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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I feel like we're getting ready to compromise on just about everything...We are open to something that needs work but the issue with that is that we are then competing against builders who will tear it down and start over.  [b]But consider that if you are looking in the $550k price range (just a hypothetical) and found something for $475k, there's a lot of leeway in there, esp if you are willing to do things like repainting or ripping up old carpet by yourself.[/b]
In our case (which has already become pretty discouraging--looking for something close-ish to Metro for under $650k) I would give up some square footage for a good/preferred layout--we have seen some places that are plenty big but the space is just not as usable due to being carved up strangely and/or on numerous levels (as with a townhouse).  
I would also take a place that needed some work that we could do over time--ie eventually redo kitchen, finish basement, etc--in order to stay within a good commuting range which I feel affects our quality of life and time as a family more than having a fancy bathroom.  We are also being VERY flexible about our school options--trying to keep an open mind and tour some places which people have previously warned us away from.
Good luck, OP.  We keep hearing that more will come on the market after Easter...hope it helps us all out! [/quote]

Maybe I'm wrong, but my understanding is that you can't get improvement money wrapped into your mortgage anymore -- you have to do a whole separate loan that's a lot harder to get. That's why I haven't been considering this route...[/quote]

I am this PP--I meant literally do this ourselves.  We are looking in the $650k price range so if we find something that's a significant savings (like $550k or less) we would have some leftover money from downpayment to pay out of pocket for some repairs.  We would not be able to do something like add on an addition for a long time and have not looked at all into the financing for something like that.  I am lucky enough to have a very handy family member who recently retired who would be willing to do things like redo floors, etc.  But if the place just needs some new paint or whatever that can be done in a weekend, even with kids.  I know that option doesn't appeal to everyone but it has helped us to consider places that before seemed like too much work.  Of course the idea that a $600k house can be a total fixer upper is repellant to me but that's the way things are around here.  
Also I will say we hope to be in our next place for at least a decade--people have been counseling us away from certain areas based on the reputation of the high school--but no one really knows what the situation will be in 10 years.  Our oldest isn't even in kindergarten yet so that just feels like too much pressure to me (again, I know that others feel very different).  But living through 10 years of never being able to have dinner as a family bc DH's commute is so long seems like a HUGE tradeoff to me for the idea that DC will someday go to a great high school.  Thinking this way has allowed me to consider several areas which were not on our list a few weeks ago.[/quote]

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