Would this be totally crazy? Talk to me

[neveryoumindthere]

There is a house available that we could afford and realistically pay off in 6-8 years. BUT, we currently have debt from university loans that should be done by the end of this year. Would it be totally crazy to consider putting close to 10K as a downpayment when that 10K would pay off our loans?

Just so it's clear, we don't actually *have* 10K saved. We'd have to borrow from family/friends, but the monthly payments would be totally doable no problem. In fact, we'd be paying exactly what we are paying now in rent, but we'd be putting it into our OWN home.

It's a 3 bed, corner lot, BRICK home with finished basement, and ALL brand new appliances will be staying so we wouldnt have that expense either. The seller is also willing to put 5K down towards closing costs and 1 yr free Brinks security system. We'd be only 20 min away from dh's workplace, as opposed to an hour each way.

Sounds too good to be true right?










RIGHT??????

lol

OH and did I mention we'd be doing this without paying a cent of interest?

[superstella]

I would totally do it.

[Gwendolyn's babies]

I would do it.

[allborntogrow]

I would do it in a heartbeat.

[lmonter]

Originally Posted by allborntogrow

I would do it in a heartbeat.

:
And how much would your gas (car) costs go down with cutting the commute time that much? I think that alone would probably free up a fair amount of money unless your hubby drives a Vespa to work, and even then...
Just make sure you know how much the utilities cost going into it - that's where we had a nice sticker shock the first month we were in our house... Especially if it's got natural gas or oil appliances and such.

[nolansmummy]

I would do it.

[cristeen]

Check with the county as to how much property taxes would be (around here it's a percentage of the purchase price), and call your insurance agent for a quote on insurance. Add those numbers together and divide by 12, and that's how much you'll be paying each month in addition to the mortgage. If you can still afford it, I'd jump on it with both feet.

[SusannahM]

There's also the insurance for the house to remember. There was a thread around here about expenses that come with houses...

[mightymoo]

If its a unique opportunity, which it sounds like it must be, I would definitely go for it. If the alternative is paying off your (low interest?) student loan debt only to acquire a mortgage at a higher interest, given that you could get this one at zero interest, then it makes sense to do it this way.

If you could find a similar house with similar terms after your debt is paid off, I'd wait. As long as you can afford the house payments, cost of living in a house, taxes, etc as well as you debt payments, etc. it sounds reasonable to me.

BTW - not matter what the circumstances get a home inspection! Know what you are buying even if you are buying it from a family or friend.

[MistyB]

I would also check on property taxes as they can be more than you think. And also consider the cost of home repairs...something literally comes up almost monthly in a home that needs repaired.

Instead of the year home security I would ask for a 1 year home warranty. Home warrantys do not cover a lot of things but ours was actually used for several things.

Is the school district good? What is the resale market like? Are home values holding, dropping, increasing...all other things I would think about.