Comments on: Ba-Ba-Ba-Benny and the Fed http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/ Seattle's Leading Resource for Real Estate Information Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:47:42 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Adrianna http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-185764 Adrianna Thu, 27 Sep 2007 18:29:10 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-185764 Oh, that was you, all the way. My usual blog name is "flush puppy". ;) Oh, that was you, all the way. My usual blog name is “flush puppy”. ;)

]]> By: ARDELL http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-185039 ARDELL Wed, 26 Sep 2007 03:51:34 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-185039 Thanks Adrianna! Did I pick that name or did you? Looks like one I would have picked. No one can say you didn't do your homework, that's for sure. Thanks Adrianna!

Did I pick that name or did you? Looks like one I would have picked. No one can say you didn’t do your homework, that’s for sure.

]]> By: Adrianna http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184840 Adrianna Tue, 25 Sep 2007 16:09:04 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184840 I write this response at the risk of being pummeled by everyone who believes buying a house is a bad move financially - save me the preaching. YES, I KNOW THE BANK OWNS MOST OF THE HOUSE. And I don't feel "smug" about anything. What I do feel is a sense of stability - as Ardell says above, renting even long term is not the same as owning your own space and being to do with it what you will. We also now know what our payments will be every month (though taxes and insurance will change), unlike renting. If something breaks, yes, it costs money to fix, but at least we know it will get done and done right. And I feel a certain pride in being able to buy a place in the first place, which I never felt in my rentals - at our age, I did feel like a loser being the only one of our peers who didn't own a house. George is right in his comment above - this is the beginning of a big adventure, with hopefully a VERY happy ending...:) I write this response at the risk of being pummeled by everyone who believes buying a house is a bad move financially – save me the preaching. YES, I KNOW THE BANK OWNS MOST OF THE HOUSE. And I don’t feel “smug” about anything. What I do feel is a sense of stability – as Ardell says above, renting even long term is not the same as owning your own space and being to do with it what you will. We also now know what our payments will be every month (though taxes and insurance will change), unlike renting. If something breaks, yes, it costs money to fix, but at least we know it will get done and done right. And I feel a certain pride in being able to buy a place in the first place, which I never felt in my rentals – at our age, I did feel like a loser being the only one of our peers who didn’t own a house. George is right in his comment above – this is the beginning of a big adventure, with hopefully a VERY happy ending…:)

]]> By: ARDELL http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184803 ARDELL Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:39:09 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184803 Adrianna, If you don't mind my asking, what is the difference to you between owning now and renting all those years? I'm pretty sure you are my first client in 17 years who rented continuously until age 40 and with two children. Is there anything significantly different for you and your family owning vs. renting? I bought my house before I was married by six months or so in advance. So I have little perspective in the "rent vs. buy" scenario with children involved. The few times we did rent when we moved, for a short time, I always felt like we were living in someone else's house. Like we were "camping out" there but it wasn't really "home". Do you or your husband or the children notice any difference other than you are paying more? Is the increase in monthly payment owning vs. renting "worth it", and if so, how? Adrianna,

If you don’t mind my asking, what is the difference to you between owning now and renting all those years? I’m pretty sure you are my first client in 17 years who rented continuously until age 40 and with two children. Is there anything significantly different for you and your family owning vs. renting? I bought my house before I was married by six months or so in advance. So I have little perspective in the “rent vs. buy” scenario with children involved.

The few times we did rent when we moved, for a short time, I always felt like we were living in someone else’s house. Like we were “camping out” there but it wasn’t really “home”.

Do you or your husband or the children notice any difference other than you are paying more? Is the increase in monthly payment owning vs. renting “worth it”, and if so, how?

]]> By: ARDELL http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184801 ARDELL Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:29:05 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184801 Alan, We're having a little trouble with your scenario, (Kim and I talking). A $500,000 house would not sustain a bump of $60,000 for a master bath, as the typical house for $500,000 would not have enough other things, or a large enough space for that bathroom, to accommodate the $60,000 bump on one single improvement. The appraiser's old guideline for "extra value" is 10% of the value of the house without the extra, and that includes ALL extras. If you bump the price to a $730,000 purchase price, then it is more likely that it could go to $790,000, but only if they added extra space when they put in that Master Bath, and didn't take it from the existing finished square footage. Say a rambler on a large lot where they added the master bath as an addition to the house. Simply remodeling the bath, in it's same size, would not add $60,000 to pretty much any house that cost $500,000 to start with. If it had NO master bath, and you added a master bath while at the same time adding to the total square footage, then you might get back the $60,000. Alan,

We’re having a little trouble with your scenario, (Kim and I talking). A $500,000 house would not sustain a bump of $60,000 for a master bath, as the typical house for $500,000 would not have enough other things, or a large enough space for that bathroom, to accommodate the $60,000 bump on one single improvement. The appraiser’s old guideline for “extra value” is 10% of the value of the house without the extra, and that includes ALL extras.

If you bump the price to a $730,000 purchase price, then it is more likely that it could go to $790,000, but only if they added extra space when they put in that Master Bath, and didn’t take it from the existing finished square footage.

Say a rambler on a large lot where they added the master bath as an addition to the house. Simply remodeling the bath, in it’s same size, would not add $60,000 to pretty much any house that cost $500,000 to start with. If it had NO master bath, and you added a master bath while at the same time adding to the total square footage, then you might get back the $60,000.

]]> By: ARDELL http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184799 ARDELL Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:21:27 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184799 Rhonda, #67 is Adrianna's scenario in Seattle. #73 is someone else who bought in Bellevue. Maybe on my two year anniversary of blogging, 1/1/08, I'll ask all the blogclients to write a "if I had to do it all over again, what might I have done differently". Rhonda,

#67 is Adrianna’s scenario in Seattle. #73 is someone else who bought in Bellevue.

Maybe on my two year anniversary of blogging, 1/1/08, I’ll ask all the blogclients to write a “if I had to do it all over again, what might I have done differently”.

]]> By: ARDELL http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184798 ARDELL Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:17:08 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184798 Adrianna! Sorry I missed this yesterday. Seems to me we were hoping Santa Claus was going to be coming down your chimney last year. That gives people a bit about timeframe as to how long it could possibly take for someone to make a wise housing choice. My blog shows my first post tagged Adrianna as 9/27/06 and 12/09/06 was "multiple offers and meatballs" when we were hoping for a chimney for Santa to come down last year :) So it took 9 or 10 months from beginning to end. Adrianna! Sorry I missed this yesterday. Seems to me we were hoping Santa Claus was going to be coming down your chimney last year. That gives people a bit about timeframe as to how long it could possibly take for someone to make a wise housing choice.

My blog shows my first post tagged Adrianna as 9/27/06 and 12/09/06 was “multiple offers and meatballs” when we were hoping for a chimney for Santa to come down last year :) So it took 9 or 10 months from beginning to end.

]]> By: Rhonda Porter http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184795 Rhonda Porter Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:12:40 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184795 George, Ardell suggested that Adrianna may write a post on the anniversary of owning her home (#73)... if she's game, you'll have your happy ending story then. George, Ardell suggested that Adrianna may write a post on the anniversary of owning her home (#73)… if she’s game, you’ll have your happy ending story then.

]]> By: Kary L. Krismer http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184785 Kary L. Krismer Tue, 25 Sep 2007 13:14:15 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184785 Jay wrote: "The premium people have been willing to pay up to now for a flipper to come in and update things is just rediculous . . .." If you're talking about how much money flippers have recently been making, what you're ignoring is risk. Buying a house that is in the condition where it could be flipped is a great risk, especially if you buy it at foreclosure. With risk generally comes returns (or losses). Jay wrote: “The premium people have been willing to pay up to now for a flipper to come in and update things is just rediculous . . ..”

If you’re talking about how much money flippers have recently been making, what you’re ignoring is risk. Buying a house that is in the condition where it could be flipped is a great risk, especially if you buy it at foreclosure. With risk generally comes returns (or losses).

]]> By: George http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184702 George Tue, 25 Sep 2007 07:38:41 +0000 http://raincityguide.com/2007/09/18/ba-ba-ba-benny-and-the-fed/#comment-184702 Happy ending? Sounds more like a happy BEGINNING to me. I'd say you will need to wait until next year at least to decide exactly how happy your ending is... Happy ending?

Sounds more like a happy BEGINNING to me.

I’d say you will need to wait until next year at least to decide exactly how happy your ending is…

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