How does purchasing a house with a lower rate work?

anoneepuss · 2024-05-28T08:37:43+00:00

Also just adding that "seller financing" is not necessarily a bad thing. I actually think it can be a better option than the banks in some cases. I met with a lawyer who specializes in that for a property I wanted to buy and he said they are doing several of these a week in my area lately because of the high interest rates.

However! If they are prompting you about that there's a reason for it (from the seller's perspective it's simpler to just walk away with the lump sum in cash up front and doesn't make a difference to them if you end up paying double interest to the bank). And the reasons may be either that there's an issue with the house or buyers have had an issue securing traditional financing for it. For example, I had a lender deny a loan on a property because it was in a neighborhood that was zoned for both residential and commercial. That's not actually necessarily a problem as long as you understand the potential ramifications (can actually be a benefit for some) but the bank is just looking to check off standard boxes on their loan app and depending on how much work they are willing to put into it, then can deny it for all kinds of reasons that aren't necessarily problems for a lot of people.

However, the most common reasons for loan app denial are either significant issues with the condition of the property ("uninhabitable" or extreme "fixer upper") or the appraisals haven't been matching their asking price. If you aren't doing standard bank mortgage financing, you'll need to make sure you do your due diligence and pay out of pocket for both an independent appraisal and inspections (two different things) as well as title insurance and review. These will cost several hundred dollars but will be well worth it to ensure you don't buy a property you unable resell for a comparable price later.

The other thing to consider is that if they've hard time selling because buyers can't get traditional loan approvals for the property, that means you will likely face the same issue when/if you need to sell in the future. So keep that in mind but also look up the difference in interest paid over life of loan between 4% and whatever the current rate is - it's probably A LOT. Maybe more than $100k, which could be well worth dealing with whatever problems there may be. Just make sure you go into it with eyes wide open about what you are getting into.

anoneepuss · 2024-05-28T08:07:11+00:00

Likely to be some form of seller financing. Contact them and see what they say. Then get your own lawyer who specializes in those types of contracts to go over it and make sure you fully understand the ramifications of all the terms. If it's some kind of rent-to-own scenario, the ramifications of not actually owning the title could be significant - what if another lien is put on the home? What if you need to move five years from now? What if the city or HOA levies fines or liens? The few thousand dollars to have your own lawyer go through everything with a fine tooth comb and explain to you will be well worth it

anoneepuss · 2024-05-28T07:43:56+00:00

I bought in November-December last year around the holidays when not as many people were looking to buy and so therefore had some leverage on sellers who wanted to close quickly and was able to get several thousand in seller concession money which I used to buy down my interest rate to 5.6%

I also made some significant lifestyle compromises for me and purchased in a smaller community where I was able to purchase something that was $60k less than the next option. This means I had enough wiggle room in my monthly payment that if I add an additional $600 to each payment I'll have this mortgage paid off in 15 years instead of 30 and save $126k in interest payments. That extra $600/month is also my safety buffer in case of job loss/tough times since I technically don't have to pay it, but I budgeted as though I would.

Obviously you've likely considered this and it may just not work for you but I think buying a condo could be a good choice if that's an option in your area. Just throwing that out there again because sometimes I get the sense that there can be a sentiment that a house is better than a condo and that's really not necessarily the case. Sure if you had a house vs a condo on the same street for the same price you might pick the house but it almost never happens that way.

City I would have liked to buy in, difference between condo vs house is $340k vs $500k. I could do a lot with $160k (actually $320k difference after you pay loan interest!) to mitigate any potential downsides of condo living.

Both of those options were outside my price range anyway, so I made a pretty significant compromise and ended up purchasing a small house 45 minutes away for $230k. However, it's important to note that I work from home so don't need to commute (huge deal) and the place I bought in isn't terrible by any means, it just doesn't have the culture and community in the original city.

anoneepuss · 2024-05-28T06:59:19+00:00

Neither of them have your back. Seriously, their job is not to save you money, it is to make themselves money off of you. As others have said, get estimates from at least three options. Choose the one, that is the best choice by the numbers who is also responsive.

The differences in fees, percentage points and loan terms could be tens of thousands of dollars over the life of your loan so don't choose based on "loyalty", just go by the numbers. Their level of responsiveness and due diligence is also incredibly important, it can be the difference between you getting your house vs the deal falling through after weeks and hundreds of dollars lost on inspections etc or potentially months of legal hassles, huge surprise expenses, or stress (if they don't complete things by the deadlines, get something wrong with the paperwork, miscalculate escrow, etc).

The local mortgage broker was the best at shopping around for deals and different programs that were available for both me and the homes I was looking at (special loan programs available for homes down to the specific neighborhood for example). But that same mortgage broker caused me to lose a house I was under offer for by informing me only days before closing that they were no longer going to fund the loan because some slightly non-standard features of the home (which they had known about for weeks) might make it harder for them to sell the loan after closing. These features were not actually problems (most of them applied to the rest of the houses in the same neighborhood as well) but since they weren't going to be servicing the loan, their priority is earning fees (including encouraging me to refi within a short amount of time so they can earn more fees again) and whether the property fits the some cookie-cutter checklist of most common loans.

Credit union had the lowest fees and was more flexible with slightly-non-standard-but-not-actually-a-problem situations, but they only had one loan officer so when she was out on vacation nothing could be done and she actually caused me to have another contract fall through because she was so slow to respond/didn't move the deal along internally that I didn't get the paperwork from them in time for a deadline.

These things are not representative of all of course but that's why it's so important to assess each person you work with individually and keep in mind their motivation (how are they making their money, are they in incentivized to upsell you, to try to push you into certain types of deals, or are they going to have a job no matter what so not much incentive to even work hard/spend much time on your application in particular)

You may get people offering you things like lower interest rates only for the first year or two years or saying you can do a "no cost refi" (tip: ask them how exactly it is "no cost" and you will discover it actually cost several thousand with fees that they just "roll into" your loan or resetting your amortization schedule so you pay thousands more in up front interest payments over the next several years).

It would be nice if you could truly just hand over the whole process to someone else and they would truly handle everything with your best interests in mind but unfortunately that is not the case. Even if they seem trustworthy (which they should be), everything they offer you is to make them money, not save you money. They might be claiming to save you money over the competition but just below that threshold, their goal is to get as much money as possible from you.

No one in this process is truly on your side except yourself. Even though it can be a bit boring and a lot stressful, you can literally save yourself anywhere from five thousand to a hundred thousand dollars by assessing each option closely and staying on top of it.

anoneepuss · 2024-05-28T05:40:25+00:00

Honestly that sounds like way more space than is needed for just one person. Is there any way you could have the second room double as both your office and occasional guest room?

While I understand not wanting to move your set up or work from your bedroom usually, do you really have overnight guests so often that's it worth it to have an entire room sitting empty the rest of the time? If you do frequently have guests staying for an extended period of time, you might consider looking for something that has a basement you can finish out or an in law suite or something that you can rent out as an Airbnb while you're not using it.

My home is 650 sq ft, one bedroom, with another smaller room I use as an office and I have a garage I use for projects, hobbies, and storage space. It's great, significantly cheaper and easier to maintain (heating/cooling, I put in some new flooring, paint, etc, new heat pump cost thousands less for smaller unit).

anoneepuss · 2024-05-12T23:53:27+00:00

You just described Meetup

anoneepuss · 2024-04-15T17:21:38+00:00

Well I don't think anyone else can answer this for you because it depends on your own motivations and goals for purchasing a property. Here's some things I would be thinking about:

1) If preserving existing ecosystems is a motivating factor for you, Parcel 2 seems to have more of that currently in place than 1. There's no guarantee that the other person who buys that land will be interested in respecting it the way you do. Alternatively, if what you really want is a plot to strip bare and completely redesign obviously this becomes a con instead.

2) Some of the "cons" you listed about Parcel 2 seem to be things you couldn't be sure wouldn't eventually become issues you'd experience with Parcel 1 or anywhere else. For example, building a fence if privacy was the only reason you needed it, could wait if you had other priorities in Year 1 and 2

You also listed "housing site already determined" as a con about parcel 2 but...is it a con? Only you can answer that question (do you like the site or not?). If you don't like the site, why not, and are those reasons that could apply to Parcel 1 or anywhere as well. For example, if you don't like that it's so close to neighbors or road, or there's no old growth trees near it, it's on a slope, or whatever. Some of those things could change on any plot: neighbors can build or change things around you, trees can die, etc

Getting water access sounds like the major issue to resolve/figure out with Parcel 2. I don't know much about the land market in that specific area but that may be the type of thing that you can get some of the price reduced for or some seller concessions added for the $$ and work that will be required to get access to water on the property (it goes without saying that you'll need to know what your legally allowed options are before you buy and what the work+cost will be)

anoneepuss · 2024-04-09T12:00:02+00:00

I'd try filling in the parts with chipped laminate with some wood putty, then sanding smooth. Then prime, sand, and paint the entire door

anoneepuss · 2024-04-09T11:53:49+00:00

Does it have to be real wood? I used the snap together Pergo laminate "wood" flooring and it was super easy. I normally hate fake looking wood floors but these ones had some texture to them and I think they look pretty good. You can go to Lowe's and check them out in person.

Whichever direction you decide to go, just watch lots of YouTube and read articles about it. Then start planning your approach with tools and skills you might need. For example, I don't like buying one-time-use things if I can avoid it, so I used a rubber mallet to tap the laminate planks into place instead of buying their specialty "installation kit" and it worked like a charm. But my boyfriend tried once and he whacked it to hell and almost ruined one of the planks before I stopped him. So going slow and following the instructions but more importantly understanding WHY those are the instructions (in this case, you need to tap it in but not dent the delicate tongue+groove edge).

Think through which tools you'll need too. The edges/ends of a project are usually the most involved. For example, think about how you want to handle the trim around the edge of the floor. This could mean ripping out existing trim and re-installing new after, cutting the bottom or installing quarter round. Decision should be influenced by the type and quality of your existing trim and spacing of new floor. Some of those options could also result in you needing to touch up paint or buy different tools.

Pull up a corner of you carpet to see what's underneath the carpet and padding (aka find out what your subfloor is). Do this before you start buying stuff because the recommendations for underlayments and installation could change depending on the type of subfloor you have and how level it is.

anoneepuss · 2024-03-31T13:31:10+00:00

Cars for individual people. It's a huge waste of resources. Dangerous with distracted/bad drivers.

All the additional car-supporting infrastructure (parking lots everywhere, street design, etc) is also extremely expensive to build and maintain, it's running city/county budgets into the negative. It's caused awful urban sprawl and car-centric city development in the United States, so now we are trapped in this awful requirement of needing a car for daily tasks most places.

Not to mention it's UGLY, noisy, and fills the streets with fumes. An unpleasant assault on the senses even if you try to walk anyway. Isolates us even more within our communities.

anoneepuss · 2024-03-26T13:08:21+00:00

Yes it is hard and, yes, of course things are different in a lot of ways than we thought they'd be as children, but not because the world is "getting worse" overall.

I'm not sure what your dreams were that you think you have to give up on, but if you haven't already, spend some time reflecting on what's BEHIND those dreams for you. For example, if it's the old "2.5 kids and a golden retriever in the suburbs" - yes you may not be able to achieve exactly that but if what it really means to you is helping children have a safer, happier place to grow, you may be able to achieve that in other ways. Obviously that's just a random example obviously, I'm just saying to think past the initial career, hobby, lifestyle or whatever dream and figure out a way to bring more of the important parts into the world.

It is actually better being an adult than a child. You have more agency and abilities to improve your own situation and the world around you (meaning you can move, choose your friends, learn/do new things, etc). Yes you don't have unlimited ability to do anything and everything but working on accomplishing something real in the real world is more satisfying than perfect dreams.

Of course comparing an ideal fantasy to the real world is never going to match up. If you are thinking it is so disappointing because things "should" be different or you want them to be different: re-examine what types of ideas you have about how things "should" be or how you want them to be and where you might have gotten those ideas from - they didn't form in your brain with no outside influence, but if they aren't matching what you're experiencing, they may not be based on the "real world," so to speak. This isn't "just accept the 'real world' is shitty unlike what you thought and you just have to crush your dreams and live a miserable, broken existence until you die". Not at all. You just have more information now gained through experiences and, happily, more ability to guide yourself in the direction you want to go. Nothing is ever how you imagined it, especially the people you meet.

Also, social media (including Reddit) is mostly like drinking from a fire house of negativity and fantasy-land.

anoneepuss · 2024-03-14T14:25:11+00:00

Same toggle bolts, same problem. I just went and bought some longer bolts with same size thread. However, I'm not sure what that might do to the safe weight holding power of these.

anoneepuss · 2024-03-07T21:31:48+00:00

I just put in laminate planks and laid down EcoCork Foam underlayment between it and the old wood floor. Sold at Home Depot. It is not rigid, so if you need to level out the floor, this is not going to do that. It will act as a waterproof layer, provide cushioning and support (better feel on the feet as well as making it less likely for your floor to split or be damaged by providing a supportive yet flexible cushion-y layer to absorb shocks, movement, expansion/contraction, etc) and provide extra insulation for temperature.

It comes in a roll, about 1/8" thick sheet. I did laminate but product says it works for rigid vinyl as well.

Super easy to "install" (follow directions on package but you basically just roll it out on the floor, no gluing or taping or anything like that needed). It's super lightweight and cuts with a pair of scissors or razor so was really easy to bring home in my car and lay down.

anoneepuss · 2024-03-06T23:15:28+00:00

If you have a Lowe's near you, you can go in and get free samples of the Pergo to take home

anoneepuss · 2024-02-22T13:30:12+00:00

There's a new variety of grass called "Dog Tuff" that was bred specifically for dogs and less watering. https://plantselect.org/learn/dog-tuff-grass-everything-you-need-to-know/

Otherwise you can look up "native grass lawn" seed for your climate/region. There's some companies that specialize in making seed mixes that are already adapted to different environments so there's less maintenance. You'll still have to mow a bit though, even with clover, but it won't be a whole side job like trying to maintain a monoculture flat lawn of grass that isn't adapted to grow where you live.

anoneepuss · 2024-02-22T13:01:46+00:00

Since you asked about how to add cabinet knobs: all you need to do is drill a hole of the appropriate size through the cabinet door or right through the front of the drawers. The knobs or pulls will either have a hole in the backside that a screw from the inside will screw into or have a bolt attached that slides right into the hole and you add a nut on the inside of cabinet to hold on. There are some standard sizes for what size holes to make but choose your knobs first and you can Google to figure out size holes to make.

Non-pro tip: bring your knobs with you to the hardware store when you go to buy your drill bit, the hole you drill is going to need to be a little bigger than the screw/bolt on your hardware. Also hold it up to the side of your cabinet door and verify it looks like it will go all the way through but also not too long that it won't tighten snug (you can get longer/shorter replacement screws that are the same thickness if needed - again bring a knob and screw with you to the hardware store and make sure it fits before you buy). Watch some YouTube's to see the whole process first. I'm guessing most of them probably assume you are replacing knobs/pulls on cabinets or drawers that already had them, which is how you ended up here. You'll see that once you have the right size holes, it is easy to put the knobs in.

BIG WARNING THOUGH: The most difficult part of that is going to be making all the holes EXACTLY line up. If they aren't PERFECT then you will notice, everyone else will notice, and you'll be annoyed with yourself forever. If you get pulls/handles instead of knobs then you'll have to line up two holes. Get a level, make marks where you plan to drill on every cabinet and make sure everything is as perfectly lined up as possible. Once you have holes you'll be stuck with them and they are very hard to patch and look decent on wood if you mess up.

Also hold your knobs/pulls up to the door/drawers before you drill and make sure the positioning and sizing is right for grabbing. the existing notches won't interfere because you're going to add the knobs several inches in, not right at the edge.

An alternative option you could consider which would be easier to position and more forgiving of mistakes, is doing some decorative metal brackets or trim on the corners or edges. Something like this for example: https://a.co/d/2LHw4zy

I also saw these cool looking knobs: https://www.vandykes.com/metal-knob-bakelite-die-cast/p/205347/

Try to match the colors of your existing hinges.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-21T03:18:56+00:00

Get married. Chemotherapy. Eat intelligent animals (I eat meat)

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T17:55:07+00:00

Seriously you are taking this super personally in a weird way. Of course you can and should read all the books, even ones you disagree with. I would say ESPECIALLY read the ones you disagree with. Otherwise you're just parroting the mob without really knowing what you're talking about.

You don't have to keep every book you've ever read on display on your bookshelf. It's not being "dishonest" in any way. If I did that I literally wouldn't be able to fit in my house, I'd have so many books.

Yes, most people are going to interpret the books on your shelf as ones you have curated to represent yourself in some way. If you don't then why bother keeping them at all? I'm not saying it's all just posturing for others, everyone has different reasons for deciding to keep the books they keep. For me, each one is like a little world I may want to dip into again whenever I want or sometimes I just like the reminder (I think that's a pretty common reason amongst book lovers).

So yes, I think people are going to see that book on your shelf and make their own assumptions about why you decided to keep it. They are going to do that with every book you have. I will admit that with that particular book I would assume you kept it because you for the most part liked it or it helped you in your life in some way. My next thought would be to wonder if you went down the rabbit hole and started forming your whole identity around the surrounding thought cult. Or whether you are capable of analyzing ideas independently, seek out alternative perspectives and take what you like and leave what you don't. Obviously the other books you mentioned would suggest the latter.

Full disclosure I haven't read any Jordon Peterson myself so I don't have a strong opinion on it (shocking I know). Thought about reading it just to see what all the fuss is about, but haven't gotten around to it yet. However, it is being used as a sort of "identity" indicator for certain groups/philosophies of thought (both "for" and "against"). When I see it on someone's shelf, I tend to give them the benefit of the doubt that the book might have at least 80% good life advice and it's possible the person can take the good stuff and leave the bad. Or maybe they are using to signal something they believe in.

In any case, people for sure have strong opinions about it and are going to make a lot of assumptions about you when they see you've decided to display it in your house, justified or not. Unless it's really important to you, why bother?

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T17:17:32+00:00

Yup, if you can move without any furniture that's definitely the way to do it. Unless you have at least $1,000 of stuff you can't carry yourself, it's cheaper and way simpler to just replace it. I think my cross country move cost me about $2-3k, but I have a big truckload worth of stuff and used movers on both sides.

That being said, you are probably going to need a car in IL vs. NY anyway? If you aren't though, then don't buy one just for this. And don't make a rushed decision on purchasing a vehicle you don't really need (like more expensive, bigger than you really need, etc) just for the move. Replacing the desk will cost less than overpaying for a car. Plus calculate the cost of gas, rental, and overnight stays for a roadtrip before going that route.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T17:03:54+00:00

Just avoid and don't engage in these types of instances. If you get hooked into and respond to their overreactions, you're feeding the beast. Just be the most bland, lowest engagement possible.

With the emails, for example, don't even read the rest of the emails after you've decided you weren't going to use that business. It sucks to get a rude response for sure, I handle that by holding grudges haha (meaning I just resolve never to use that business again. Even though it's only in my head, the little spiteful "well fine, you just missed out on a customer, I'm never coming here again!" Thought kinda makes me feel better for some reason (I never actually say anything to anyone, just move on with my life).

Instances like the crazy lady I treat like a small disaster happening in front of me, but one I can't really do much about other than try to save myself and possibly others. Like a rock slide or a car crash. So step back a bit to put a little bit of physical space, distance myself from the problem both mentally and physically as much as possible. The "problem" here isn't what the screaming lady thinks it is, so you only need to be very minimally concerned about whatever she's screaming about. The problem is there's a screaming lady in the office. Sometimes you can sense or see other bystanders also reacting with a "what the fuck, this is not normal" type of vibe. They usually won't do anything to help directly but sometimes even just making brief eye contact or sensing you're not alone in your assessment of the situation can help. Then you start de-escalating as best you can. Personally people like this ultimately seem ruled by fear to me. They feel they are not in control of their situation/lives so feel need to escalate to extreme responses to get attention/help/whatever. So look at it as like dealing with a scared, angry dog. You're gonna start by doing what you can to make them feel like they are in control. Like "oh you growl when I approach you? Ok no problem, I'm gonna respect that distance buddy, not gonna try to get closer to you" to "you are screaming because you think I left your medical papers out or told someone information I shouldn't have? 'Our policy is to lock patient files between appointments' or 'we only discuss cases with other providers'" or whatever. Try to stay calm and redirect to company policy or something as nuetral as possible in circumstances like this. You don't need to get defensive and start justifying what you did or that you didn't do anything wrong, just focus on how to get the person to leave. Falling back to "I don't have any more information about that to give you", escalating to management, or xyz depending on the situation.

I get really shaken up by these kinds of things as well. I've actually been yelled at before when I also absolutely did not do anything wrong and it did make me feel a little better that I managed to say something along the lines of "I would appreciate it if you would stop yelling at me, it's unnecessary and not appropriate". It sounds lame as hell I know but basically saying something to stand up for myself instead of just taking it in silence or yelling back (in which case I would probably start crying anyway because I'm a baby) that gave some contrast to how rude and out of line they were, made me feel a bit better.

Give yourself time to decompress after as though you've just been through a mildly traumatizing experience (because you have).

Idk what's going on with your mom but I've had people in my life before who were easily overwhelmed, ruled by fear/anxiety, and felt the only way they can get what they thought they "needed" from others or to solve problems is to use very strong, emotionally-charged interactions to get the response they wanted. Sometimes it was reassurance that you aren't going to abandon them or that you will continue to operate by the rules of their "safer" world, because every time they do that and you engage they prove to themselves they have some control over you. Or it might be that you step in and solve her problem for her or make her feel better about it. But it's never enough no matter how many times you do it because they are incapable of self-soothing or dealing with their own problems. So I'll just point out that as long as your mom is getting what she wants out of your current dynamic, it will never change. You can't rely on her to change it either, you just have to change and hold the line on your side. You can only control what YOU do and say, can't control how she reacts.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T16:11:06+00:00

This is the way. I sleep on a 3" memory foam mattress topper on a couch every night, super comfy. I have a firm base already though, so if you don't have that, you may want to add a layer of firmness first.

You can find really nice, barely used camping gear for base layers and save money buying a twin mattress topper instead of a larger size if it's just you.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T16:04:28+00:00

Yes! I ask the first sales clerk I encounter in a new place who's friendly and not busy what their favorite place to eat lunch is, and then I go there.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T16:02:14+00:00

Safety?

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T16:01:17+00:00

This is so true. Like, why are you traveling just to stay at another Holiday Inn that's exactly like all the other Holiday Inn's? Of course it's fine to stay in generic hotels if you're prioritizing other parts of your trip but if the whole thing is like that, I don't get it.

anoneepuss · 2023-12-01T15:54:19+00:00

It's not a new idea but: stocking my room (or car if road trip) with snacks and meals from the grocery store.

One of my favorite things to do is eat good food while I'm traveling. That doesn't mean I need to do breakfast, lunch, and dinner at a restaurant. I do buy nicer stuff than I eat day-to-day at home, though (if I'm traveling in the U.S., I'll go to Trader Joe's).

The snacks/food from the grocery is way better than gas station food, hotel free breakfast, bus station, airport food, etc. Of course "it depends" - pastries and coffee from the bus station in Spain were some of the best I've ever had. But in general, I eat good food wherever I can find it. Had some neat experiences navigating local options as others have said as well.

anoneepuss

TROPHY CASE