My great-aunt passed away last week.
My grandmother's sister.
My little brother married his beloved last week.
My new sister.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
More Real Estate Ramblings
Well, it's been 29 days. I'm sorry I didn't give more details throughout the month. Sharing my knowledge of homebuying might have helped someone else. Not becasue I know so much, but because I understand so little, and can break it down for anyone as equally ignorant as myself.
Long story short; we bought a house! We will sign papers and get keys at 3 pm! I'd post a picture, but I don't have one (my sister "stole" my camera!).
Fave things: gorgeous YELLOW kitchen (no painting required with lotsa cabinets and a center island (for parties!), covered patio and back deck (needs to be cleaned and resealed, but that's a small price to pay for all the parties we'll have out there!)
There's normal stuff we like too: fireplace, 3 bedrooms, walk-in closets, 2-car garage, large master bedroom, the price$$!, owing a home, not living above Ed who likes to keep his bulldog on his balcony and only hose it off once a month, having room to put things where they belong, I could go on. I'll know more when we're actually in posession.
We're extremely excited and scared. It's too late to back out, but Cyrus comapred it to getting married. Our lives are totally changing, and we're happy about it, but it's a huge change and one can't help but have some reservations.
Long story short; we bought a house! We will sign papers and get keys at 3 pm! I'd post a picture, but I don't have one (my sister "stole" my camera!).
Fave things: gorgeous YELLOW kitchen (no painting required with lotsa cabinets and a center island (for parties!), covered patio and back deck (needs to be cleaned and resealed, but that's a small price to pay for all the parties we'll have out there!)
There's normal stuff we like too: fireplace, 3 bedrooms, walk-in closets, 2-car garage, large master bedroom, the price$$!, owing a home, not living above Ed who likes to keep his bulldog on his balcony and only hose it off once a month, having room to put things where they belong, I could go on. I'll know more when we're actually in posession.
We're extremely excited and scared. It's too late to back out, but Cyrus comapred it to getting married. Our lives are totally changing, and we're happy about it, but it's a huge change and one can't help but have some reservations.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Real Estate Ramblings
Did you know that the word Mortgage comes from the Latin morte which means death? Basically a mortgage is a death pledge. It's not surprising, given when most mortgages are usually paid off. We are not getting into the same promise (I hope).
One important bit of advice has been to decide how much we can afford before we apply for the mortgage, instead of relying on the lender to tell us. From what I understand, they're not giving away money willy-nilly as in recent years, but they still might offer more than we really want to borrow. They might be surprised that I understand a little thing called interest (and it works for me, not agaisnt me).
Just compare a 15-year mortgage to a 30-year. If we were to buy a $100k home @ a super small 6% rate our monthly payment for 30 years would be $615, but $844/month with a 15-year mortgage. Go for the 30-year, right? It's cheaper. Oh no! If you multiply each one out, the total payment on the 30-year loan totals (wait for it...wait for it...) $221,655! That's over twice the loan (and quite possibly twice the value of the home at this point). Multiply out the 15-year and you get (wait for it...wait for it...) only $151,894. What a bargain! And a $70,000 difference! In some places, you could buy another house for that! Incredible. Why the difference? Interest, people! The 30-year loan comes with $121,656 worth of interest (the interest alone is more than the death pledge!), while the 15-er has only $51,894.
Ok, ok, so this math I understand. I don't understand the vicious cycle we're in. We can't get a rate locked in until we're under contract with the seller, but we can't get under contract until we're pre-approved for a loan, but we don't know which lender we want until we lock in a rate! It's driving me crazy! Like I'm on this roller coaster, but I can't get off (or on!).
One important bit of advice has been to decide how much we can afford before we apply for the mortgage, instead of relying on the lender to tell us. From what I understand, they're not giving away money willy-nilly as in recent years, but they still might offer more than we really want to borrow. They might be surprised that I understand a little thing called interest (and it works for me, not agaisnt me).
Just compare a 15-year mortgage to a 30-year. If we were to buy a $100k home @ a super small 6% rate our monthly payment for 30 years would be $615, but $844/month with a 15-year mortgage. Go for the 30-year, right? It's cheaper. Oh no! If you multiply each one out, the total payment on the 30-year loan totals (wait for it...wait for it...) $221,655! That's over twice the loan (and quite possibly twice the value of the home at this point). Multiply out the 15-year and you get (wait for it...wait for it...) only $151,894. What a bargain! And a $70,000 difference! In some places, you could buy another house for that! Incredible. Why the difference? Interest, people! The 30-year loan comes with $121,656 worth of interest (the interest alone is more than the death pledge!), while the 15-er has only $51,894.
Ok, ok, so this math I understand. I don't understand the vicious cycle we're in. We can't get a rate locked in until we're under contract with the seller, but we can't get under contract until we're pre-approved for a loan, but we don't know which lender we want until we lock in a rate! It's driving me crazy! Like I'm on this roller coaster, but I can't get off (or on!).
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