Leta
Lovin' The Homestead
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Has anyone used one of these services?
"We Buy Houses!"
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TanksHill
Super Self-Sufficient
Shucks for a minute I there I was going to try and sell you mine. 
g
g
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Leta
Lovin' The Homestead
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LOL!
Well, we aren't behind, so there is absolutely no way I'm going to agree to a short sale. For that matter, I don't know that we are underwater- I don't think we are. We are debating becoming landlords, and even though that prospect makes me nervous, I think it would be better than trying to sell this place. I've seen houses languish on the market for years in this neighborhood, but the rentals are filled within weeks. It's a nice neighborhood.
We don't owe that much, and if we refinance, our house payments will go down to $160, which is like a cable bill for most folks. So long as the renter's paid the mortgage, insurance, taxes and utilities, I'd be fine with covering the repairs and maintenance. Our oldest is going to start college in five years, and we would like him to live in this house while he's in school. Room and board at our university is $8000 per year in 2011, Lord only knows what it will be up to in 2016. Four years of that would set us back $32,000, which would pay off this mortgage. There are two more kids coming up behind him, too- $8K x 4 years x 3 kids= $96,000 and two heart attacks.
So I think it's worth it to keep it, rent it out for five years, and then have it as housing for our college students. However, if we could sell it for what we owe in a quick and painless way, I'd be willing to go for that... but all the "We Buy Houses!" places that I've checked out have seemed pretty shady, which is why I posted this thread. I have heard of no one who has actually used that kind of buyer, and most of the reviews I've read online have been negative.
Unless someone has a really compelling story, I don't think I'm going to bother with them. I think I'm just going to forge ahead with our refi/rent in spring plan.
Well, we aren't behind, so there is absolutely no way I'm going to agree to a short sale. For that matter, I don't know that we are underwater- I don't think we are. We are debating becoming landlords, and even though that prospect makes me nervous, I think it would be better than trying to sell this place. I've seen houses languish on the market for years in this neighborhood, but the rentals are filled within weeks. It's a nice neighborhood.
We don't owe that much, and if we refinance, our house payments will go down to $160, which is like a cable bill for most folks. So long as the renter's paid the mortgage, insurance, taxes and utilities, I'd be fine with covering the repairs and maintenance. Our oldest is going to start college in five years, and we would like him to live in this house while he's in school. Room and board at our university is $8000 per year in 2011, Lord only knows what it will be up to in 2016. Four years of that would set us back $32,000, which would pay off this mortgage. There are two more kids coming up behind him, too- $8K x 4 years x 3 kids= $96,000 and two heart attacks.
So I think it's worth it to keep it, rent it out for five years, and then have it as housing for our college students. However, if we could sell it for what we owe in a quick and painless way, I'd be willing to go for that... but all the "We Buy Houses!" places that I've checked out have seemed pretty shady, which is why I posted this thread. I have heard of no one who has actually used that kind of buyer, and most of the reviews I've read online have been negative.
Unless someone has a really compelling story, I don't think I'm going to bother with them. I think I'm just going to forge ahead with our refi/rent in spring plan.
Veggie PAK
Power Conserver
I don't think they would give you much equity compared to what you actually have in it. All they want to do is make fast money at the homeowner's expense. I don't even like seeing their signs. I think they're bloodsuckers on folks going through hard times, which makes them pretty low in my book.
Sunny
Lovin' The Homestead
I dont know about the actual businesses that do the "We Buy Houses" thing. But in a town 2 hours from me there is a guy who runs an ad like that. He buys the ugly and run down ones. Ones that others are not buying at all. Most people want a house you can move into right away with minimal work. He buys them. Usually only a few a year and fixes them as a hobby then rents them out.
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Leta
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Geez, the U.P. would be that guy's paradise.
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Leta
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Well, it's done.
I feel the same way about debt, but I also know that we have been sucked into circumstances beyond our control with the state of this economy and real estate market. So we are making the best of it.
We refied, and as far as costing us more money, it is not much. We are in an unusual situation- our taxes + insurance are only $40/mo less than our mortgage (principle + interest). We now have a biweekly mortgage at a lower interest rate, so it's going to cost a couple thousand dollars more over the life of the loan (30 years), plus the closing costs. So over 30 years, it will cost us an extra $6000.
But if we did not refi, then we could not take advantage of the amazing deals that are out there right now. When we moved here in '05, the area that we fell in love with was Big Money. It was a fantasy. Now, prices have dropped like a stone. I've been looking at an index, and in non-adjusted dollars, prices have not been this low in said area since '88-'89.
This is our dream, and now we can afford it since our payments here are so low.
I don't think we'll have a problem finding renters. Worst case scenario, we have to carry this house for four more years until DSS goes to college, which we can afford to do since we've refied. (He gets free tuition through DH, but not housing.) We will rent it to him at cost, which is a long sight better than paying the $1000/mo that it costs to live on campus. We have three kids, so $1000/mo x 8 months x 4 years x 3 kids is $96,000, which would pay for this house three times over. It seems silly to waste money on that when we could instead end up with a piece of real estate at the end of their college years. The little guy is 2, so when he graduates in 20 years, hopefully this house is A) paid off, and B) the market has rebounded some.
This is more of a risk, but I really feel like we have made the best possible decision given our circumstances. Which, to be honest, are good, but very unusual, so typical financial advice doesn't really apply to us. It's taken me a couple years to figure that out, but now that I have, our financial decisions have started to make a lot more sense.
I feel the same way about debt, but I also know that we have been sucked into circumstances beyond our control with the state of this economy and real estate market. So we are making the best of it.
We refied, and as far as costing us more money, it is not much. We are in an unusual situation- our taxes + insurance are only $40/mo less than our mortgage (principle + interest). We now have a biweekly mortgage at a lower interest rate, so it's going to cost a couple thousand dollars more over the life of the loan (30 years), plus the closing costs. So over 30 years, it will cost us an extra $6000.
But if we did not refi, then we could not take advantage of the amazing deals that are out there right now. When we moved here in '05, the area that we fell in love with was Big Money. It was a fantasy. Now, prices have dropped like a stone. I've been looking at an index, and in non-adjusted dollars, prices have not been this low in said area since '88-'89.
This is our dream, and now we can afford it since our payments here are so low.
I don't think we'll have a problem finding renters. Worst case scenario, we have to carry this house for four more years until DSS goes to college, which we can afford to do since we've refied. (He gets free tuition through DH, but not housing.) We will rent it to him at cost, which is a long sight better than paying the $1000/mo that it costs to live on campus. We have three kids, so $1000/mo x 8 months x 4 years x 3 kids is $96,000, which would pay for this house three times over. It seems silly to waste money on that when we could instead end up with a piece of real estate at the end of their college years. The little guy is 2, so when he graduates in 20 years, hopefully this house is A) paid off, and B) the market has rebounded some.
This is more of a risk, but I really feel like we have made the best possible decision given our circumstances. Which, to be honest, are good, but very unusual, so typical financial advice doesn't really apply to us. It's taken me a couple years to figure that out, but now that I have, our financial decisions have started to make a lot more sense.
