Are we the only family in the DMV who is priced out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about this TH just outside FCC? It’s actually walkable to WFC metro (~15 mins) and close to all the new development on Rt 7. Schools are decent to good

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7433-Chummley-Ct-Falls-Church-VA-22043/51782529_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare

One more option - a small condo (lives like a TH) in FCC. Exceptional schools, fantastic walkability. Units are small but the community is full of young kids and includes access to a pool. Small house also means less to furnish and less upkeep costs

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/402-James-Ct-41-Falls-Church-VA-22046/2055290596_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare

[Anonymous]

you can't be priced out of this area. you have a good down payment and good income. you might be priced out of mclean/bethesda/vienna/arlington but there are a lot of other really nice areas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Barnaby Woods in DC, parts of ChCh, Crestwood, townhomes…

I think OP is being ridiculous (we have similar stats, 325k HHI and 2 kids, but we bought 2 years ago with a 2.9 interest rate so I recognize that is different now), but there are no non-tear down SFHs that she could afford in Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase or Crestwood with her stats. Even putting 300k down, she would have to take out an 800k plus mortgage, which with todays interest rates would be way too much of a stretch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DH and I are early 40s, two kids, HHI 300k gross. We have a downpayment of 300k set aside but are only interested in single family homes that are not total teardowns. We are priced out and have stopped looking.

DH interviewed for a higher paying job this summer but didn't pass the second round. I'm earning the max I can earn with my qualifications. Kids in public school and we are renting right now.

Are we the only ones in this situation?

You are only priced out of certain neighborhoods. Most are still accessible to you at that income.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DH and I are early 40s, two kids, HHI 300k gross. We have a downpayment of 300k set aside but are only interested in single family homes that are not total teardowns. We are priced out and have stopped looking.

DH interviewed for a higher paying job this summer but didn't pass the second round. I'm earning the max I can earn with my qualifications. Kids in public school and we are renting right now.

Are we the only ones in this situation?

You are only priced out of certain neighborhoods. Most are still accessible to you at that income.

We have HHI of $110. If OP is priced out - we are screwed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:By definition, OP is only “priced out” of everything that she wants. The same can be said of everyone everywhere.

Except that here it means spending a lot of money on an ugly fixer upper and elsewhere it means “not my dream house.”

[Anonymous]

I don't fully understand what happened here. 2-3 years ago, we had historically low rates and we knew that rates were going to rise. OP and spouse would have been late 30's to early 40's and already had kids. Maybe there's a good reason, but I don't understand why OP didn't look around at some point over the last 5+ years and say hey, we need to buy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is one of the most out of touch posts I've ever seen on DCUM and that is saying something.

The median household income in the DMV is $117k. You make more than TWICE what the typical family makes around here. https://censusreporter.org/profiles/31000US47900-washington-arlington-alexandria-dc-va-md-wv-metro-area/

You are not "priced out." You can't have everything you want. Boo hoo. Neither can anyone else. Even Warren Buffet has to make choices sometimes, and so do you. Pick what's most important to you and buy a house from the PLETHORA of options you have. Or, decide you'd rather rent and rent. But either way, thank your lucky stars that you have more resources and choices at your disposal thank 99% of this planet and try to have some gratitude and humility instead of being a whiny, entitled, spoiled brat.

Signed,

Someone with a $200k HHI and a home we love that you would turn up your nose at

What is entitled about renting in a decent school district, exactly? Or do you just hate people with higher incomes than you? Odd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't fully understand what happened here. 2-3 years ago, we had historically low rates and we knew that rates were going to rise. OP and spouse would have been late 30's to early 40's and already had kids. Maybe there's a good reason, but I don't understand why OP didn't look around at some point over the last 5+ years and say hey, we need to buy.

We bought a condo in 2014 and lived in it for almost a decade. It got too small (kids getting bigger) so we are renting something larger in the same school district to provide stability and a decent education to them while we save up enough to buy where we are. When they are grown, we'll move again.

[Anonymous]

Oh, and this is not in Chevy Chase. I would hate living there. It's nice for some people, I've heard, but we are not interested.

[Anonymous]

To the poster who suggested some places in NOVA like Burke, thank you. That's more like what we are looking for. We are planning a trial commute during morning/evening rush before we bother an agent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't fully understand what happened here. 2-3 years ago, we had historically low rates and we knew that rates were going to rise. OP and spouse would have been late 30's to early 40's and already had kids. Maybe there's a good reason, but I don't understand why OP didn't look around at some point over the last 5+ years and say hey, we need to buy.

We bought a condo in 2014 and lived in it for almost a decade. It got too small (kids getting bigger) so we are renting something larger in the same school district to provide stability and a decent education to them while we save up enough to buy where we are. When they are grown, we'll move again.

Then why don’t you have more money for a down payment?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't fully understand what happened here. 2-3 years ago, we had historically low rates and we knew that rates were going to rise. OP and spouse would have been late 30's to early 40's and already had kids. Maybe there's a good reason, but I don't understand why OP didn't look around at some point over the last 5+ years and say hey, we need to buy.

We bought a condo in 2014 and lived in it for almost a decade. It got too small (kids getting bigger) so we are renting something larger in the same school district to provide stability and a decent education to them while we save up enough to buy where we are. When they are grown, we'll move again.

Then why don’t you have more money for a down payment?

Read upthread. There is money for a downpayment. It was a condo, not a single family.

[Anonymous]

Yes, you are the only ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't fully understand what happened here. 2-3 years ago, we had historically low rates and we knew that rates were going to rise. OP and spouse would have been late 30's to early 40's and already had kids. Maybe there's a good reason, but I don't understand why OP didn't look around at some point over the last 5+ years and say hey, we need to buy.

DP but I’m our case two things: 1) we needed a down payment and didn’t have it yet and 2) when rates were low all cash offers with no inspections is what it took to actually get a house. As always, it takes money to make money.