House buying/selling/finance/etc.

[csmutty]

Did you ask if there was a rate difference if you paid for the closing costs?

I did not. Rate was lower than the local credit unions and any major bank though.

[nhbubba]

Count me in the anti-ARM camp. But then I'm boring as fuck and have no plans to move. Even when I had plans to move I didn't.
Every time I've done the math doing a 30-year fixed has worked out in my favor. But as with everything in life, YMMV.
30-year fixed. Avoid lender-paid PMI. Don't be afraid of PMI as it can/will go away once you get below ~78%.

I recommend setting up a spreadsheet with columns loaded with different options/offers from different banks. Rates vary. Terms vary. A higher rate from bank X may be better because of lower closing costs. Or vice versa. Also consider intangible stuff like how likely the broker is to sell your loan off and the quality of having the loan serviced. Do you need to save 0.1% only to earn a headache chasing your loan trying to keep it paid? Credit unions often offer attractive rates AND hold their loans, meaning less bullshit.

Here's a sample HUD statement. I use this as a basis for my comparo spreadsheets.

[RyanNicholson]

The gf is handling most of the paperwork side of things... she's way better at that stuff. We're currently approved for a 30 year fixed at 4.6%. With the equity we could cover the 20% no problem but we've been pretty adiment that we didn't want the condo to be a contingency on the new house, so we'll probably be more in the 10% down range. Even with the PMI at that point we're comfortable with what the monthly comes out to after taxes and insurance. It might make things a little tight temporarily if we end up paying for both for a short amount of time but that's pretty unlikely.

As for the FB group, interesting thought. I took a look and since only something like 15 people live in town it wasn't terribly active.

[Paul_E_D]

That's exactly where we are at right now. If my condo sells by March 1 I don't have to pay both mortgages. We stretched to get to 20% realizing that our reserves will come back when we sell the condo.

[RyanNicholson]

That's exactly where we are at right now. If my condo sells by March 1 I don't have to pay both mortgages. We stretched to get to 20% realizing that our reserves will come back when we sell the condo.

Yea exactly. We went back and forth on what to do with the condo 1000x times. We really want rental units as a next step, and renting the condo was a tempting option. Ultimately we decided that would stretch us thinner than we wanted in the short term.

[Paul_E_D]

I also considered just renting it, but the math didn't work. We are renovating the new place using cash, so condo is on the market!

[MHenry600]

For the conservation land thing, is it a state forest or wildlife management area?

If so, you can find some info on f+g website. On there somewhere they detail what is allowed on WMAs, etc. If it's a town forest, check their website and you can probably find some details.
Wildlife Management Areas | Wildlife | New Hampshire Fish and Game Department

I lived in Boscawen for 4 or 5 years and was always heading over through Canterbury. Nice quiet area. I'm up in Moultonborough now, even more in the middle of nowhere than before.

I think a coworker of mine lives in Canterbury if you want any specific town details.

[csmutty]

The gf is handling most of the paperwork side of things... she's way better at that stuff. We're currently approved for a 30 year fixed at 4.6%. With the equity we could cover the 20% no problem but we've been pretty adiment that we didn't want the condo to be a contingency on the new house, so we'll probably be more in the 10% down range. Even with the PMI at that point we're comfortable with what the monthly comes out to after taxes and insurance. It might make things a little tight temporarily if we end up paying for both for a short amount of time but that's pretty unlikely.

As for the FB group, interesting thought. I took a look and since only something like 15 people live in town it wasn't terribly active.

You could always put 10% down and as soon as you sell the condo you can throw in 12% from the condo to eliminate PMI. Just make sure there are no prepayment penalties and excess payments go to principal.

[RyanNicholson]

You could always put 10% down and as soon as you sell the condo you can throw in 12% from the condo to eliminate PMI. Just make sure there are no prepayment penalties and excess payments go to principal.

We'll need to confirm no penalties, but that idea was one of the reasons we weren't too worried about the PMI.

[RandyO]

"deeded access" to the land behind the property, but that didn't tell me much about what exactly that means.

.

shoulda also mentioned, if there is in fact "deeded access", the deed to the property should have a reference to the conservation deed for use and restrictions, I would ask the realtor for a copy of the current deed, a copy of the conservation deed, and a copy of the subdivision plat (not just a photo copy of the lot you would be buying) as it is obviously in some kind of subdivision with deeded rights, you may find a homeowner association owns it with conservation restriction. 5 acres is the minimum lot size to circumvent state subdivision requirements. The subdivision plat may have notes of other restrictions that never make it to the deeds

[gixxer72]

Moving: Out of curiosity I've gotten some quotes on moving our crap and most seem to be in the $1200-$1400 range. Seems steap but I've never hired a moving company before.


.

Probably a reasonable number. Point of reference the cost for us to move contents of a 4 bedroom house and one vehicle from Maine to Arizona was just under $40k.

[Paul_E_D]

Probably a reasonable number. Point of reference the cost for us to move contents of a 4 bedroom house and one vehicle from Maine to Arizona was just under $40k.

40k?! wow

[R7]

Probably a reasonable number. Point of reference the cost for us to move contents of a 4 bedroom house and one vehicle from Maine to Arizona was just under $40k.

Company paid relocation? I only mention that because my partners sister was relocated from CT, to San Diego and paid for by her company and was close to $20k, no car and a 1 bedroom apartment + contents.
Same family ,but this time the parents moved from Phoenix Az, to Palm Springs Florida , 2 bedroom apartment+contents, and a Toyota camery ,and it was just under $4k. Private move, no company relocation. Just as an example for the difference in who pays..

I think Ryan's quote is reasonable

[tsorfas]

Yeah I’m with Mark on this. 40k you can move a small village. 100% company relo package

[gixxer72]

Company paid relocation? I only mention that because my partners sister was relocated from CT, to San Diego and paid for by her company and was close to $20k, no car and a 1 bedroom apartment + contents.
Same family ,but this time the parents moved from Phoenix Az, to Palm Springs Florida , 2 bedroom apartment+contents, and a Toyota camery ,and it was just under $4k. Private move, no company relocation. Just as an example for the difference in who pays..

I think Ryan's quote is reasonable

Corporate relo.

It ended up at about $45k because I had to have all the shit unloaded to a warehouse and then reloaded and delivered (real estate deal fell through when the scumbag lawyer seller didn't disclose a $380k IRS lien on the property that didn't get discovered by title until 2 days before closing!)

[Jim]

$$$: We're preapproved for a stupid amount I can't fathom actually spending, but that part went simple enough. I have a simple IRA from an old company match that I've basically forgotten about and left hanging around. I saw somewhere that you can draw up to $10k to put towards a down payment without penalty. I'm assuming I'm still liable for the income tax on it, but anybody done this before?

that's only for your 1st home purchase. if you own now, you're not eligible.

[RyanNicholson]

Alright... offer is in, we'll see what happens.

In the meantime the only thing I/we hate about the place is the facing on this fire place. It's over brick and we want something like the second photo, just not as dramatic. Sheetrock and studs instead of the rock. Basically we want to put a TV above the mantel. Anybody have thoughts or ideas on building that or someone to call for a quote?

[RandyO]

I agree, that fake stone has to go, it doesn't even resemble any known fireplace construction

[Paul_E_D]

We had an open house for our condo and got 2 offers over asking. First one fell through, but the second one is moving forward. Kitchen has been gutted out of the new place, bathroom gut in progress. 2 bedrooms made into one. All of this happened while we were on vacation. LOL.

[R7]

Alright... offer is in, we'll see what happens.

In the meantime the only thing I/we hate about the place is the facing on this fire place. It's over brick and we want something like the second photo, just not as dramatic. Sheetrock and studs instead of the rock. Basically we want to put a TV above the mantel. Anybody have thoughts or ideas on building that or someone to call for a quote?

Do you plan to use the fireplace? Only ask because I tried the TV over the fireplace thing and used the fireplace/stove insert randomly and the tv overheated and lasted less than a year. TV’s don’t like heat, and I found it annoying to look up to watch TV.

As for the stone, a lot of modern decorators are using various types of large tiles to create a cool look.

Good luck and hopefully the closing process goes smoothly for you.

[RyanNicholson]

Do you plan to use the fireplace? Only ask because I tried the TV over the fireplace thing and used the fireplace/stove insert randomly and the tv overheated and lasted less than a year. TV’s don’t like heat, and I found it annoying to look up to watch TV.

As for the stone, a lot of modern decorators are using various types of large tiles to create a cool look.

Good luck and hopefully the closing process goes smoothly for you.

Yea this was a thought/concern as well. Not really sure what else to do with it, given the layout. It won't be used often, but I'm sure occasional use will be a thing.

[RyanNicholson]

Another random question. So when I mentioned the offer was in, we still needed to sign the actual paperwork. They sent over the paperwork this morniing and the selling price was marked $10k above what our offer was. They explained that it included the closing cost (which we did say we'd be rolling in).

Is this normal?

All I can think of is as far as the sellers are concerned we're buying it for the total cost and covering closing fees. Which makes sense, but it doesn't mention it like that anywhere.

[Paul_E_D]

I've never seen it added to the selling price. The bank usually determines those costs and gives you a worst case scenario price based on market rates for lawyers etc. While 10K seems like a generous worst case scenario, I'm not sure why it is on the offer sheet.

[TheIglu]

Seems shady.

Just add in "buyers cover buyer incurred closing costs", and take that $10k right back off. They may be trying to have you pay for things like their realtor's commission.

[RyanNicholson]

Alright, nevermind. This is the problem with skimming this while at work. Reading further into it, it has a provision that the seller is to contribute $10k of the sale price to cover the buyer's closing costs, fees, etc.

That makes me feel better hah. Pretty sure that's his way of bumping up the commission a tiny amount ($600 total).

We did come in a good chunk below the list price, I suppose the way it initially reads is a clever way of making it seem like a higher offer than it really is.