Owning gets you tax breaks, which can be pretty considerable. I knew I'd be selling my co-op in NYC in five years or so when I bought it, so I put the tax money into paying extra on the mortage. This brought the principl down enough that when I sold it, I had a nice chunk of change. Being a homeowner is also good for your overall credit picture.
Kaylee: You're nice, too. Mal: No, I'm not. I'm a mean old man.
'Serenity'
Spike's Bitches 22: You've got Angel breath
[NAFDA] Spike-centric discussion. Lusty, lewd (only occasionally crude), risque (and frisque), bawdy (Oh, lawdy!), flirty ('cuz we're purty), raunchy talk inside. Caveat lector.
Scrappy - Feb 15, 2005 9:12:13 am PST #1190 of 10001
Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
-t - Feb 15, 2005 9:13:59 am PST #1191 of 10001
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration
That's part of it, too, Susan. What we have now is technically a 2BR and it's way too small. So we need either a bigger 2BR or a 3+, with a yard, that takes dogs, and I'd prefer not to share walls as I really don't like knowing when my neighbors orgasm. There are rentals like that, but there are more for sale.
vw bug - Feb 15, 2005 9:14:20 am PST #1192 of 10001
Mostly lurking...
Susan, WooHoo! That's fabulous!
Poor Cindy! How's that nose feeling?
-t - Feb 15, 2005 9:16:40 am PST #1193 of 10001
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration
I knew I'd be selling my co-op in NYC in five years or so when I bought it, so I put the tax money into paying extra on the mortage. This brought the principl down enough that when I sold it, I had a nice chunk of change.
That's a very interesting idea.
Gudanov - Feb 15, 2005 9:19:21 am PST #1194 of 10001
Coding and Sleeping
Actually the tax breaks may not be that much if housing costs are low in your area. Last year I couldn't itemize enough to beat the standard deduction even with the mortgage interest deduction.
Topic!Cindy - Feb 15, 2005 9:20:25 am PST #1195 of 10001
What is even happening?
Susan, WOO HOO!
Poor Cindy! How's that nose feeling?Still a little sore, but not nearly as bad as it was. Chris and I just read a book. I can't get over his reading. It's really something.
How's that paper feeling, vw?
-t - Feb 15, 2005 9:23:16 am PST #1196 of 10001
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration
Hm. My friends that bought a place for $80k were impressed with their tax deduction. It's mostly based on interest paid, which is a large percentage of teh early mortgage payments, right?
This is what I've been doing since we realized we'd have to move, talking myself in and out of buying.
You let him have a book, Cindy? You're very brave.
Betsy HP - Feb 15, 2005 9:37:11 am PST #1197 of 10001
If I only had a brain...
vw bug - Feb 15, 2005 9:39:16 am PST #1198 of 10001
Mostly lurking...
How's that paper feeling, vw?
The paper is lying untouched while I work on my poems that are due tomorrow. And there goes the beeper to go switch the laundry. Craziness today, I tell you!
Paper will be getting touched soon. I need to take a break from this depressing poem I just wrote.
Lyra Jane - Feb 15, 2005 10:00:22 am PST #1199 of 10001
Up with the sun
Woo-Hoo to Susan!
I kind of want to buy a house for the investment value and la la. Of course, that will mean saying we really definitely for sure are staying in northern Virginia. (Which we probably ARE, but sometimes I look at job listings and get itchy feet.) And then there's the fact that there are a)houses we can afford and b)houses that are in neighborhoods we want to live in, and a and b don't so much overlap. (We could probably buy a condo, but I do not see the point of paying $300K for property that doesn't come with a yard or a basement.)
But all of our relatives and property-owning friends agree that it is Time For Us to Buy a House, and I'm inclined to think they probably know something.