Why do people buy houses on the basis of 2 salaries instead of 1?
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Anonymous
I live in that general area. The ones that are even remotely affordable are in very rough spots and would probably be very poor investments if you're hoping for appreciation. The cheapest home (not condo) in Arlington along Four Mile Run available now is a 960 sq ft duplex for $640k. According to Fannie Mae, you'd still need an income of $140k with 20% down and minimal other debts. So you're saying, because one should adhere to the one-salary measure of affordability, a young couple with an annual income of nearly $300k should aspire to no more than this? https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/2100-27th-St-S-22206/home/11277972 I'm sure it's a fine home, but that's a pretty bitter pill to swallow for people making twice the median household income and have likely worked hard to make it into the top 10% of households nationwide. |
Anonymous
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This home is in a nicer neighborhood of South Arlington at $605K. Affordable on one salary.
https://redf.in/cGCX2R |
Anonymous
Only affordable on one salary but it is highly dependent on what the salary is. |
Anonymous
Townhomes are pretty terrible investment. They don’t appreciate hardly at all and HOA rules can be onerous. |
Anonymous
| Are you dumb or something, OP? |
Anonymous
| My wife and I bought a fixer upper in 2009. I made sure that one income could support the cost of the house in case one of us was laid off. At the time my wife’s income was very unstable. It has worked out well for us since we could add more to retirement or to home upgrades. I’m pretty handy, so we have completely remodeled the house inside and out inexpensively. |
Anonymous
So where is this fixer upper, how are schools, and how much do you make? Because the cost of housing is largely in the land. Fixer upper status doesn’t really matter much, unless you literally buy a condemned property and make it habitable. |
Anonymous
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Because houses are expensive dufus.
Why do you have a mortgage at all? |
Anonymous
A $600k home is not even affordable on two salaries for some of us. That's insane moving of the goalposts. |
Anonymous
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1) Because we live in a HCOL area
2) we were young when we bought our home - our joint income at the time was less than my spouse earns independently now, seven years later. We actually did factor in wanting flexibility for one spouse to stay at home, so we didn’t stretch our budget too much. We also haven’t moved into a larger home despite our HHI doubling since moving here. The cash flow gives us flexibility for travel, private school for kids, or I might leave my job at some point in the near future. But main reasons for spending a decent amount on our house when we bought were that housing costs are high in our area and we were young and pretty sure our incomes would increase over time, making our housing costs a lower share of our HHI. |
Anonymous
| My wife and I got married right after college in 2003, and we both had good-paying jobs. My job paid 120K/yr and 100K/yr for my wife. We lived with my parents for six years, and saved every penny before moving out to purchase a 1.2M SFH in McLean in 2000 with a 500K down payment on a 15-year mortgage. Now I am making 300K/yr and my wife 190K/yr. We just recently finished the mortgage payment. My wife's salary will be enough to cover the expenses, and my salary will go into savings. Of course, you can purchase a house in a very good neighborhood with a single salary if you're willing to live at home for five years before moving out. |
Anonymous
| ^Typo 2010 instead of 2000. |
Anonymous
lololol! what drugs are you on that that’s affordable on one salary? |
Anonymous
| It was either two salaries and a townhouse or one salary and no house. |
Anonymous
In 2003, normal people were not making $100k+ at 22 years old. |