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Which house to buy? (1 Viewer)

Colin Dunn

Supporting Actor
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Oct 10, 1998
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741
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Indianapolis, IN
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Colin Dunn
Todd -

I'm actually looking in the $125K-$155K price range, not up to $175K ... so that rules out many of the existing homes on the market here (priced from $170K-$250K). There are plenty of $100/sq. ft. neighborhoods here, but I'm avoiding them like the plague. If I made twice as much, I'd have a billion choices in houses right now...

It isn't just semiconductors, but the whole information-technology industry that has collapsed. In retrospect, I wish I'd bailed out of this industry when times were good; all investment bubbles end up destroying the industry that boomed (oil in the early '80s, aerospace in the early '90s). I really have no way of increasing my earnings. Either I will hang on to my current job and stay put, end up in a lesser job, or end up driven out of the industry altogether. So I'm looking to downgrade to a smaller place and a longer commute to improve my cash flow by about $500-600 per month. The higher-end options at $155K would only save me $350 per month.

At least I made my last car payment this week ... another $350 per month I can hang onto...

It's tempting to go for option #3 because it costs essentially the same as option 1, but has lots of room to spread out. However, I don't think I could take in roommates to defray expenses, since the house is way at the outskirts of the metro area. (And not to mention, I like my privacy...)
 

Ashley Seymour

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Jun 29, 2000
Messages
938
Option #2.

I look at a lot of houses and with home theater in mind, nothing is as frustrating as a fireplace in the family room. Really screws up trying to place any type of TV, direct view or rear view and a set of speakers.

Why not have the builder place it in the living room? A fireplace is not a necessity, but it does enhance the resale value. If you were to live there 20 years then skip it, but in 3-5 years it will be a nice selling point. Also go with gas. Save the wood buring fp for your cabin. If you are single then you won't spend much time in the living room. The builder should be able to put in a zero clearance fp with a bay out the back. You can even put a window above it to make the living room brighter.

What are the dimensions of this lot? The home seems narrow in front and runs deep. My guess is that this lot is 66-75 feet wide and 100-110 feet deep. That is why it has to be so narrow. Not the best selling point as a nice size lot would be 90-100 feet wide and as deep. But these are the lots that cost a lot more.

The more modest neighborhood would give the benefit of having many more buyes when it came time to sell.

The higher end neighborhood home with the home priced at the bottom of the market would also bring a good price, but do you really want to spend that much more for the other negatives?

Bump your payment 10-20% and when you move on in a few years you will have a bit more equity to work with.

Homes are reaching their maximum size right now. Builders are starting to see buyers wanting home below the average size, but with more ammenities. Makes sense as the boomers are reaching their 50's and do not need the large homes they did before when they had kids. But now they have a lot of equity and wants some more goodies.

Will the builder consider triple pane windows (on the rail and or street side) to cut the noise? Also will they do blow in insulation that will help to seal all the spaces better than batt insulation?

Some builders are so cookie cutter that they won't bend much. Better to get one that may charge just a bit more, but be willing to put in the things you want.

Look at the nicer elevation. What kind of kitchen does this model have? Laminated counter tops, cheap applicances and cheap cabinets may save money in the short run, but these extras mean a lot when it is time to sell. If the market is slow it may mean the difference between a quick sale and one that takes longer and at a bigger discount.

The #3 home has more sq ft, but will the builder do a 3 car garage on #2? That would give some good options for storage and maybe later a third bay could be finished as a shop or office. The narrow design argues against this option so see if the subdivisio has bigger lots. Around here the extra bay would cost about $3,500.

Good luck
 

BrianB

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Hey Colin, wondered what option you ended up choosing? 1,2,3 or 4 - none of the above?
 

Leo Hinze

Stunt Coordinator
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Jan 15, 1999
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Some thoughts:

Beware of Leander w.r.t. your water supply. I think they may have some better supplies now (pipelines from Lake Travis and/or Lake Georgetown), but I always remember Leander having a serious lack of water most summers. I think Lago Vista has a nice pumping station on Lake Travis, so they have fewer water shortages.

Do you really need a fireplace in Texas? I had them in a few places I lived, but I never really needed to use it. Plus, you would probably have to pay for firewood anyway. Just have the builder delete the fireplace.

If you're willing to live in Leander or Lago Vista, have you checked out Georgetown? It shouldn't be any farther than Lago Vista, and you can get houses out near Lake Georgetown for a good price.

Personally, I would avoid a generic suburban setting like Leander. I know they are working on improving the highway, but 183 traffic is just awful IMO. I am the type of person who would rather pay more per sf for a smaller house close in than less per sf for a 3000 sf house in Leander. YMMV.

Good luck.

Leo
 

Colin Dunn

Supporting Actor
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741
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Indianapolis, IN
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Colin Dunn
Since this thread got resurrected, an update...

I haven't done anything yet ("none of the above"). Still considering making the move, but haven't decided just what to do yet.

I don't quite understand how housing prices in Austin can remain so high. Word is that the supply of homes for sale is the highest it has been in years (bad time to sell). Yet with this excess supply, many people still seem to think they can sell old houses with no basements for over $100/sq. ft.

Leo - are you still in the Austin area? Georgetown has gotten rather expensive as of late, with wealthy retirees pouring in to enjoy the 'small town' atmosphere. I'll have to look again and see if there's anything other than the small, overpriced homes I saw a couple of years ago.

I'm now considering new options...

Gehan Homes, the builder offering options #2-#3 in Leander, will open a subdivision in Round Rock later this year. I may hold off and then go there instead to avoid the water worries.

If I go to Lago Vista, I will probably look at resale homes instead of the builder I initially considered (Reytex Homes). $155K for 1,800 sq. ft. is too high for that area; I saw a listing for a 2-story, 2,000+ sq. ft. Reytex home that had come back on the market as a resale, priced at $149,900.

Or I may just do nothing. If the economy heads into the dreaded 'double-dip' recession, I may just have to sell my existing place, move to a crappy low-rent apartment, and go back to school and get out of the moribund tech industry for good...
 

BrianB

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I don't quite understand how housing prices in Austin can remain so high. Word is that the supply of homes for sale is the highest it has been in years (bad time to sell). Yet with this excess supply, many people still seem to think they can sell old houses with no basements for over $100/sq. ft.
Sounds just like Dallas, unfortunately. We're looking at houses right now & considering our longterm options, which is why I ressurrected this thread, Colin, to hear how you were getting on in our other favoured part of Texas.
 

Michael Silla

Second Unit
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Jul 27, 2001
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313
What I am wondering Colin is if any of these plans are reffering to TOTAL square footage because if they are not then I'm moving to Austin!.

Prices in the Salt Lake City metro area are just too darn much. I live 32.5 miles away from work and drive 35 mintues in the morning to work and 45 minutes in the afternoon to home. If I could find a option like your #2 that was 20 mins or less away from work I would jump in an instant.

Michael.
 

Colin Dunn

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Indianapolis, IN
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Colin Dunn
Housing prices in Austin are still high in relation to prevailing salaries. Before you think that 2,500 sq. ft. for $230,000 is a bargain consider these...

- There is no work for tech people in this town right now. The big high-tech companies in Austin laid off half their staffs in the past year. The small high-tech companies in Austin were dot.coms that collapsed. Non-tech jobs pay so poorly that one cannot even afford to DREAM of owning a house on those salaries...
- Property taxes are high, approximately 2.5-3% of the property value per year. Property tax on a $230,000 home can approach $7,000 per year, or $583 per month.
- There are no basements, so you can't cheaply add 30-50% more square footage below. A 3,000 sq. ft. 2-story really is comparable to a 1,500 sq. ft. 1-story with a full-size finished basement in terms of actual living space.
- The big, cheap houses are in suburbs 20-30 miles outside of Austin. It can take over an hour to get to work from these locations because the road system in Austin is woefully inadequate. Good locations close-in have stratospheric prices, often exceeding $150 per square foot. The traffic gets worse and worse as people move out to the suburbs to buy homes at 1/3 the sq. ft. price of central Austin neighborhoods ... but roads don't get built...

That said, I left the Denver area because even accounting for basements and lower property taxes, it was just getting too expensive there. The going rate for a decent house near Denver is still in the high $300K range, about twice what I could have afforded using the standard 28-31% ratios...
 

Leo Hinze

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Colin, I am no longer in the area. I lived in/around Austin from 1989-2001. I had a house in Georgetown for a while, and I worked in Georgetown, so I didn't have to worry about the commute. My house was a bit older -built in 1982. It was in Serenda, ~1900 sf, 1 acre lot, lots of big, mature, shady trees. I paid ~$75/sf, sold for about ~83/sf after 2-1/2 years. I liked it better than the larger and cheaper houses in the treeless subdivisions built on old farmland. I really wanted a little house in Old Town Georgetown, but none were available at the time.
 

Michael Silla

Second Unit
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Jul 27, 2001
Messages
313
Colin,

Those property tax assessments are just plain nuts. In my neighorhood a 200,000 dollar home (with a 1/3 acre) would probably fetch only 1500-1800 dollars in property tax. Ouch.

So there is no decent freeway system leading into and out of Austin?. No wonder driving 20-30 miles is a nightmare for you.

As far as Denver is concerned, I know what you mean. I have a friend retired from Coors who has a place in Golden. I swear there is nothing special about the place yet if he wanted to sell right now he could probably fetch in the mid-400's for a place that has ~3000 total square feet. Absolutely nuts, but then again it is all relative I guess....

Michael.
 

BrianB

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Apr 29, 2000
Messages
5,205
Those property tax assessments are just plain nuts. In my neighorhood a 200,000 dollar home (with a 1/3 acre) would probably fetch only 1500-1800 dollars in property tax. Ouch.
Texas has no state income tax, so it makes it back via property taxes.
 

mike_frontier

Supporting Actor
Joined
Nov 18, 2002
Messages
670
Hi Colin,
I am actually in Leander in MASON CREEK area and Leander is a nice place to live. :) I been here 4 years and its been great. The only thing sucks is the taxes here. My home payments went up about $100.00 more per month. At this time I am looking to upgrade from my house and I did look at GEHAN in the premeir edition and there nice. Honestly that area is too close to leander police station and that sub divison is not going to have a park or pool. I mean I don't know if you have kids but an park and pool be a great plus :).
I really do like GEHAN and if i'd was you I look at the Gehans in Ridgewood South. They are the classic edition and you will pay a little more but heck that neighbor hood looks great once it is done. I am thinking about buying the Gehan Mackenzie model home with is an 1-story and 2249 sq feet. Love the floor plan so I can fit a pool table in the dining area also :D.
Another good area to look at is the PULTE Homes in Heritage Park in Cedar Park. I like the Kingswood model home and you can get it for less then 140K with minor additional upgrades.
Hey if your ever in the area E-mail me I can let you know what places are great to live in Leander or Cedar Park.
I think Lago is nice,,, but IMHO its for older folks that are retired. I'd keep away from there till I cant walk or hear anymore before I head that way (lol, just teasing).
Good Luck
Mike
 

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