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Is it the right time to own a home?

Singer Aaron Carter was sharing a 600 square foot apartment with his wife. Their rent was about $600. A mortgage payment for a house twice as big compare to the apartment is just about $700. The interest mortgage is tax deductible.
They bought a new home.

How about you, do you think it is the right time to own a home?
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July 23 - US
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Answers (6)

I'll agree about the deduction argument, it is moot.  The decision to buy should be based on the ability and desire to purchase something of your own, isn't home ownership part of the American Dream?
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July 23
Profile picture for Lady Chattel
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Since October 2009

Seems to me like Tom had no intention of starting a discussion, but he is lumped into the category of drive-bys who post and run hoping for name recognition.......perhaps if he comes back in here he will see that potential clients will only be able to observe an agent who makes clueless statements and obviously has no follow through.

Oh, and the whole "gee, I was out closing deals and didn't see this thread continued" is useless around here too.
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July 23
Profile picture for Pasadenan
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Oh, and Tom, just think about how much "commission" you will make by being the "buyer's Realtor" for your purchase of my home.  1.5% of $4.3 million is $64,500.  That is more than most average families make in one year; and you get that just for selling yourself one house!

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July 23
Profile picture for Pasadenan
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Since January 2009

I own a home, and I'm sort of wishing I would have sold it summer of 2007!

But costs for storage would have been many times what I'm paying to live here, and I'm not in a position to liquidate the stuff yet.

The "tax deductable" argument is "stupid".  Their "standardized deduction" is $10,900.  Of the $8400 they are paying each year to the bank, $6780 is going straight to the lender's pocket as "INTEREST".  So, they declare $6780 on schedule A, and it is LESS than the standard deduction, SO, rather than getting 20% of that back from the government in reduced taxes ($1356), they instead are LOSING the difference of the standard deduction and their itemized deduction (20% of ($10,900-$6780)= -$824.   Of course they will continue to take the standard deduction rather than itemizing!

And property taxes will be more than $1356 per year, so they were just trading off where they were making tax payments instead of reducing them in the first place!

NOW, where is the costs for the INSURANCE, MAINTENANCE, YARD CARE, UPKEEP, utilities, REALTOR FEES, DEPRECIATION, especially in the rapidly deflating market?  When will they be able to sell for enough over what they paid to cover the Realtor commissions?

Why didn't they just find a place to rent that was 4 times as large for $900 per month?  It would have cost them a lot less and their tax benifits would have been better!

And I know some people that are presently in skilled nursing facilities that wouldn't be able to enjoy their home even if they owned it!

Even President Obama is not living in a home he "owns"!

But Tom, really, if you are so anxious to buy a house, you can buy mine for $4.3 million.
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July 23
Profile picture for Lady Chattel
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It is always a good time to own a home.......timing the buy and the price is what really counts.  

.
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July 23
Profile picture for azrob
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Interest on a mortgage is only tax deductable if you ITEMIZE...

for someone married living in a $600 rental, I'm betting there is little chance in heck that his deductions come out to more than the standard deduction...

I wish realtors would not mention the tax deduction if they don't understand it, or won't explain it properly...

and yeah, only 100 more for twice the home sounds like a good deal... good luck finding that in any neighborhood you would want to live in here!
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July 23
 

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