$410k house with DH salary stretching ourselves too thin?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, if your husband has the potential to change jobs to increase his income, then YES increasing by 35% is very possible. Also consider a side gig at home for yourself- ETSY shop, etc. would increase the household income.

Seriously, 35% is about 30k- between those two things I just listed that should be very possible. Do the math, and do it again. Be sure.

You don't even know what her husband does for a living. Stop giving her false hope.

It's not false hope. It is not unreasonable OP couldn't consider doing a part-time side gig from home. Depending on her education level & background- tutoring, music lessons, teaching another language, online professor... all things can be done to earn money on the side, increase HHI, while still being a SAHM. As kids get older, she will have more time to do these things as well.
Thinking of everything positive doesn't help without a dose of realism- but don't infuse the entire debate with the premise that the sky is always falling. It's ridiculous.
OP- YOU are in control of your income. YOU can figure it out and make it work if you want to. It is possible. You can be a self-starter and get in control, and make this work. It is false hope to believe ANY employer is providing you with economic stability in any market at any time. On the other hand, your husband could see what's out there- in his field, adjacent fields, etc- to see if he could increase his income as well. Be proactive about the situation.

SUNSHINE AND BUTTERFLIES ALL THE TIME EVERYONE. LOLZ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We found a house we love but my gut says we can't afford it. My DH makes $84k plus bonus (usually 10%) and I SAH. We have 20% for down payment but would have just $10k left in savings. We have tiny amount of student loan debt and no other debt.

My gut says it's too much of a stretch but the numbers say it's do-able.

What do you think?

A large chunk of that $10k would be eaten up by closing costs (unless you can roll them into the loan, in which case they'll cost you a lot more over time).

On the flip side, when comparing mortgage costs with current rent costs, don't forget that you'll have large tax deductions for mortgage interest.

[Anonymous]

Op, if your rent is over $1600 a month, I would consider it. Rents have been increasingly rapidly in the city. Depends also on location of the property, how old are your kids, etc. Would you consider renting a room or basement or getting an exchange student for the first year ($500 a month or so in income)? We have done this, however many would not.

[Anonymous]

With interest rates low, and if it's an option, you could put less than 20% down so you would have more cash on hand for an emergency.

We have a balance on our mortgage of ~$395K and I quit my job so we are living on DH $90K income. Money is TIGHT but it is doable. We have a pretty large emergency fund ($100K) but haven't tapped into it. I am hoping that DH gets a better paying job and I plan to look for a part time job next fall but right now our income is just barely meeting our expenses. There is no extra for entertainment at the end of the month.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for all the replies! I hadn't checked the thread as I wasn't expecting much responses. I'll provide some answers:

- We are done having children and they will both be in elementary school next year.
- I do some consulting for some extra cash and to keep myself professionally active but I don't count on it as income because it's very specialized and sporadic. I would like to go back to work PT but conservatively don't count on it because it's an unknown.
- My DH has actually changed careers so makes less than he did before. We're not counting on it growing dramatically in the next few years.
- We owned and sold and now rent for $1800 a month.

I think the thing I am so nervous about is not having as much cash on hand. Does anyone do 80/10/10 mortgages any more? Is that foolish?

[Anonymous]

Perhaps you could do some babysitting/childcare to supplement your income? There are lots of SAHMs in our neighborhood who do this. They don't run formal daycare centers. Rather, they'll watch school age kids after school for a few hours or do drop-in sitting while another mom runs errands. It's quick and easy cash --- but I'm not sure it will be enough to help you cover your bills. You could also have a more formal nanny position and work from home --- that would likely bring in more money.

[Anonymous]

To be honest, I am not sure you are going to get a mortgage if you only have $10 left over. We recently brought a home with a $417K mortgage, which left us with $65K in savings. Although our salaries easily cover the mortgage, the lender kept questioning the amount we would have left in savings, and asking for additional documentation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for all the replies! I hadn't checked the thread as I wasn't expecting much responses. I'll provide some answers:

- We are done having children and they will both be in elementary school next year.
- I do some consulting for some extra cash and to keep myself professionally active but I don't count on it as income because it's very specialized and sporadic. I would like to go back to work PT but conservatively don't count on it because it's an unknown.
- My DH has actually changed careers so makes less than he did before. We're not counting on it growing dramatically in the next few years.
- We owned and sold and now rent for $1800 a month.

I think the thing I am so nervous about is not having as much cash on hand. Does anyone do 80/10/10 mortgages any more? Is that foolish?

Look into FHA loans. I think we put 3.5% down and got a very good rate (4.5% fixed, several years ago). We wanted to keep assets liquid bc the house needed repairs. We do pay MI but it's only a couple hundred bucks a month and I think it's worth it for the peace of mind. Get a good mortgage broker to run the numbers for you. If you already pay $1800/mo in rent, you should think about buying.