I certainly wouldn't say buying is always better for everyone, it's just taking out a mortgage isn't always worse.

Or, to an equal or nicer neighborhood, but a little further outside of Boston (not far, just say 5-10 miles more, and still on the bus lines, and commuter rail, and in some cases, the subway lines).

5-10 miles from where I live is 90% unaffordable for me. There's a reason why so many Tufts students live in Somerville instead of Medford. Moving further away but not particularly down in my case means pretty specifically moving east, to the Malden/Revere/Salem area. Practically every new (first time) homeowner I know has bought in that area. Don't think I haven't bee eyeballing the prices of those towns, and using them as baselines.

(I could move to East Somerville, but that's a serious downmarket move, and not in the "charmingly decrepit" way.)

How big is your apartment, Nutty?

It's a postage stamp. It's a 2 bedroom, and I could easily live alone in it, and it has one closet for the whole apartment, and it has Creepy Basement Bob instead of a laundry hookup and storage space.

I certainly wouldn't say buying is always better for everyone

Heck, the way things are going for me I may be renting again at some point.

How much would a postage stamp condo go for, in your neighborhood?

eta

Oh, Gud. I hope not.

In my neighborhood, a 712 sq ft apartment was listed at 439K. It sold for 499K.

Sorry, just feeling unoptomistic this morning. Maybe this weekend will go better.

What 499K buys in my zip code.

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Somewhat inflated because it's in an upscale gated community with a golf course and it's pretty new.

Gud, my husband's family lives in Overland Park and Blue Springs. They don't understand why we can't buy anything out here because they just can't process the prices.

How much would a postage stamp condo go for, in your neighborhood?

I believe for a 2B in my neighborhood, the condo rate is currrently in the 240K+ range, without any knowledge of the size. (Probably 50K less in Revere.) I don't expect my own apartment to sell for any less than 240K (if it were to be sold). You'd be really alarmed to see what "luxury condo" means around here.

In my neighborhood, a 712 sq ft apartment was listed at 439K. It sold for 499K.

Okay, I don't think we're that bad yet.

because they just can't process the prices.

Overland Park seems expensive to me, Missouri side Kansas City is pretty cheap.