Two-Fold Post:
Part 1:
I'll be proposing towards the end of the year (shhh don't tell anyone!) and SO and I have been discussing "the future" for quite a while and one of these topics is "the next house", wedding, kids, etc. SO bought the current house we live in before we met, back in 2011. It's a fine "starter house", 2 Bed, 1 Bath, 1,000 SF house, but not where we want to be forever.
We have both discussed our needs and wants from the next house, (I.E. Ranch-Style, 3 or 4 BR, 2+ Bath, and a Garage) and agree on the location that is both central to family, school district, work, etc. For the last 6-12 months we have been browsing online on sites like Zillow and Realtor, really just to get a feel more for the areas, layouts of the houses, etc. Honestly, during this time, I don't think we've even seen the "perfect" house that checks all the minimal boxes that we are looking for, which is a bit concerning, plenty of "good" houses, just nothing perfect. Doing this has been a helpful exercise just to get a better feel overall for the area, the neighborhoods, etc.
What are some other good "tips"/things to be doing at this stage of the game?
Part 2:
RE is not our #1 goal as we both enjoy our careers and are definitely frugal (maybe not Mustachian by some of your standards, but certainly live below our means, no fancy cars, etc.), with that said, the house that would meet what we are looking for is likely in the $275K-$350K price range.
Quick Background on our finances, I use the word "jointly" just to describe the aggregate between us, NOT b/c our finances are joint, as they are NOT at this time, but would be once married: Joint Income roughly $140K ($70K + $70K each, these numbers can skew higher pending bonuses), both max 401K, no debt or liabilities (excluding current mortgage), joint savings = $69K and continuing to stash more into savings each month as we want to be able to put down 20% to avoid being contingent as houses have been going quick.
The current house was bought in 2011 for $120K, $24K down payment to avoid PMI, and the current mortgage balance is right at $80K, currently paying min payments on a 30-year loan at 3.5%. The house would probably sell for around $135K, maybe a little more.
Without going into every detail and a full case study, from a high level, does a $275K-$350K house seem reasonable? In all honesty, the house we want will likely be on the higher end of that range. The game plan at the moment is to continue stashing cash to build a bit more of a buffer so we're not contingent.
The house were in now is not perfect, but definitely meets our needs, for now. That said, it's not a matter of if, more like when, we would move to our next house whether that be next year or in the next few years at the latest. FWIW, we both hope this next house will be the final house (I know everyone says that, but I can't imagine a reason why this would change as our families are both here and we both are on a good career track and have been with the same employer 5+ years each).
I've always been frugal, but finding JL Collins and MMM back in 2016 has been excellent. Finance is not SO's natural inclination, but she is definitely frugal and has been gaining more and more interest on these topics, and finance, in general. If anything, just looking for tips/advice to prepare best for the future.
Open to any and all (both positive or negative welcome!) feedback.