Hello everyone!
Last week our landlord gave us notice that our lease will not be renewed come October 14th. Our 1 bedroom, 1 bath unit will be utilized by his daughter in a time of need. Ergo, my wife and I, and lovely dog will now need to find a new place to live.
For the past 2 years, we've been saving a large portion of our income, and saving quite a bit of money. We've been preparing to buy a home, but with our current below market rent, it didn't make any sense for us to do so. Now, however, it could definitely make sense.
We live in Everett, Wa. 25 miles north of Seattle. Seattle is one of, if not the fastest growing large city per capita in the United States. Population is creeping north and south of Seattle, to try to avoid the drastic increases in real estate.(
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-once-again-nations-fastest-growing-big-city-population-exceeds-700000/)
Currently, our rent is $850/mo. After utilities, we're just over $1k/mo.
Similar 1bd/1bth rentals in our area are $1050-1200/mo plus utilities.
As of right now, our current strategy is similar to this: Buy a small 2-3bed 1-2bth home, for under $300k. Mortgage after down payment will be about $1k-1500+utilities. Live in that home for several years, and when the market dips again in the future, rent it out and move into the home that will take us into our retirement. Or just stay in the home...
I guess my real question. How happy would you be to purchase a home in this market they way it sits right now? It's crazy to me, but the rental rates are so high, that I could easily buy a home and pay less on a 30yr mortgage that I would for rent....