SERIOUSLY - how are people affording these $1Mil+ homes with $8,000+ monthly mortgages!?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bunch of millenials moaning they can't suddenly afford luxe housing the second they want one after 15 years of renting in trendy areas. There's plenty of affordable starter places on the market. Sorry you think life owes you a mansion.

People just have too high of expectations. What was considered a typical middle class house in the suburbs 50 years ago is now considered a dump. People are now demanding significant square footage in prime locations. If you can't hang, buy a place in cow country like everyone else.

WTF? Those middle class “dumps” are still a million freaking dollars anywhere within an hour of a job in the DMV. Middle class salaries don’t allow today’s middle class workers to even consider buying anything remotely close to their job if they they work in DC. God forbid they consider the schools.

The question of whether they think they’re too good for the housing stock is a straw man. Stop gaslighting the youngsters.

Oh please, only losers focus on problems and not solutions. You have a really weak mindset and it's unlikely you will be successful. I know it's hard to believe, but most people in this area live far outside the beltway and drive in rush hour just like everyone else. But since you obviously have a shitty salary, maybe you should move to some country bumpkin area.

Lame troll is lame. Go back to shilling your get rich quick schemes on youtube and let the grown ups talk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bunch of millenials moaning they can't suddenly afford luxe housing the second they want one after 15 years of renting in trendy areas. There's plenty of affordable starter places on the market. Sorry you think life owes you a mansion.

People just have too high of expectations. What was considered a typical middle class house in the suburbs 50 years ago is now considered a dump. People are now demanding significant square footage in prime locations. If you can't hang, buy a place in cow country like everyone else.

WTF? Those middle class “dumps” are still a million freaking dollars anywhere within an hour of a job in the DMV. Middle class salaries don’t allow today’s middle class workers to even consider buying anything remotely close to their job if they they work in DC. God forbid they consider the schools.

The question of whether they think they’re too good for the housing stock is a straw man. Stop gaslighting the youngsters.

Oh please, only losers focus on problems and not solutions. You have a really weak mindset and it's unlikely you will be successful. I know it's hard to believe, but most people in this area live far outside the beltway and drive in rush hour just like everyone else. But since you obviously have a shitty salary, maybe you should move to some country bumpkin area.

Lame troll is lame. Go back to shilling your get rich quick schemes on youtube and let the grown ups talk.

Your broke ass can't afford a house and you're accusing buy and hold investors of get rich quick schemes. GTFO

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bunch of millenials moaning they can't suddenly afford luxe housing the second they want one after 15 years of renting in trendy areas. There's plenty of affordable starter places on the market. Sorry you think life owes you a mansion.

People just have too high of expectations. What was considered a typical middle class house in the suburbs 50 years ago is now considered a dump. People are now demanding significant square footage in prime locations. If you can't hang, buy a place in cow country like everyone else.

WTF? Those middle class “dumps” are still a million freaking dollars anywhere within an hour of a job in the DMV. Middle class salaries don’t allow today’s middle class workers to even consider buying anything remotely close to their job if they they work in DC. God forbid they consider the schools.

The question of whether they think they’re too good for the housing stock is a straw man. Stop gaslighting the youngsters.

Oh please, only losers focus on problems and not solutions. You have a really weak mindset and it's unlikely you will be successful. I know it's hard to believe, but most people in this area live far outside the beltway and drive in rush hour just like everyone else. But since you obviously have a shitty salary, maybe you should move to some country bumpkin area.

Lame troll is lame. Go back to shilling your get rich quick schemes on youtube and let the grown ups talk.

Your broke ass can't afford a house and you're accusing buy and hold investors of get rich quick schemes. GTFO

Go tell your buddies on r/wallstreetbets about your prowess, no one here cares. Or better, go do your homework.

[Anonymous]

Our next door house fell out of contract during financing. It seems, lenders have become strict with appraisal and qualification.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Want what I had...Hmm. Bought a house in a NJ town that was the butt of mainstream music (Bruce Springsteen wrote an entire album dedicated to escaping places like this) when I was 24. It was so small the developer had to build it up sideways so the front door opened up directly to the back of someone else's house. Continued to upgrade as my job allowed. Economic activity in NYC fueled a bit of property value/economic boom to the entire area, to the point most people couldn't afford it any longer. Exactly the same thing happened to this area. Would I, starting at 24 over again, be able to afford a 'nice' starter home in a desirable area? No. But I didn't live in a great area back then either. I just had a decade or two of forced savings on top of the typical millenial first time buyer.

This is exactly what I was talking about. You played on easy mode and you think everyone else is doing the same 40+ years later.

Let's play a game. Tell me your job title and employer when you bought that house. Let's see what that salary is today and what you could afford.

I have no idea what point you are trying to make here. I lived in shitholes and built equity instead of living in luxury and a fun lifestyle. I didn't move to a desirable, high priced area and expect too end housing which many people here want it all immediately. There was nothing easy about it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$4000 budget is too small for $300k hi. It's not that you can't afford it. You just don't want to pay for it.

OP mentioned having 2 small kids. Assuming that $300k income
Comes from two salaries (no stay at home parent), then they also need to pay for two kids daycare in addition to two kids college savings. Plus it’s always possible that one of them could lose their job for awhile. If those assumptions are true, $4k PITI seems prudent.

I will note that we have a higher income than OP but a $4 PITI because we bought less than what we could afford (though still very nice) with the benefit of low interest rates, 5 years ago. I’m a fed, and very likely to lose my job, and I can still sleep at night - very, very glad that we didn’t stretch.

This -- our mortgage is about 3k, which is due to buying pre-2020 with a 3% mortgage rate. Our HHI at that time was about 250k, and we really felt maxes out with a $3,300 mortgage payment + 2 daycares, which were about 4k. Now that both kids are in public ES, we are finally saving. Our house was 660k, and our downpayment was a combo of our savings and major parental help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We bought a house in 1998 for 350K right before housing prices went up. We lived below our means for awhile. We stayed in the house until 2020 and had enough equity/savings to make large down payment on $2 million house. Our house is now worth around $3 million. Also, our HHI is higher than 300K.

You also bought a house while the rest of us were in middle school. So maybe bow out of this?

Maybe stop being a whiny little baby?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$4000 budget is too small for $300k hi. It's not that you can't afford it. You just don't want to pay for it.

OP mentioned having 2 small kids. Assuming that $300k income
Comes from two salaries (no stay at home parent), then they also need to pay for two kids daycare in addition to two kids college savings. Plus it’s always possible that one of them could lose their job for awhile. If those assumptions are true, $4k PITI seems prudent.

I will note that we have a higher income than OP but a $4 PITI because we bought less than what we could afford (though still very nice) with the benefit of low interest rates, 5 years ago. I’m a fed, and very likely to lose my job, and I can still sleep at night - very, very glad that we didn’t stretch.

OP can buy a nice townhouse with her $4000 PITI. She can probably even buy a small decent SFH in a decent area with that. It won't be a million dollar 5000sq ft home, but my first home was 1500 sq ft and DH and I managed just fine with two elementary-aged children there. Our mortgage 10 years ago was $2600 and the house cost $550K. The same house is worth about $700K right now and even with current interest rates, OP could probably afford it. It was in a decent part of Fairfax County with good but not great schools (but zoned to a good high school). We only moved because we wanted a bigger yard and that particular area was too dense to have any large lots in our price range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Want what I had...Hmm. Bought a house in a NJ town that was the butt of mainstream music (Bruce Springsteen wrote an entire album dedicated to escaping places like this) when I was 24. It was so small the developer had to build it up sideways so the front door opened up directly to the back of someone else's house. Continued to upgrade as my job allowed. Economic activity in NYC fueled a bit of property value/economic boom to the entire area, to the point most people couldn't afford it any longer. Exactly the same thing happened to this area. Would I, starting at 24 over again, be able to afford a 'nice' starter home in a desirable area? No. But I didn't live in a great area back then either. I just had a decade or two of forced savings on top of the typical millenial first time buyer.

This is exactly what I was talking about. You played on easy mode and you think everyone else is doing the same 40+ years later.

Let's play a game. Tell me your job title and employer when you bought that house. Let's see what that salary is today and what you could afford.

I have no idea what point you are trying to make here. I lived in shitholes and built equity instead of living in luxury and a fun lifestyle. I didn't move to a desirable, high priced area and expect too end housing which many people here want it all immediately. There was nothing easy about it

You have no idea what point PP was making because you’re painfully stupid. A 30-something couple wanting a modest 3 bedroom house within an hour of their jobs and in an adequate school district =/= living a luxurious, fun lifestyle. There are significantly more people competing for the exact same resources than when you were young.

Here is a simple point: you built equity in houses you considered shitholes back in the day. Those same houses are what the youngins CANNOT AFFORD today, and guess what? They’re even SHITTIER than when you lived there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$4000 budget is too small for $300k hi. It's not that you can't afford it. You just don't want to pay for it.

OP mentioned having 2 small kids. Assuming that $300k income
Comes from two salaries (no stay at home parent), then they also need to pay for two kids daycare in addition to two kids college savings. Plus it’s always possible that one of them could lose their job for awhile. If those assumptions are true, $4k PITI seems prudent.

I will note that we have a higher income than OP but a $4 PITI because we bought less than what we could afford (though still very nice) with the benefit of low interest rates, 5 years ago. I’m a fed, and very likely to lose my job, and I can still sleep at night - very, very glad that we didn’t stretch.

OP can buy a nice townhouse with her $4000 PITI. She can probably even buy a small decent SFH in a decent area with that. It won't be a million dollar 5000sq ft home, but my first home was 1500 sq ft and DH and I managed just fine with two elementary-aged children there. Our mortgage 10 years ago was $2600 and the house cost $550K. The same house is worth about $700K right now and even with current interest rates, OP could probably afford it. It was in a decent part of Fairfax County with good but not great schools (but zoned to a good high school). We only moved because we wanted a bigger yard and that particular area was too dense to have any large lots in our price range.

I want to add that we made a total of $165K with 2 kids in daycare and a $400/month student loan payment with that $2500 mortgage so I definitely think OP is wise wanting to do $4K payment but she can easily find a decent house for that much. It won't be the McMansion that she wants, but she doesn't need a McMansion. She'll be just fine in a 2000 sq ft 3BR/2BA outdated home that she can fix up over time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We bought a house in 1998 for 350K right before housing prices went up. We lived below our means for awhile. We stayed in the house until 2020 and had enough equity/savings to make large down payment on $2 million house. Our house is now worth around $3 million. Also, our HHI is higher than 300K.

You also bought a house while the rest of us were in middle school. So maybe bow out of this?

Maybe stop being a whiny little baby?

I own a home. But I’m also not a sociopath.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If it makes you feel any better, I'll never make anywhere close enough to even afford a condo. Even when my mom dies and leaves everything to me, I still won't have enough.

I don’t think that would make anyone feel better…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I must be doing something wrong. My household income is $300K and with two small kids, I want to live in a good public school zone. It feels impossible! My mortgage budget is $4k…which is maybe a $600K home. My research says if I want a good school with that budget, I’m buying an outdated 1500sq ft home with 7.5 foot ceilings. I need to leave Montgomery county!

Have you looked at Germantown or Gaithersburg?

We got lucky. We had a lot of equity ($1m) from selling a house we owned for only a few years due to the run-up in house prices during Covid. We only make $400k hhi but were able to buy a close-in $2m home as a result.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$4000 budget is too small for $300k hi. It's not that you can't afford it. You just don't want to pay for it.

OP mentioned having 2 small kids. Assuming that $300k income
Comes from two salaries (no stay at home parent), then they also need to pay for two kids daycare in addition to two kids college savings. Plus it’s always possible that one of them could lose their job for awhile. If those assumptions are true, $4k PITI seems prudent.

I will note that we have a higher income than OP but a $4 PITI because we bought less than what we could afford (though still very nice) with the benefit of low interest rates, 5 years ago. I’m a fed, and very likely to lose my job, and I can still sleep at night - very, very glad that we didn’t stretch.

OP can buy a nice townhouse with her $4000 PITI. She can probably even buy a small decent SFH in a decent area with that. It won't be a million dollar 5000sq ft home, but my first home was 1500 sq ft and DH and I managed just fine with two elementary-aged children there. Our mortgage 10 years ago was $2600 and the house cost $550K. The same house is worth about $700K right now and even with current interest rates, OP could probably afford it. It was in a decent part of Fairfax County with good but not great schools (but zoned to a good high school). We only moved because we wanted a bigger yard and that particular area was too dense to have any large lots in our price range.

I want to add that we made a total of $165K with 2 kids in daycare and a $400/month student loan payment with that $2500 mortgage so I definitely think OP is wise wanting to do $4K payment but she can easily find a decent house for that much. It won't be the McMansion that she wants, but she doesn't need a McMansion. She'll be just fine in a 2000 sq ft 3BR/2BA outdated home that she can fix up over time.

You realize that you are arguing that OP should pay 150K more for your former 1500 sqft house PLUS a higher interest rate even though the yard and schools weren’t good enough for you, and if she has even the slightest hesitation that means she is a whiny princess who wants a 5000 square foot mcmansion?

I can’t with you people. Seriously, do you even hear yourself? You’re ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Want what I had...Hmm. Bought a house in a NJ town that was the butt of mainstream music (Bruce Springsteen wrote an entire album dedicated to escaping places like this) when I was 24. It was so small the developer had to build it up sideways so the front door opened up directly to the back of someone else's house. Continued to upgrade as my job allowed. Economic activity in NYC fueled a bit of property value/economic boom to the entire area, to the point most people couldn't afford it any longer. Exactly the same thing happened to this area. Would I, starting at 24 over again, be able to afford a 'nice' starter home in a desirable area? No. But I didn't live in a great area back then either. I just had a decade or two of forced savings on top of the typical millenial first time buyer.

This is exactly what I was talking about. You played on easy mode and you think everyone else is doing the same 40+ years later.

Let's play a game. Tell me your job title and employer when you bought that house. Let's see what that salary is today and what you could afford.

I have no idea what point you are trying to make here. I lived in shitholes and built equity instead of living in luxury and a fun lifestyle. I didn't move to a desirable, high priced area and expect too end housing which many people here want it all immediately. There was nothing easy about it

You have no idea what point PP was making because you’re painfully stupid. A 30-something couple wanting a modest 3 bedroom house within an hour of their jobs and in an adequate school district =/= living a luxurious, fun lifestyle. There are significantly more people competing for the exact same resources than when you were young.

Here is a simple point: you built equity in houses you considered shitholes back in the day. Those same houses are what the youngins CANNOT AFFORD today, and guess what? They’re even SHITTIER than when you lived there.

It's certainly affordable to live in a shit hole. People don't want to live in them. They expect to rent in nice areas and do trendy things during their 20s and early 30s, only to find they can't afford housing at a similar standard. I was eating hamburger helper and freezer beef while this generation has been brunching and eating at foodie restaurants. I'm not the one who is stupid by far.