Should I move?

[freeazabird]

Please help. I have no idea if I should move or not.

Currently, my husband and I live in a 3 bed, 1.5 bath house. The house was purchased renovated in a neighborhood we love. The house however unfortunately located on a very busy main street. When we bought the house this was no big deal because we were childless and planning to remain that way. Along the way we unexpectedly got pregnant and now have an infant. We are concerned about having a child on such a busy street and are thinking of buying another home in our neighborhood off the main street.

The home we've found our almost exact same home, except it is not renovated. The home also has a small florida that we can use as a home office (my husband works from home, and currently uses one of our bedrooms). It looks like it would need $40K in work to be comparable to our current home. The house is listed at $195K, we are hoping to pay $165K. After renovations the home would be worth around $250K.

Our current home is worth around $200K. We owe $165K on the mortgage.

So in summary, the benefits of moving would be getting off the main road, and getting a small amount of extra space for a home office, which would in turn free up a bedroom for guests and an additional kid down the road.

Would you move? Moving is a hassle, costs money, and we really love our current home and know there are no surprise repairs waiting on us. But it would be nice to gain the added benefits mentioned above.

Our HHI in $160K, the mortgage is our only debt.

[freeazabird]

I should also add that housing inventory in our neighborhood is very low, and we think this potential home could sell quickly.

[Fishindude]

You say you love the neighborhood, and your child is only an infant.
Looks like you have some time before you need to worry about a child running around on their own.

Why not just takes some safety measures, fences, gates, etc. and stay put?

[Lowerbills]

Completely understand wanting to pay less than list price, but you also state "that housing inventory in our neighborhood is very low, and we think this potential home could sell quickly."

By all means, bid $30k less than list price, but what makes you think that's enough to get the house?  Do either of you have a real estate license?  Personally I'm a big fan of looking into getting one if you KNOW you will be doing at least one sell and one buy... Just a thought.

As someone who's kiddo runs around in the front yard, rides bikes in the street, etc... there is something to be said about living on a sleepier street.  And it's nice to update the new house to your personal taste.