If you were born in 1990, how do you plan on ever affording a house?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I am absolutely sympathetic. Things are crazy expensive in DC now, and if you come with student loans and no family help, the numbers in 2017 bear no resemblance to the stories of woe about the kid who graduated in 1993, bartended to pay for school, and "scrimped" for all of 2 years and then bought a house that appreciated 3x within 8 years. Those days are done. You have nothing but sympathy from me, and the back patters on this site are delusional if they think their fortune comes only from their own hard work and smart choices. Statistics and data say otherwise.

All that said, when I moved to DC in the late 90s, this city sucked. Adams Morgan and Dupont Circle were essentially exactly what they are today. Then you had a handful of restaurants up by the National Cathedral. And Georgetown. And the same strip in Glover Park that exists today. housing was quite a bit cheaper, but still decently expensive in the nicer parts of town. Jobs were not flashy, and the options were much more limited than today. You had government workers, and associations and nonprofits, and embassies. A few government consultants and contractors. But in general, most people were tied to shitty government salaries. It wasn't the booming economy it is today. There was almost no private industry, and none of the salaries that went along with them. Law firms were tiny little offshoots in the 90s with salaries in the 5-figures. In 1995, there was no concept of gentrification. No one was moving to 14th street and making money, because the idea was lunacy back then. There were no cute gentrifying neighborhoods where prices were lower. So there were a lot of people making $50k living in a small, dull town with very little to do. We used to live in Dupont, and people used to regularly go up to cactus cantina by the cathedral because it was "a restaurant". People used to line up for hours at Two Amys. There were two places to get an after dinner drink downtown: John Harvards and Harrys. Can you imagine that now?

The point of all this is: We were able to buy houses on much lower salaries yes. And maybe enjoyed price appreciation. But it wasn't a super fun, trendy city back then. If your primary concern is just being able to buy a house (which is the only thing you complained about; you weren't complaining about not enjoyed price appreciation), then I'd suggest leaving the DC area. Go to Baltimore. Or philly. Or somewhere in the southwest, or Tampa, or Raleigh. Sure, those are all smaller, less interesting towns. But they all look a lot like what DC looked like 20 years ago (cost of living, traffic, typical salaries, job opportunities).

Not sure what city you were living in because everything you've said is completely false! I came here in 1991 and I will tell you that this city was hopping and tons of fun. I lived in Shaw which was considered the 'hood, but people were wonderful, there was tons to do and we had a great time. Not sure of all of these government salaried people. I was on the hill and knew tons on lobbyists and lawyers. I knew very few people who worked for the government. I'm 48 and still know very few people who work for the government.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go east of the river.

Renovated townhouses can be had there in the low $300s. It's not the greatest area but it's also not nearly as bad as its reputation. It's also very conveniently located if you work downtown and is a short Uber from nightlife spots.

With trump presidency I would be VERY skeptical of Anacostia or PG gentrification. A lot of middle class Feds are losing their jobs and the city has lost its cool with Obama departure. Look at someplace like capital heights. Close in easy commute but terrible investment

Are you Marty McFly who is coming back from the future with this little nugget? Because presently, middle class Feds aren't losing their jobs.

They pulled the nuclear option in Supreme Court but will bend on budget? Things are going to get raw and Feds have a target on their back.

I work in SE across the river. It's a BIG gamble.

You clearly have not seen the 12 projects slated for East of the River. You will continue to lose on the real estate game b/c you are very short sighted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Buy a house in north college park. The houses are cheap now but they will be going up because the area is on the metro and is undergoing redevelopment . It's convenient to everything and the purple line will be going in soon. You can get a house for 250k now .

+1

I just purchased there and with all the development going on. It's only a matter of time before the cat is out of the bag on this best kept secret.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go east of the river.

Renovated townhouses can be had there in the low $300s. It's not the greatest area but it's also not nearly as bad as its reputation. It's also very conveniently located if you work downtown and is a short Uber from nightlife spots.

With trump presidency I would be VERY skeptical of Anacostia or PG gentrification. A lot of middle class Feds are losing their jobs and the city has lost its cool with Obama departure. Look at someplace like capital heights. Close in easy commute but terrible investment

Are you Marty McFly who is coming back from the future with this little nugget? Because presently, middle class Feds aren't losing their jobs.

They pulled the nuclear option in Supreme Court but will bend on budget? Things are going to get raw and Feds have a target on their back.

I work in SE across the river. It's a BIG gamble.

You clearly have not seen the 12 projects slated for East of the River. You will continue to lose on the real estate game b/c you are very short sighted.

Projects mean nothing. It is not community, safety, or good schools. There were tons of projects abandoned in Phoenix at the bust, and they still stand empty.

No matter how much you try to make it happen SE is not going to happen under Trump. If you are an investor with large access to capital it may be worth investigating, things could continue. But OP would be stretched and if your vision doesn't come to pass, they are screwed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go east of the river.

Renovated townhouses can be had there in the low $300s. It's not the greatest area but it's also not nearly as bad as its reputation. It's also very conveniently located if you work downtown and is a short Uber from nightlife spots.

With trump presidency I would be VERY skeptical of Anacostia or PG gentrification. A lot of middle class Feds are losing their jobs and the city has lost its cool with Obama departure. Look at someplace like capital heights. Close in easy commute but terrible investment

Are you Marty McFly who is coming back from the future with this little nugget? Because presently, middle class Feds aren't losing their jobs.

They pulled the nuclear option in Supreme Court but will bend on budget? Things are going to get raw and Feds have a target on their back.

I work in SE across the river. It's a BIG gamble.

You clearly have not seen the 12 projects slated for East of the River. You will continue to lose on the real estate game b/c you are very short sighted.

Projects mean nothing. It is not community, safety, or good schools. There were tons of projects abandoned in Phoenix at the bust, and they still stand empty.

No matter how much you try to make it happen SE is not going to happen under Trump. If you are an investor with large access to capital it may be worth investigating, things could continue. But OP would be stretched and if your vision doesn't come to pass, they are screwed.

Real estate always goes up higher than inflation BUT buying peak will be an epic setback. It's all a guessing game, but we are set up for a contraction. Save, save, save and buy in when buyers have the purchasing power. The difference could be living in a shitshack vs a newer updated home if you have the patience. I want to see my fellow millenials succeed in life despite all the massive problems handed down to us. Pay off your student loans, live in a crappy apartment, have room mates or live at home if you can even if it is a sucky commute. Bank that salary and job hop for more money.

Also read, read, read - remember realtors say its always a good time to buy, but if you study the market and read sources other than NAR you have a better picture of the economy overall. March jobs report added 98k vs the expected 185k predicted...interesting?

[Anonymous]

So .. when's this contraction happening? Planning to list my house spring of '19.... better contract after that!

[Anonymous]

How?
1. No wedding. Got $50k total from 2 sets of extremely grateful parents that had just thrown over the top weddings that was way more than $25k for each of them.

2. Went to an uncool you-never-heard-of-it school and had no undergrad student loans. Worked summers, weekends all through undergrad and grad school, even in the school cafeteria, the horror, and was an RA.

3. Lived in an apartment with roommates for years after I got my first job and paid off my grad school loan.

4. Started retirement savings at 24 so I had a good chunk of money by 30 and didn't feel bad about stopping contributing past the match to save up and buy a house with my husband.

5. Our first house was ugly, small, and way far out. We stayed for 10 years, through all our friends moving away and into better places, earning equity and saving up since as our incomes rose, our housing costs stayed the same.
And now I'm in a great house in a great location. And I have granite! So fancy.

[Anonymous]

Save for another 5-10 years. 25 is pretty young to be buying a house, unless you live somewhere really cheap. Plus there is a pretty good chance the housing market will crash at some point in that time frame.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How?
1. No wedding. Got $50k total from 2 sets of extremely grateful parents that had just thrown over the top weddings that was way more than $25k for each of them.

2. Went to an uncool you-never-heard-of-it school and had no undergrad student loans. Worked summers, weekends all through undergrad and grad school, even in the school cafeteria, the horror, and was an RA.

3. Lived in an apartment with roommates for years after I got my first job and paid off my grad school loan.

4. Started retirement savings at 24 so I had a good chunk of money by 30 and didn't feel bad about stopping contributing past the match to save up and buy a house with my husband.

5. Our first house was ugly, small, and way far out. We stayed for 10 years, through all our friends moving away and into better places, earning equity and saving up since as our incomes rose, our housing costs stayed the same.
And now I'm in a great house in a great location. And I have granite! So fancy.

Gonna go out on a limb and say you weren't born in 1990

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How?
1. No wedding. Got $50k total from 2 sets of extremely grateful parents that had just thrown over the top weddings that was way more than $25k for each of them.

2. Went to an uncool you-never-heard-of-it school and had no undergrad student loans. Worked summers, weekends all through undergrad and grad school, even in the school cafeteria, the horror, and was an RA.

3. Lived in an apartment with roommates for years after I got my first job and paid off my grad school loan.

4. Started retirement savings at 24 so I had a good chunk of money by 30 and didn't feel bad about stopping contributing past the match to save up and buy a house with my husband.

5. Our first house was ugly, small, and way far out. We stayed for 10 years, through all our friends moving away and into better places, earning equity and saving up since as our incomes rose, our housing costs stayed the same.
And now I'm in a great house in a great location. And I have granite! So fancy.

Gonna go out on a limb and say you weren't born in 1990

Hahahahahahaha!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How?
1. No wedding. Got $50k total from 2 sets of extremely grateful parents that had just thrown over the top weddings that was way more than $25k for each of them.

2. Went to an uncool you-never-heard-of-it school and had no undergrad student loans. Worked summers, weekends all through undergrad and grad school, even in the school cafeteria, the horror, and was an RA.

3. Lived in an apartment with roommates for years after I got my first job and paid off my grad school loan.

4. Started retirement savings at 24 so I had a good chunk of money by 30 and didn't feel bad about stopping contributing past the match to save up and buy a house with my husband.

5. Our first house was ugly, small, and way far out. We stayed for 10 years, through all our friends moving away and into better places, earning equity and saving up since as our incomes rose, our housing costs stayed the same.
And now I'm in a great house in a great location. And I have granite! So fancy.

Gonna go out on a limb and say you weren't born in 1990

PP here, What part of my strategy is to relevant to someone who was born in 1990? Exactly which part?

[Anonymous]

^ sorry, meant which part is NOT relevant to someone born in 1990?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^ sorry, meant which part is NOT relevant to someone born in 1990?

You're totally glossing over price levels and wages, especially for lowly ranked schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How?
1. No wedding. Got $50k total from 2 sets of extremely grateful parents that had just thrown over the top weddings that was way more than $25k for each of them.

2. Went to an uncool you-never-heard-of-it school and had no undergrad student loans. Worked summers, weekends all through undergrad and grad school, even in the school cafeteria, the horror, and was an RA.

3. Lived in an apartment with roommates for years after I got my first job and paid off my grad school loan.

4. Started retirement savings at 24 so I had a good chunk of money by 30 and didn't feel bad about stopping contributing past the match to save up and buy a house with my husband.

5. Our first house was ugly, small, and way far out. We stayed for 10 years, through all our friends moving away and into better places, earning equity and saving up since as our incomes rose, our housing costs stayed the same.
And now I'm in a great house in a great location. And I have granite! So fancy.

Gonna go out on a limb and say you weren't born in 1990

PP here, What part of my strategy is to relevant to someone who was born in 1990? Exactly which part?

1. Getting $50k handed to you by parents = relevant to no one

2. Tuition was exponentially cheaper when you went to school = your "spend no money on college" strategy is not relevant to young ppl

3. Tuition was exponentially cheaper when you went to school = the fact that you paid off all your grad school loans in a few years is not relevant to young ppl

4. Over-saving for retirement is hard when you have enormous student debt = save a ton of money from 24-30 is not relevant to young ppl

5. You bought a house in this area when houses were way cheaper and enjoyed significant appreciation = not relevant to young ppl

The end

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^ sorry, meant which part is NOT relevant to someone born in 1990?

You're totally glossing over price levels and wages, especially for lowly ranked schools.

Nope. Stop the whining. We worked our butts off, started at the bottom career wise, and house wise, lived in crappy apartments and an awful fixer upper arhat we never really fixed up and played the long game. I'm 39, not a dinosaur.