortgage.
Suddenly, something goes wrong with your job, and your made redundant ...
10
votes
2answers
200 views
Short-sell, or try to rent out?
I'm currently considering taking a job in another state, and I currently own a home that's up-side down in it's mortgage. I'm trying to figure out what I would do with my home in the event that I ...
10
votes
2answers
185 views
What are the most important things to ask a real estate agent before hiring them?
I've been researching the best ways to search for a home, and questions have come up about real estate agents. Getting a good real estate agent could potentially save you thousands of dollars, but ...
9
votes
4answers
155 views
Can I use Case Shiller values to find an optimal time to buy in a recovering housing market?
I live in the NW US. I've been considering buying a house for some time now. But the market value of a house has been on a downward trend for years. I thought that around October last year the market ...
9
votes
1answer
514 views
How do Islamic Banking give loans for housing purposes?
Islamic banks do not give loans they invest in financial activities of their clients. Am I correct?
If yes, then how can they provide loans for housings? Home loans have nothing to do with business.
...
9
votes
4answers
185 views
What is title insurance, and should I get title insurance for my home?
I have just sold my house and bought a new one. The lawyer I am working with to do all the necessary paperwork has sent me something about "Title Insurance". I am not quite sure exactly what this ...
9
votes
1answer
450 views
Is it better to buy a house at the end or beginning of a year?
Right now I'm looking for a house, and might be closing in the next few months. One thing that I want to consider is when the closing date should be. We are flexible with the date by a bit, and the ...
9
votes
1answer
96 views
Is it legally safer to purchase a short sale instead of a foreclosure?
I'm considering purchasing a home, and given todays market I've been viewing a lot of foreclosures and short sales. That being said, I have a question on short sale VS foreclosure in terms of legal ...
8
votes
4answers
575 views
Is there a general rule for how much of my non-retirement savings should be spent on down payment?
I know I should X months of cash for emergencies (I've seen X range from 6 to 24, depending on who's giving the advice).
But in addition to that, is there any generally accepted rule for how much of ...
8
votes
3answers
542 views
Buying a house, Bank or rent to own?
We currently rent a house. Our credit is ok, but we're working on it (paying things off, disputing things, etc). We are first time buyers. We have a good relationship with the owners. We are thinking ...
8
votes
1answer
104 views
Should I take out a loan vs pay off with mother's help?
I'm considering buying a house for 200k.
When buying place ($200k), I will be paying 120k as down-payment, and financing the rest. I am thinking of my mother pay an additional 80k (to buy the place ...
7
votes
3answers
528 views
Joint property ownership: 2 homeowners, but only 1 lives in the home. How to fairly split mortgage payments?
If 2 people decide to invest in a house, but only 1 of them wants to live in the house, should the interest only monthly mortgage payments be:
split 50/50,
the person living there pays 100%
the ...
7
votes
3answers
159 views
What are the usual terms of a “rent with an option to buy” situation?
What are the usual terms of a "rent with an option to buy" situation? Is the selling price negotiated ahead of time? What does the renter potentially sacrifice except losing the equity of the rent?
...
7
votes
2answers
105 views
How to take a home inventory?
An answer to the question Spring cleaning for your finances? Is there any activity that should be done annually, with respect to your money? mentioned home inventory:
The Inventory is also very ...
7
votes
3answers
254 views
When is the right time to buy a car and/or a house?
I am a 24 years old young IT professional. Since I don't have addictions to anything including drinking, I mostly save a lot (around 50% of my income after tax like $15-$25k a year). Currently I drive ...
6
votes
4answers
252 views
What steps should be taken, if any, when you find out your home's market value is underwater, i.e. worth less than the mortgage owed?
What steps should be taken, if any, when you find out your home's market value is underwater, i.e. worth less than the mortgage owed?
6
votes
4answers
300 views
Looking to buy a house in 1-2 years. Does starting a Roth IRA now make sense?
My wife & I are 28 years old and are looking to purchase our first home in the next 1-3 years. Our financial situation looks something like this:
24% combined gross annual income in low ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
How do I determine the amount of a buy out between common law partners in a home owned together?
I currently own a home with my common law partner. We have lived there for 2 years and are now splitting up. Both our names are on the house, and we have paid 50/50 for everything from down payment / ...
6
votes
3answers
153 views
Saving for a down payment on a new house, a few years out. Where do we put our money next?
We currently have two rewards checking accounts. We are nearing the maximums permitted on each account, after which we receive .5% and .25% APY. It's within our means to perhaps open another one, ...
5
votes
8answers
558 views
What part of buying a house would make my net worth go down?
I've thinking about buying a house, and how that would affect my net worth. It seems to me that if out of pocket + debt = value then the transaction shouldn't affect my net worth in the short term. ...
5
votes
3answers
630 views
If you buy a new home before selling the old one, what could happen from not paying the old mortgage?
I'm researching the process of selling a home and buying a new one. Several articles warn against buying the new home before the old one is sold because you may end up having to pay two mortgages. I'm ...
5
votes
4answers
1k views
Should I wait to save up 20% downpayment on a 500k condo?
Proper 2BRs start at $500k in our neighborhood. We're looking at buying, but I'm leery of the $100k downpayment. It would reduce our savings to 50k liquid and 75k in retirement.
I can easily ...
5
votes
3answers
279 views
Walking away from a mortgage & home - financial options
I currently have a home that is 100% Loan to Value. It has lost a significant amount of the value i paid for it -- hence now a 100% LtV guesstimate.
I am able to comfortably make my payments as it ...
5
votes
2answers
3k views
Can you sell your house for less than you owe and still make payments on the remainder?
I want to sell my house, but it seems that in order to do so I may need to lower the price to less than what I owe.
Is it possible to make an upside down sale like this and still make payments on the ...
4
votes
3answers
328 views
Should I take money out of an old 401(k) to put a down payment on a house?
My wife doesn't work anymore and she has a 401(k) of about $80,000 from an old job. I have been kicking around the idea of taking that money out or rolling into an IRA so that I can have better ...
4
votes
4answers
991 views
Will we have trouble getting a mortgage for our second home if we keep our first to rent out?
My wife and I are currently saving for a home. We currently own a small condo, which we would like to keep as a rental unit once we purchase the second home. Currently our home costs are under 12% ...
4
votes
2answers
206 views
What is mortgage insurance? Do you have to have it, in order to be approved by a bank?
What does mortgage insurance do? Whom does it protect? Do I need it? MUST I have it, in order to be approved by a bank for a mortgage with them?
4
votes
1answer
69 views
Does a land with an existing foundation (poured-in) qualify for a conventional home mortgage?
Based on my research, loans for land and construction lots are usually at a much higher rate than those for the purchase of a home. However, if a home does have an existing foundation poured in, will ...
4
votes
1answer
101 views
Is making an offer on a new property wise if current property is not sold or rented yet?
We are in the process of trying to rent our place. We would like to make an offer on another property, but hesitate to do so until our place is rented for obvious reasons. However, we also do not ...
4
votes
3answers
465 views
Shared home ownership - How to calculate percentages?
How do (can?) you fairly calculate the ownership percentages of a property between 3 people?
*All 3 people live in the property
*All 3 people have put in a different deposit amount
*All 3 people ...
4
votes
2answers
141 views
How to tell if HOA for a prospective condo purchase is financially healthy?
I'm considering purchasing a condo. I live in a major metropolitan area; so I'm almost certainly going to end up in a building maintained by an Home Owners Association (HOA).
As I'm learning the ins ...
4
votes
1answer
148 views
Where to invest proceeds from home sale to be used to buy new house within five years?
My wife and I have just sold our house (mortgage was paid off) in the city we lived previously. We're currently renting because we're not sure if we're going to remain in our new city. At some ...
4
votes
2answers
742 views
What if I'm named on the deed but not on the mortgage and my boyfriend moves out?
7 months ago my boyfriend and I purchased a home together. I am named on the deed but not on the mortgage. He has moved out and I have agreed to make the mortgage payments myself so that I do not have ...
3
votes
2answers
3k views
How do I calculate break even on selling a home?
I've only owned 1.5 years, but looking to sell my home because I want to change neighborhoods. Since most of the early mortgage payments on my 30-yr fixed rate loan go to interest rather than ...
3
votes
2answers
79 views
How to get the lowest mortgage rate on a new purchase?
Looking for a home loan in the mid $400,000, with 20% down on the value price, a first home purchase and in the U.S.
What strategies can be applied to ensure the best interest rate possible?
What ...
3
votes
3answers
181 views
Can my rent to own equity be used as a downpayment?
Here is my scenario.
Homeowner wants $296,000
Will give me letter stating that I have 20% down payment as a result of rent payments being applied toward purchase price.
My question is...does the ...
3
votes
1answer
85 views
Tax implications on profit/loss from selling a home that's not your primary residence?
What is the tax treatment for profit/loss on the sale of a home that is not your primary residence? Does length of ownership matter? USA rules, please.
2
votes
4answers
175 views
How do I know if Home value is likely to go up?
When looking for a home to purchase, I have heard that location is an important factor in determining whether the home value will go up or not.
What things would I need to look for when purchasing ...
2
votes
2answers
219 views
Cashing in stocks for house downpayment
I've got a handful of stocks that I'm planning on cashing in for a house down payment. I'm wondering if anyone knows if I will get hit with capital gains tax, if I'm immediately reinvesting the money ...
2
votes
1answer
1k views
Who is responsible for cost of fence repair between properties?
When a fence between two properties needs repair/replacement who is usually responsible for paying? Do both neighbors split it 50/50?
What about installing new one? Do neighbors split the cost? ...
2
votes
2answers
190 views
Good idea to purchase condo with no home owners association?
I'm looking at REO condos on homepath.com (the site for Fannie Mae foreclosures, etc). I'm wondering, is it a good/bad idea to purchase a condo with no home owners association? Most of them have ...
