Buying a house
I’m toying with the idea of buying a house. Or rather, a loft. Have been talking to a few people about it. Just seems like if I’m going to stay in the bay, which it seems like I’m going to, that I ought to invest. I’m paying relatively little rent to live in Palo Alto right now, and I have a ton of garage space, which I love. Gives me room for the Delorean. But I’m 40 minutes from the city, and that sucks since a lot of my friends are there and just about everything I want to do is there. So… perhaps a loft in the city?
Lots of questions come up. What can I afford? How will I deal with parking? What will I do with the Delorean? Will I actually like living in the city where there is less green space and more people? Can I find a loft that is built well enough that I feel comfortable playing my sax or using my subwoofer? (That is very important!)
I did a search for lofts in my ideal area of San Francisco, under $500,000. Eleven came up, so it looks like that is doable. Over $500,000 just starts to seem incredibly obscene. My brother bought a pretty nice house with a huge yard in Seattle, and it was about half that cost. Darn San Francisco.
Anyway, I’m doing some exploration. If you have any thoughts, please let me know!
Mark
Take your time and enjoy the process. Many people buy the first thing their realtor shows them, but we found that patience pays off. (It took us 9 months and 5 offers.)
The more you know the market the easier it is to make an offer which you won’t regret later on. Pick an area you want to live in and visit it often, like going to the nearby restaurants, bars and coffee places. Over time you’ll get a feel for where you want to be and learn the market rate for the area, then when a good deal comes up, you’ll be ready. You might even think about renting for a while in an area you like to test it out.
Friends many people I know who bought in the last few years found their places through non traditional sources…a friend in NY found her place through the concierge in the place she was renting. Another was looking for a place to lease and liked the building so much he offered to buy it from the landlord instead of renting. It’s just a matter of letting your street team know you are looking….
Good luck
Hey John!
How are you doing? Thanks for the message. Taking time is very good advice. I got all excited when I saw a particularly cool place in the MLS listings when I first started looking; then I realized I haven’t even gotten pre-approved for a mortgage yet so I should cool my jets. 🙂
And then I realized I really need to fill out my damned expense reports so that I’ll have a downpayment. Ha!
Anyway, now I’m realizing it’s a slow process, and that’s important. But I am feeling pretty antsy due to the rising interest rates and just generally insane market here. Ah well. Deep breaths. 🙂
Thanks for the reality check!