Housing market update

I’ve discussed this some months ago, but I’m still on the lookout for a house.
The housing market has been brutal these last four years especially, I wished I’d bought in 2029 looking back, but even that seemed expensive, to me.

I keep browsing the listings online and seeing if there’s anything that appeals to me but is reasonably priced.

I’ve run the numbers multiple times, and I’ve been saving for so long now that I have enough that I could make enough down payment to still afford a house.

But given where we are in the real estate cycle of todays prices, along with rates, I’m not sure that’s necessarily wise.

I’m just really ready to move on. I have my eye on a new construction home that I could see myself living in for a long time. It’s in a great location, and backs up to woods, which I like. It has most of the things I’d like to have but aren’t essentials (like a 2 car garage, vaulted ceilings and an extra bedroom to use as hobbies and an office).

It being new construction would also mean much lower insurance premiums, and hopefully less big stuff to need replacing for a whole (like roof, septic, HVAC). I’d like to have a rear screened porch, which this doesn’t offer, but it does have a patio that I could add one of those metal type screen porches on.

This week another similarly sized but existing (2006) house came up for sale that I like everything about (new roof, 2 car garage, vaulted ceilings, beautiful oak kitchen cabinets, very nice laundry room, big screened back porch) for $280k. But my work commute would double from 15 to 30 minutes a day. So I’m not sure it’d be great in that respect.

Really I’m just concerned as I hate to have to put such a big down payment and realize later on that I could’ve waited and prices would’ve come down $100k or such back to 2019 prices. But I really don’t know if it’s going to happen. The only time I’m aware of prices falling that much was in the aftermath of 2008. This situation, has a lot of differences than that. There are some similarities though, so I cannot rule it out.

All I know is that if there is a crash it isn’t going to happen tomorrow, and I’m frankly tired of waiting and only seeing prices go up every year. OTOH, I don’t want to end up underwater and have a foreclosure.

Anyway I keep daydreaming about these houses and how I’d use the spaces and I keep running budget costs and what I’d have left and just debating it.

Also it could just be the winter season which I know is the slowest real estate wise, but houses in my area are just not selling at all as quickly as they were. I don’t know if it’s the higher interest rates or if people are waiting for prices to come down. I suppose things could pick up this summer again and I could regret not buying when it was slow, but I just can’t envision prices being able to go up more than they have.

I really just don’t know what to do.


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Post# 469828 2/25/2024 at 12:14 (394 days old) by fan-of-fans (USA)
Checkrate/Likes I’ve discussed this some months ago, but I’m still on the lookout for a house. The housing market has been brutal these last four years especially, I wished I’d bought in 2029 looking back, but even that seemed expensive, to me. I keep browsing the listings online and seeing if there’s anything that appeals to me but is reasonably priced. I’ve run the numbers multiple times, and I’ve been saving for so long now that I have enough that I could make enough down payment to still afford a house. But given where we are in the real estate cycle of todays prices, along with rates, I’m not sure that’s necessarily wise. I’m just really ready to move on. I have my eye on a new construction home that I could see myself living in for a long time. It’s in a great location, and backs up to woods, which I like. It has most of the things I’d like to have but aren’t essentials (like a 2 car garage, vaulted ceilings and an extra bedroom to use as hobbies and an office). It being new construction would also mean much lower insurance premiums, and hopefully less big stuff to need replacing for a whole (like roof, septic, HVAC). I’d like to have a rear screened porch, which this doesn’t offer, but it does have a patio that I could add one of those metal type screen porches on. This week another similarly sized but existing (2006) house came up for sale that I like everything about (new roof, 2 car garage, vaulted ceilings, beautiful oak kitchen cabinets, very nice laundry room, big screened back porch) for $280k. But my work commute would double from 15 to 30 minutes a day. So I’m not sure it’d be great in that respect. Really I’m just concerned as I hate to have to put such a big down payment and realize later on that I could’ve waited and prices would’ve come down $100k or such back to 2019 prices. But I really don’t know if it’s going to happen. The only time I’m aware of prices falling that much was in the aftermath of 2008. This situation, has a lot of differences than that. There are some similarities though, so I cannot rule it out. All I know is that if there is a crash it isn’t going to happen tomorrow, and I’m frankly tired of waiting and only seeing prices go up every year. OTOH, I don’t want to end up underwater and have a foreclosure. Anyway I keep daydreaming about these houses and how I’d use the spaces and I keep running budget costs and what I’d have left and just debating it. Also it could just be the winter season which I know is the slowest real estate wise, but houses in my area are just not selling at all as quickly as they were. I don’t know if it’s the higher interest rates or if people are waiting for prices to come down. I suppose things could pick up this summer again and I could regret not buying when it was slow, but I just can’t envision prices being able to go up more than they have. I really just don’t know what to do.

Post# 469834 , Reply# 1 2/25/2024 at 15:26 (394 days old) by huskyvacs (Gnaw Bone, IN)
Checkrate/Likes 2 Look for fixer uppers or reposessed houses, tons of them in my area for $20,000 and less. All old Sears houses or 2 story houses. Firebombed, vandalized, water damage, etc but better to fix up over time then to try and totally renovate all in one month. You won't find a good used house anymore as foreign agents from Iran, China, Russia, are taking all the real estate and renting them out as Air BnB homes or rentals with extremely high fees. Houses are very cheap you just can't have high expectations and waste money. A house will continually lose money year over year so there is no point shelling out so much money for a house that will be worth less than 60% of that in your lifetime. Get it as cheap as possible, fix it up to how you like it, enjoy it and never sell it. Job done. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size

Post# 469847 , Reply# 2 2/25/2024 at 21:42 (394 days old) by Human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes 2 The market around here seems to be cooling off a bit, or maybe just reaching a plateau. Prices aren't coming down much, if at all. They're just not going up like they were. For the most part, they're just staying at or near the stratospheric levels to which they rose three or four years ago. I'm glad I was able to buy my house in 2014, when things were just starting to recover from the 2008 crash. Comparable houses are now selling for more than twice what I paid for mine. And sure, I could sell it and reap the cash rewards, but then where would I move? To buy another house, I'd likely have to spend all of the proceeds from this house, plus more. Not worth it, IMO.

Post# 474730 , Reply# 3 12/20/2024 at 18:29 by wstonehockertv (North Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes I can't see myself being a homeowner, and I'm two years away from turning 30. The kind of homeowners who exist are people who know how to manage their money and learn to do simple repairs.

Post# 474742 , Reply# 4 12/21/2024 at 00:11 by tolivac (Greenville,NC)
Checkrate/Likes Figure I must be fortunate-my old house burned down in a fire-settlement allowed me to buy a NEW home-2022 when it was built.I am enjoying my new place.Good "last" home. Want this to last the rest of my days.

Post# 475315 , Reply# 5 1/27/2025 at 22:12 by fan-of-fans (USA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Everyone says do what your passion is. Well my passion and desire is to own a home and make it mine. I want a workspace and a high room. I don’t care about getting married and I don’t want kids. But I can’t afford to do it even at 35 and saving for over a decade. I’m old now and still can’t afford a home and it’s really frustrating. And I can’t just move out of state and buy somewhere cheaper due to family issues: It seems like everyone I know my age already bought a house ages ago or already moved up to a better one, and I can’t even get into the first one.

Post# 475316 , Reply# 6 1/27/2025 at 23:38 by JustJunque (Western MA)
Checkrate/Likes 2 I'm so sorry that you seem so down. I wish I could tell you to keep your chin up and don't give up hope. But, with my issues, I'm the farthest thing from a motivational speaker. We have a house, although it won't be paid off for quite some time. And, with me unable to work any more, we're barely making it from one month to the next. I don't know if it's the same everywhere, but housing prices around this area have gotten crazy. A small fixer-upper is like $250,000. So, it's a very unfortunate time to be trying to buy. I was just saying the other day that I feel bad for anyone just trying to buy a "starter home" right now. And, I keep thinking that the bubble has to burst at some point. But, so far, everything just keeps going up. If we were just starting out right now, we could never afford the house we're in. It was actually more than we should have taken on at the prices of 14 or 15 years ago. But, we went for it. Now, on just one income, I don't know what's going to happen. I'm sorry. Like I said, I'm no one to give a pep talk at this point in time. But, I do hope that you'll try to stay somewhat positive. There was a housing bubble a while back, and it did eventually correct; at least a little bit. The same thing could happen again. It seems like it has to. I don't know how anyone can afford the current prices. But, at least around here, houses seem to be selling fast. I continue to wish you the best. P.S. Oh. And at 35, please don't think of yourself as old. You may not be a kid any more, but you're certainly not old.

Post# 475348 , Reply# 7 1/29/2025 at 22:56 by fan-of-fans (USA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Thank you!* I hope things work out for you! Prices here seem similar to where you are. I have actually noticed a few houses at a bit cheaper prices here the last few weeks, but they definitely need some work. Although being winter season, there’s probably less for sale, which makes it even seemingly worse. I’ve noticed home sales, at least in my part of Florida, seen to have slowed down considerably. Part of that may be due to the high insurance costs here, plus internet rates have gone back above 7%, I think. My uncle’s insurance just doubled last year to $4k, on a 20 year old house. Fortunately their house is paid off, but the insurance increases are definitely shocking. They had some shingles blown off in the last hurricane, and their roof is original from 2005, so really needs replacement. But the insurance is only wanting to do a patch job. Which I get it, but it’s not even worth patching. My parents are paying nearly $9k for their insurance, which is crazy to me. But it was built in the 1970s, and is also waterfront, so that may be making it more, even though it has a nearly new roof. The insurance has me even more hesitant to buy a home. I’m concerned the rates will get so high that I can’t afford them, and if I had a mortgage, then what would I do? I can’t just drop insurance while having a mortgage, or what if I at some point can’t get any coverage at all. I tend to over analyze, but to me it’s a good question to consider. I remember how low prices got here after the bubble burst last time. It makes todays prices seem even more absurd, and here todays prices are just about twice what they were before it had popped. I kept thinking this bubble would have popped at several times before now, but so far it hasn’t. It just doesn’t seem sustainable that they can keep increasing like this and so quickly.

Post# 475353 , Reply# 8 1/30/2025 at 13:42 by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)
Checkrate/Likes 3 *I have my family home.* It's 140 yrs old. We're only the 3rd owners. The previous family did horrendous things to it. I've spent my life 'undoing' things, modernizing parts, etc. But, the 'big things": roof, wiring, furnace, water heater, kitchen, bathrooms, etc have all been replaced. But, you still 'pay a price' to live in something like it. Oh, and, it's built on top of a former cemetery!

Post# 475368 , Reply# 11 1/31/2025 at 13:45 by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)
Checkrate/Likes 2 *Thank you!* It is, as, will always be, a labor of love. Didn't you ever see the posts about 'strange things happening here"? It is a common occurrence. LOTS of 'peculiar' things happen here. Once, while digging below the frost line for a concrete slab in front of the front door, I found bones. Turns out, it was a human (child's ) pelvis. I had visions of the news station here, religious freaks, etc... Fun times......................

Post# 475354 , Reply# 9 1/30/2025 at 13:43 by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640)
Checkrate/Likes 3 *some of you* have seen pics of it, in all sorts of condition...

Post# 475355 , Reply# 10 1/30/2025 at 15:42 by JustJunque (Western MA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Oh my word, John. I've never heard the little tidbit about it being built on a former cemetery! I still think it's a lovely house.

Post# 475372 , Reply# 12 1/31/2025 at 14:50 by JustJunque (Western MA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Wow. If I had seen those posts, I had forgotten. I seem to remember hearing about some strange goings on, but didn’t remember about the cemetery. Oh well. Gives it even more character!

Post# 475904 , Reply# 13 3/8/2025 at 07:40 by wstonehockertv (North Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes 1

Post# 476184 , Reply# 14 3/23/2025 at 15:28 by Lesinutah (Utah)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *You* Should talk to either an agent or loan officer. This will give you an idea on what you can afford. The insurance is lower here but houses are double what your looking at. The winter is usually the best time to buy. They have usually been on the market a while. They're is also less foot traffic so your less likely to get into a bidding war. I'd look into it just to see what you can afford. It'll give you an idea of what's happening. Each location is different with different variables. You can always buy now refinance or sell and upgrade or downgrade as needed. Houses are probably the best investment because where are you going to put your money on and have it be worth 100k more in 5 years or even double in 10 years. PS don't buy next to a cemetary especially with a vacuum collection. You'd be asking for it to be haunted. Lol jk your not old either.

Post# 476210 , Reply# 15 3/25/2025 at 12:13 by Human (Pines of Carolina)
Checkrate/Likes Exactly. When I bought my first townhouse 30 years ago, the real estate agent I used put me in touch with a loan officer she knew at a local bank, who 'pre-qualified' me for my mortgage so we had a realistic idea of what I could afford. It made for a much easier and more successful house hunting experience.

Post# 476215 , Reply# 16 3/25/2025 at 17:50 by JustJunque (Western MA)
Checkrate/Likes I don't know what's going on with our town. But, two newly constructed houses have just gone on the market at $700,000. I wouldn't call either one an extravagant house, and they're not on large parcels of land. I know that if we were just looking to buy now, we wouldn't be able to afford our own current house.