Might have found my house!

I went and looked at house this morning and I absolutely loved it. The house is being foreclosed on, I think, so the owners have the opportunity to sell the house to salvage their credit. The house is a little further away from my place of employment than I'd like but it is worth it. Most importantly it has a bar in the basement. I'm going to check it out again tomorrow. We'll probably find out it is leaning to one side or the basement floods but till then I am hype! I should probably get on the horn with my boy over at Rock Financial.

Buying a Multi-Unit House

I think I am going to go look at a duplex or two. I love the idea of living upstairs and renting out the bottom half because I can stilll spend money like a dope if someone else is paying most of my mortgage. My concern is the amount of necessary maintenance. I live in a duplex at the moment and over the year and a half that I have lived there we have only had one minor mechanical problem so, I wonder if it is a decent gamble. I'm sure the condition of the house is a big factor but I am curious if there is anything else I should be looking for. Has anyone ever owned a multi-family property and rented a unit? Any advice?

Find Foreclosed Homes

I found this link on MSN for a website that locates forclosed homes. It actually breaks them up into four categories Pre-Foreclosure, Auction, Bank Owned, and For Sale by Owner. You have to register for a 7 day trial but if you are looking for foreclosed home it will give you quite a few leads.

50-year mortgages

I was unaware that such a loan even existed. Are these a gimmick to attract suckers or is it a legitimate device to help people get into a home. I couldn't imagine taking a loan for 50 years but, then again, that is twice as long as I have been alive. This article touches on the pros and cons of the loan.

The Art of the Lowball Offer

Great article on MSN offering tips on making a lowball offer and getting someone to accept it. They way the market is around here I intend to make a bunch of lowball offers. Does anyone have an idea of what percentage to cut off the top of the asking price? Is there such a formula?

First Time Home Buyer's Remorse

I have crazy anxiety about buying the right house. I look at houses like I look at songs on my Sirius radio. There are so many choices that there has to be a better choice on another station. Mixed with the issues that I don't know what I need and I vaguely know what I want I am completely flabbergasted. In my quest to find a website or article that says "here is the exact house you are suppose to buy" I found this article.

Stiffed by Real Estate Agent

The Real Estate Agent that has been calling me all the time suggesting houses I don't want to see and neighborhoods I don't like all of a sudden does not want to return my emails. I sent her a list of houses I want to see, in response to her email, and have heard nothing. It's getting easier to can her by the hour.

Flip a Home

A few months ago I had briefly entertained the idea of buying a house and flipping it with my roommate. He has all the know how in regard to repairs and building things and I have.............absolutely nothing to offer to the business proposition. This article confirms what I had already figured out: I am not smart enough to buy and flip a house.

Property Taxes

After sitting at my desk for hours figuring out estimated property taxes by hand multiplying the Mill rate by State Equalized Value (SEV) I wised up and realized that the state of Michigan has a property tax estimator on their website. That would have saved me hours of searching for the damn mill rate online. Now I just need to figure how the hell an escrow account works?

House shopping today

I'm going to look at a couple of ranches and a bungalow today. One of the houses has a finished basement with a bar and a pool table. For the most part that is all I want out of a house and, for that matter, life. I think I'll bring my pre-approval letter in case the bar is a wet bar and stocked with beer so I can make an offer on the spot. I'm getting sick of looking at houses anyway.

Trash or Treasure?

My buddy is friends with an attorney who recently had a client pass away. The client left behind a decent house in a great neighborhood but that is not the treasure. The treasure is the heaps and heaps of rubbish littering the house. For example, when I was over there this weekend the attorney stumbled across a huge stamp collection he estimates is worth $40-$50K, six pounds of gold(she use to make jewelery), maps from WWII complete with Nazi emblems, and thousands of dollars in cash stashed around the house. With that said, I am going to have to cut this entry short.....I'm heading over to my grandpa's house to go through his basement.

House Hook Up

My buddy is in the process of getting a tremendous deal on his first home. A friend of his is an attorney and represented a client that recently passed. With only an elderly woman left as family she is looking to dump the house. The house is not in great shape but is in a great neighborhood. Fortunate for my buddy he works for Pulte homes so has the ability and resources to make a killing when it comes time to sell the house. I am extremely jealous. I need something to fall into my lap so I can pull the trigger!

Pool: Increase homeowners insurance?

I am going to look at a house with a pool either today or tomorrow. I'm not sure if I am interested more in the house or more in the pool. Is this even something I want? All the parties I have already had in my head were great but the fact of the matter is I am the kind of guy that could very easily end up with green water because he forgets he has a pool. Do pools increase home owners insurance a lot?

Home Price Just Reduced

I just got a call from my real estate lady and apparently a house that I like a lot has been reduced by $7,500. I was considering making an offer on the house at the old price but I thought I would have all kinds of time since the house has been on the market forever. I told the agent I would love to get in the house again when I get back from Florida on Thursday and she said someone else was considering making an offer early in the week but she would "try to stall them". Just my abysmal luck. I wonder if this just a tactic she is using to get me to make an offer or the real deal? Buying a house is way too hard. I wonder if my parents will let me move back in?

Lowering bills to buy house

When the idea of buying a house popped in my head I handled it in the same fashion as most things in my life. I blindly leapt into the market searching for houses and working on financing. I called my boy at Rock Financial and got approved for a loan then I started calling Real Estate agents. I got hooked up with a couple of ladies from Century 21 but I think they are way more into then me. Unfortunate for them I still have not signed the contract! As the reality of the situation crept in I realized owning a home would, without a doubt, cramp my life style. Once that set in I started looking for ways to lower my monthly expenses so I could buy a house and still be quasi-stupid with my money. A few things I did:

1. Sold my car to lower my payment. I sold my car for about a $2000 profit and put it down on a used truck. I financed it through GMAC finance at a 5.5% rate, which is not bad I guess, and my payment went from $334 to $263 and my insurance is $300 cheaper.

2. I looked at my Sprint bill and realized those bastards were billing me monthly for a poker game I never played - EVER. I also dropped some other garbage and saved another $15.

3. I also looked at my checking account and realized I could save $5 a month buy turning off paper statements. Since I throw them out anyway that was an easy decision.

4. I looked at my student loan account and also turned off paper delivery and that cut something like 1/4 point of my rate. Not much but it also means I don't have shred those stupid paper statements.

5. I tried to switch my beer to 30 packs of Stroh's but that is not going to work so I moved on.

In my estimation, by checking a few websites, making a phone call or two, and selling my car I am going to save over a $100 a month. Money that can be used for stupider, more foolish pursuits like buying rounds for chicks or losing my ass in blackjack.

Arms

I have a buddy at Rock Financial and he hooked me up with a mortgage, actually two mortgages. I guess the idea is that since I am looking to put as little as possible down and the two loans will eliminate the need to pay PMI. I'm not really worried because I believe him but I am curious if this is a standard practice? I don't intend to live in the house for a real long time, maybe 5-7 years. The first ARM portion of my loan is for 7 years. Does this make sense to anyone?

Real Estate Agents

I'm going to look at some houses today or tomorrow with a couple of Real Estate agents. I'm debating whether or not I should hire them. They both seem like nice ladies and I would guess they are not crooked but I am still a little leery about inking them because I don't know what to look for in a Real Estate agent. Basically, all I am looking for in a house is a good value. Something that will someday make me some money. I go look at houses with these ladies and they keep saying things like "oh, I see you really like knobby pine" or "so, you don't like shotgun style ranches". LADY, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THOSE THINGS ARE! What am I suppose to be looking for in a Real Estate person?

My conundrum

I am a mid-20's male living in a large metropolitan city. I have been making mid to high $40's salary for the last three years. During that time I lived at home for almost 2 years with nothing but a $334 car payment and the usual small bills like cell phones and gym memberships. The last year or so I have been renting a place with a couple of buddies for $250/month a small portion of my monthly income. YET, I still have not saved much money. In comparison to some of my more money savy friends I feel like a dope. I do have money in my savings, I started a 403B last year, and have some money in my E*Trade brokerage account but I definitely think I should have more. I plan to buy a house in the near future but I am concerned that owning a home will cramp my style and make me a boring, frugal person . My intentions behind starting this blog is obtain some type of financial direction that will allow me to still have fun but also own a home. I figure I'll give it four months and if I don't receive the sought after advice I'll chalk it up as another stupid purchase/investment like my ebay bobblehead business or certifying to become a basketball official.