Rent vs buying??

[Anonymous]

We're moving to the DC area this summer. We have a house to sell, but houses in our area are selling slowly. We doubt our house will sell before we leave.

Buying will cost us about $2,500 more per month that would renting a similar house in the DC area. We'll have to dig into our savings to pay the extra money to buy.

My question: For those who have moved to DC, rented first, then bought when your house sold, was the money you saved worth it to move twice?

As I see it, the cost of a local move is not a lot (Ok, maybe $3,000 at most). Our cross country move will cost $10K to $15K). BUT I'd have to unpack and repack, plus all the aggravation of changing utilities, internet, phone, learning a new area, adjusting to new neighbors, etc. All this while helping three school-aged kids adjust to a new area and new schools.

DH is leaning toward renting. I'm a SAHM, and I want to buy and get it over with. So we spend down our savings, better than me having a heart attack, right?

What would you do? (BTW, I'm not young, but my kids are, so I really might have a heart attack!!)

[Anonymous]

i'm a renter w/ two school-age kids. we've moved three times since they're born. some think renting is beneath them so it's a non-starter. if you're not one of them, it's not all that bad once you unpack the necessities, really.

[Anonymous]

Buying will cost us about $2,500 more per month that would renting a similar house in the DC area. We'll have to dig into our savings to pay the extra money to buy.

This part confuses me. If it's really that much more a month to buy than rent for you here, it will be like that in your budget for a really long time if you buy a home. Can you afford to buy a home here?

Also, will your move here be more or less permanent? Will you be staying in the area for at least 5 years?

If you can't afford the mortgage amount for a long time and you plan to move in less than 5 years anyway, I'd rent.

[Anonymous]

This depends on (actually very) specific location and can't be generalized across the whole metropolitan area.

[Anonymous]

Paying two mortgages will cost $2500 more per month than paying just one mortgage. We know exactly where we are going to move. Once we sell our house, our costs will go down considerably. We don't know when we'll sell, but it could take six months given comps in our area.

The question is whether it's worth spending money to avoid aggravation (and possible maternal death) to move twice. Or if I should listen to DH (he's not doing the packing/unpacking/dealing with stressed-out kids) and rent until our house sells, then buy a house in DC.

[Anonymous]

If you're not familiar with the area, you might start in Maryland and eventually decide to move to Virginia. If that's a possibility it might be easiest to put half or the majority of your stuff in storage while you rent for 6 months or a year or however long you think it will take to figure out which school district you want to move into. Every time I moved as a kid my dad would move ahead of us and scout the new area for good schools and affordable housing and we'd follow once he made his decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i'm a renter w/ two school-age kids. we've moved three times since they're born. some think renting is beneath them so it's a non-starter. if you're not one of them, it's not all that bad once you unpack the necessities, really.

OP. We've also moved three times since our kids were born, but I was a younger woman then. No, renting isn't beneath me. I've rented a lot in the past and would willingly do so again. It's the moving again in six months or less that seems crazy and exhausting to me. Plus we have a big dog who needs lots of exercise. Ultimately, we will buy. And yes, it's a permanent move (as "permanent" can be these days).

[Anonymous]

Are you sure you will be approved for another loan? Banks have really cracked down on lending in the last few years and they might not be willing to give you another mortgage until you sell your current house. This is something to consider.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're not familiar with the area, you might start in Maryland and eventually decide to move to Virginia. If that's a possibility it might be easiest to put half or the majority of your stuff in storage while you rent for 6 months or a year or however long you think it will take to figure out which school district you want to move into. Every time I moved as a kid my dad would move ahead of us and scout the new area for good schools and affordable housing and we'd follow once he made his decision.

We've done the scouting. We have narrowed it down to three elementary school districts, and we've found rental houses in each district. So we really know where we're going. We've even found houses to buy. But buying will cost more, and the question is whether it's worth it to avoid short-term pain (mine).

People are always moving into and out of DC. Anyone faced a similar choice? What do you wish you'd done differently?

[Anonymous]

OP again. DH's other argument is that renting will give us time to search in a leisurely fashion, and find the house that's just right for us. I think lots of houses are good enough for us. I want to buy one and get it over with. But perhaps my emotions are taking over my reason, hmmm?

[Anonymous]

Likely that there is low inventory in the school districts you've selected, because there tends to be low inventory in the popular neighborhoods in DC.

If it were me, I would buy if possible. Especially as it sounds like you have done a lot of the initial scouting/leg work. I loathe moving, and would try to simplify a big transition as much as possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Paying two mortgages will cost $2500 more per month than paying just one mortgage. We know exactly where we are going to move. Once we sell our house, our costs will go down considerably. We don't know when we'll sell, but it could take six months given comps in our area.

The question is whether it's worth spending money to avoid aggravation (and possible maternal death) to move twice. Or if I should listen to DH (he's not doing the packing/unpacking/dealing with stressed-out kids) and rent until our house sells, then buy a house in DC.

Yes, but will paying 2 mortgages per month cost $2500 more that one mortgage plus one rent per month? I suppose it coul, if you don't have the money for a down payment on the second house, and have to fully finance it. (Not sure you could even do that, as one PP pointed out. Banks won't be too keen on you not being able to cover your monthly obligations through income.) Even if it's possible, I wouldn't do it. What happens if you have to hold on to both places for six months? A year? Longer? What if other expenses come up that you can't cover due to savings? Seems like a lot of risk to avoid the admittedly aggravating prospect of moving twice. You won't keel over.

[Anonymous]

Can you look on Craigslist for a furnished house rental? They seem to have a fair amount there under the sublet/temporary listings. Then you can just bring the absolute minimum (eg summer clothes only if you are coming soon) and put everything else in nearby storage until you buy something.

[Anonymous]

The OP never did address whether or not they can actually get another mortgage. They should clarify that before worrying about buying...

[Anonymous]

Yes, we can get another mortgage. That's not a problem. It's more the cost vs aggravation. Financially, it completely makes sense to rent, you are right about that PP.

For those who have done it, is it so terrible to move twice? Move #1 feels like it's going to kill me, but maybe if I don't unpack everything, the second move will be a lot easier.

I used to move a lot in my youth, but I had no kids, little furniture, a lot less stuff. DH and I once moved twice in three weeks! We rented a dump by accident (well I did), and moved out quickly.

I've thought about furnished rentals. Might be more like living in a hotel. The problem is finding one in the right school district. Haven't seen any yet.