Holy moley, anonymous emailer! You're dead on!
WE GET OBAMA'S 8 GRAND!!!
OMG. How could I, with 5 billion PF feeds, miss that one? They raised the income to 250K! That's us!
That means we need to close by April 1. So, we better get moving.
-UPDATE-
Thanks, Internet, for the actual answer. You have to have a contract by April 30, and you have to close by June 30. We can do that! The income limit is 250K (for a married couple), but it phases out at 225. That's us!
Saturday, January 2, 2010
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17 comments:
Good for you.
But I have to ask:
If it were not for the $8k would you have been able to afford the same house in the same time period?
IOW, if $8k makes the difference between buying the house or not, then IMO you're cutting your finances waaaaaaay to close to the bone.
I assure you there will be many unforseen costs and expenses with home ownership, probably more sooner than later, than a "mere" $8k.
What then?
Of course we can afford a house. If closing before April is worth 8K, I'll do it.
Check the dates for the $8K program. I just heard a loan person on our news say that you have to be in a purchase contract by April 30 and close by June 30.
Master - absolutely correct.
She is fickle. This is just another one of her daily brain farts.
Let's make a gentlemen's wager - I say that there is absolutely no way that she signs a contract to buy a home and closes in time to get the $8k. It is doubtful she'll even get to the point of signing a contract and putting down the deposit.
You just have to read the past month or two of posts and know it. This is nothing more than the next episode of the soap opera.
While I agree that I find it amusing that Dog is jumping for joy over this one after she just stated they are staying in their rental and how picky (and prickly) Mr. Dog seems to be about houses, I also have to say she is right to be excited. 8K is nothing to sneeze at since they can afford to buy and are wanting to buy a house. It is good PF sound decision making to go after it IF POSSIBLE.
Given the past history, I find it unlikely that they will find a house they can agree on, that is reasonably in their price range, that the owners will accept their bid.
Dog, please look at houses in your current income level in the coming months! Which is about 250 - 300K, given Mr. Dog and your stated 2009 incomes of ~100K and 50K. Having a McMansion at age 26 will not make you happy. You already have stated how tired you are with this job, how it is hard to just do Mr. Dog's taxes, let alone upkeep a house vs a rental.
You are being colored by your generations thoughts around wanting everything now. Don't be fooled! This really is only your first "chance" at getting your McMansion. The only people I know who are happy with their houses are the ones who can afford to go on vacations and do things to improve their houses without a HELOC. Or already have their houses paid off.
Sweetie,you're giving me whiplash!!! Your decision-making abilities are making me question that "bullet-proof" education you like to talk about.
So does that mean you are going to settle for something to get the 8K? You haven't been able to find a house in the past year that is acceptable to you - what makes you think you will find one in the next month or two? Just curious...
Henry, or should I call you Mr. Tennessee, you seem to keep coming back to this site, however, and reading Dog's post each and every day. You sir, are no gentlemen. Just some 'rubbernecker' getting his kicks off someone's life and calling himself 'holier than thou'.
Of course Dog will be buying a home soon. I've read her past 2 months of posts. When the timing is right, she and Senor will buy.
They will not even qualify for a mortgage.
His income is from self-employment, has not been long-term, and is not stable, the lenders won't count it very much if at all. She is not the breadwinner and makes significantly less.
With the tighter lending standards that are now in place, these kids won't find many (if any) lenders willing to fund their purchase (which is still very doubtful).
Regardless, the $8000 won't help much at all - just in the time span of the past month or two contemplating purchasing, mortgage rates have gone up enough that the interest payments over the life of the loan is significantly more than than $8000. Rates on 30 year fixed mortgages are up roughly 0.50% since November. On a $200,000 mortgage, that comes to a bit more than $30,000 over the life of the loan, for a higher loan amount, the interest differential over the life of the loan would be even greater. By the time these kids are at the point of locking in a mortgage rate, they'll be even higher. They're subject to AMT (based on stated income), and they aren't going to see any benefit from property tax deductions as a result.
This $8000 is a non-issue/non-event. Dog will realize this soon. She missed the opportunity at the lowest mortgage rates and will stick with the apartment as a result. That's my guess.
Eh, don't listen to 'em Dog. (You wouldn't anyway, but now I get to feel like you're listening to me!)
So long as you don't feel like you're settling, I say take advantage of the $8,000. On the other hand, even if you settle a little, you will get the benefits of the $8k and be out of that horrid rental.
I guess, in summation, that you should find a house you can be reasonably happy in, for at least 5 years. Preferably longer, of course.
But I can't help but think that this is the universe aligning to get you out of that rental you dislike and finally get you settled on a house, which you've been unsure about.
Eh, some people can't resist free money, even if it means buying something they weren't planning on buying (witness sales). I'm not surprised Dog is one of them. $8K is a drop in the bucket compared to what she has/is willing to spend but if it means she'll get something she didn't think she'd get of course she'll buy, wisely or not.
You can't deny it makes for entertaining reading :-)
I agree $8k is sweet. Wish I had an $8k incentive when my wife and I bought our house about 6 years ago. But instead we had to save and scrape and jump through hoops to make it happen. No free money government hand outs for us dumb hardworking shmucks. But I digress...
Let me rephrase my question:
If you have in fact found the house of your dreams but there was no $8k pot of gold waiting for you at the end of this rainbow, would you still be readily able (and just as eager) to make an April closing? Or would finding the money to make an April closing be beyond your means right now?
I may be tainted in my view because I've seen soooooooo many people (young and old) dive head first with eyes closed into house ownership thinking it's the same as renting except you pay a bank and not a landlord.
It isn't - trust me on that.
We're going to buy anyway this year. We might as well do it with the 8K add-on.
Master -- it isn't as though you get the 8k when you purchase. I'm pretty sure you get it when you do your taxes. In early 2011!
She will have to (and be able to) find the means to close in April just the same as she would if she didn't qualify. The 8k is real (and awesome!) but it is not an immediate pot of goal.
Dog -- best of luck!
Censorship is an amazing thing isn't it? Imagine if the media or our government did it? Then it would be just like Hitler...just like you.
The $8k carrot is a good one. Two of my children stepped in last year and took advantage of this deal.
One thing to consider is the percentage. I vaguely recall you looking at houses in the $250k range. That $8k comes out to a little over 3% of the value. Be careful not to overpay by 5%-10% just to "save" 3%.
you can ammend your taxes from last year. I bought a house last summer and ammended my 2008 taxes. I filed the extension the day I closed on my house and got my check from the IRS 3 weeks later ...
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