Should I Buy It?

I ended up not getting that house. The insurance company detected mold in the walls and wouldn't insure it. I bid on a couple of other houses and it didn't pan out either. I have one now that I'm waiting for bank approval ($55K) on but I'm seriously considering dropping out. The economic situation makes me nervous.

My question is: I'm going to need someplace to live regardless of the economic situation. What would be the ramifications of living in a house I "own" versus a rental during an economic crisis?

Thanks
 
Odyssey said:
My question is: I'm going to need someplace to live regardless of the economic situation. What would be the ramifications of living in a house I "own" versus a rental during an economic crisis?
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I know the main thing I think about when considering buying a place in the current economic situation(decided not to for the next couple years) is will I have enough money to pay for upkeep, taxes, and mortgage if I lose my job or don't have any money coming in. So I think the situation really depends on what your savings are, job security, any other debt and how much will you owe on mortgage after down payment. Sounds like you are looking to have a fairly significant loan for the house (50 K) when you buy so I think all of the above are worth considering.
 
Bear said:
Odyssey said:
My question is: I'm going to need someplace to live regardless of the economic situation. What would be the ramifications of living in a house I "own" versus a rental during an economic crisis?
Click to expand...

I know the main thing I think about when considering buying a place in the current economic situation(decided not to for the next couple years) is will I have enough money to pay for upkeep, taxes, and mortgage if I lose my job or don't have any money coming in. So I think the situation really depends on what your savings are, job security, any other debt and how much will you owe on mortgage after down payment. Sounds like you are looking to have a fairly significant loan for the house (50 K) when you buy so I think all of the above are worth considering.
Click to expand...

My savings are decent and I have an in-demand job with security, or so I think. Having my own house would still be cheaper than renting for the most part. Due to her recent retirement, my mother would still need to move in with me as she can't afford to live on her own now. So she would be able to contribute a small amount toward the household though I could afford it all on my own. The way I figure it I could be thrown out a rental faster for inability to pay than my own house. But I could be figuring wrong.
 
Hi Odyssey,
Sounds like you are in pretty good shape in terms of buying. In general I just don't like debt, but with the situation with your mom and paying half of what you rent for then buying sounds like a good decision. You could even pay extra each month into the principal of the loan to shorten it. Or you could save the money and look to investments like precious metals for part of your savings. Best of luck to you in your house search!
 
[quote author=Odyssey]
My savings are decent and I have an in-demand job with security, or so I think. [/quote]

The way I see it, at this point in time, there's no such thing as "job security". Especially in the US, but not only.

Odyssey said:
Having my own house would still be cheaper than renting for the most part. Due to her recent retirement, my mother would still need to move in with me as she can't afford to live on her own now. So she would be able to contribute a small amount toward the household though I could afford it all on my own. The way I figure it I could be thrown out a rental faster for inability to pay than my own house. But I could be figuring wrong.
Click to expand...

I don't know if that's the case (bolded above) given the ghost neighborhoods in the US the last few years. Personally, I would rent for the time being, and see how things go from there. If your mother can contribute to renting, you can keep some savings on the side for a "rainy day". Another thing with renting is that you don't need a down payment, and you can leave at any point without worrying as much for the investment you made, or worrying about selling. I also support Bear's advice on using some savings to buy gold or silver. These are just my current thoughts. But this is a decision you will need to make for yourself, taking into consideration your personal circumstances and the economic conditions where you live.
 
Thanks Alana and Bear for the suggestions. I still haven't come to any final decision though it does seem like renting would be the easiest route to take for now. My desire for a house stems largely from wanting more space indoors and out as well as more privacy. Hmm, decisions, decisions.
 
I recommend buying some land or house, with farming space, and getting known to permaculture. That's what I'm gonna do anyways: natural food won't lose it's value even though there are people trying to make it as hard for small farmers who don't use tractors to get by. They can't do much though, the worst fear is losing your property due to not being able to pay the property tax if you ask me, in which case you should invest some in gold. Apart from that property tax, you can actually get pretty self-sufficient in most areas. With solar panels, cold cellar and food preservation instead of fridge, laptop instead of PC, painting indoors white and placing strategical mirrors and windows to reduce the need for lights and going sleep before the dark etc, lots of ways to save electricity. Instead of sevage systems try outhouse and a natural graywater system. For food, permaculture and Joel Salatini's work for example. That's how I'm gonna do it, because I wish to be free to make choises in my life, not to always choose a job and survive it with some form of painkillers and mind-numbers forever. It's not like that makes you a bad person or anything, but I just feel one should have control of one's life if it doesn't harm other people.
 
Hi Griller,

I'd like to invite you to post an intro in the newbie section of the forum. it doesn't have to be long, just a little something about yourself and how you found the forum. :)
 
Griller said:
I recommend buying some land or house, with farming space, and getting known to permaculture. That's what I'm gonna do anyways: natural food won't lose it's value even though there are people trying to make it as hard for small farmers who don't use tractors to get by. They can't do much though, the worst fear is losing your property due to not being able to pay the property tax if you ask me, in which case you should invest some in gold. Apart from that property tax, you can actually get pretty self-sufficient in most areas. With solar panels, cold cellar and food preservation instead of fridge, laptop instead of PC, painting indoors white and placing strategical mirrors and windows to reduce the need for lights and going sleep before the dark etc, lots of ways to save electricity. Instead of sevage systems try outhouse and a natural graywater system. For food, permaculture and Joel Salatini's work for example. That's how I'm gonna do it, because I wish to be free to make choises in my life, not to always choose a job and survive it with some form of painkillers and mind-numbers forever. It's not like that makes you a bad person or anything, but I just feel one should have control of one's life if it doesn't harm other people.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Griller. However, buying farmland is quite outside of what I am capable of doing at the moment. I would have a small garden though.

For those of you who have bought silver or gold online...where did you get it and are you satisfied with your purchase?
 
Odyssey said:
For those of you who have bought silver or gold online...where did you get it and are you satisfied with your purchase?
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I bought my gold way back when it was about $425/oz, both from kitco.com and onlygold.com. I've since sold a good bit of it and wish I'd hung onto more. :/

I used onlygold first cause I wanted to talk to real people as opposed to a total internet transaction.

I bought the silver someplace else, arg, can't remember, I'll have to look it up. Aha, I think it was APMEX !
 
I buy from Apmex and have had no problems (quick and they have a nice selection). I also bought from Northwest Territorial Mint (they can take a number of weeks to deliver, but they always have) and bought from Investment Rarities (good customer service and I didn't have any problems). I'd say give all three a call and see what they have to say about the market, where they think things are heading, what the demand is right now, and what they think is a good choice and option in terms of the form of precious metals (coins, bars, 90% silver, etc). I haven't called for some time, but NWT Mint was pretty spot on with predicting about 18 months in advance that silver was going to test the all time high.

edit added: you can also find the best price (including premiums) from each place by looking on the internet or calling.

I haven't done this and have considered doing so once I build up some money is buying gold and have someone track and store it for you. Two places seemed to stand out in terms of being reputable businesses from my reading are:
http://www.goldmoney.com/
http://live.bullionvault.com/front2/frontpage-2.html
 
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