Anonymous wrote:We're looking to buy a house with a max budget of $900k and $135l HHI. But we'll put at least $700k down. The cost of the house is irrelevant, what's important is the amount of the mortgage payment.

How much parental support are you getting?

Anonymous wrote:We're looking to buy a house with a max budget of $900k and $135l HHI. But we'll put at least $700k down. The cost of the house is irrelevant, what's important is the amount of the mortgage payment.

Total cost is somewhat relevant as it affects the T&I portion of your monthly payment.

We're looking to buy a house with a max budget of $900k and $135l HHI. But we'll put at least $700k down. The cost of the house is irrelevant, what's important is the amount of the mortgage payment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We financed $590 on a $700k house a couple years ago, with a PITI of about $3,200. I know interest rates have gone up since then, but no way is OP going to be paying more than 3-grand. I would think it'd be closer to $2400.

OK, well, we are in DC, have a $420k mortgage, no HOA (like most houses in DC), and have a PITI of 2500.

Do you really have "no childcare expenses?"

I have 3 elementary kids and don't need before or after school care or all-day childcare.
However, we still pay close to $15K a year between summer camps (including a week of sleep-away camp for each), weekly piano lessons, sports, etc. It adds up quickly.

Anonymous wrote:We financed $590 on a $700k house a couple years ago, with a PITI of about $3,200. I know interest rates have gone up since then, but no way is OP going to be paying more than 3-grand. I would think it'd be closer to $2400.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So your mortgage would be 450k and piti shouldn't be more than 3000, likely less. I think that is fine as long as your jobs are stable.

Not true. Go do full calculations. I know this because I financed 450k with a much lower interest rate than what is offered today. Depending on taxes and HOA and insurance it's around ~3200 and this is in my low tax county.

Absolutely true, at least for me in Bethesda. Borrowed 545k, piti is $3300. OP would be borrowing a full 100k less.

Seriously. I borrowed $550,000 in DC and my PITI is $2,800.

You must have VERY low personal property taxes and a very low interest rate.

We financed $590 on a $700k house a couple years ago, with a PITI of about $3,200. I know interest rates have gone up since then, but no way is OP going to be paying more than 3-grand. I would think it'd be closer to $2400.

I would not spend that much but it seems doable. I think you should aim for a mortgage if $412k or less.

An important question is what do your current monthly expenses look like and can you back in this new payment into your current lifestyle? Alternatively, if you will need to change your lifestyle to accommodate the new mortgage payment I would try making those cuts now before you take on the new house to make sure they are sustainable.

My personal opinion is that it is doable especially with that large of a downpayment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So your mortgage would be 450k and piti shouldn't be more than 3000, likely less. I think that is fine as long as your jobs are stable.

Not true. Go do full calculations. I know this because I financed 450k with a much lower interest rate than what is offered today. Depending on taxes and HOA and insurance it's around ~3200 and this is in my low tax county.

Absolutely true, at least for me in Bethesda. Borrowed 545k, piti is $3300. OP would be borrowing a full 100k less.

Seriously. I borrowed $550,000 in DC and my PITI is $2,800.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You should have phrased question differently- Can we afford a mortgage of $450 on a HHI of 165k given that we have emergency savings of 100k and no childcare expenses?

The answer to that is yes. Our HHI is the same and our mortgage is $550k. It is doable. It is worth it to us to be in a better location with good neighborhood schools.

Yeah, I disagree with that. I think it's too high a debt to income ratio.

As to your other point, I also think that the total cost of the house matters. Financially, it matters for taxes. But it also matters in terms of neighbors and expectations. You're going to feel constant pressure throughout your lives just to keep up with the higher neighborhood "baseline."

In this area I don't think there's a big divide between the lifestyle of those in $700k houses vs those in $500k ones. They're both going to be fairly middle class.

I think your scenario is manageable, op.

Anonymous wrote:You should have phrased question differently- Can we afford a mortgage of $450 on a HHI of 165k given that we have emergency savings of 100k and no childcare expenses?

The answer to that is yes. Our HHI is the same and our mortgage is $550k. It is doable. It is worth it to us to be in a better location with good neighborhood schools.

Yeah, I disagree with that. I think it's too high a debt to income ratio.

As to your other point, I also think that the total cost of the house matters. Financially, it matters for taxes. But it also matters in terms of neighbors and expectations. You're going to feel constant pressure throughout your lives just to keep up with the higher neighborhood "baseline."

You should have phrased question differently- Can we afford a mortgage of $450 on a HHI of 165k given that we have emergency savings of 100k and no childcare expenses?

The answer to that is yes. Our HHI is the same and our mortgage is $550k. It is doable. It is worth it to us to be in a better location with good neighborhood schools.

Anonymous wrote:That is out of the question, way too high

+1