Same. Would be millions over here.
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There are some places in the USA in which few people want to live, or at least to move. There are many reasons why, but it is mainly the quality of life that differs from the moving folks
Yes, as always location is everything in real estate. You can still buy a 5BR house under 500k in my city, but you might not want to live there.
Just did a quick search. This one looks reasonably nice, and you get 3 acres. Schools would be questionable. Have to deal with a pool that needs rehab too.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1675-Dodson-Dr-SW-Atlanta-GA-30311/35862404_zpid/
The first house I bought was in a blighted neighborhood, but on the way up. It was one of my better financial decisions.
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Update: apparently there was going to be an open house, but now itâs off.
Maybe sheâs got an accepted offer. If that was the case, youâd expect to see a sign above the realtorâs sign, ACCEPTED OFFER - but no, it says OPEN HOUSE CANCELLED. Plus, in case the accepted offer falls through, youâd want others to visit and perhaps put in an offer so theyâre next up.
Maybe sheâs got an offer sheâs considering. Youâd still go through with the open house, in case the offer falls through.
Maybe the realtor is busy / double booked. If that was the case, youâd expect another realtor to cover the open house.
Maybe she wasnât ready for an open house. Sheâs had at least 4 people look at it, if it wasnât ready for an open house it wouldnât have been available for showings.
Maybe she needs the house this weekend. Sheâs largely not staying there, not sure whatâs suddenly going on that she needs the entire house when itâs always been just her and her dog.
My suspicion - and I think weâll know very soon - is that someone in a showing noticed stuff wrong and pointed it out, and now she has to get repairs made. Which, just looking at what I see from my side of the house, thereâs likely other issues - starting with, âbirds and squirrels were going in and out of her attic through a hole in the soffit for at least the last 2 years.â
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2 random observations, on a very relevant topic.
First, itâs worth noting that the neutral position on housing is to have one. This is weird, since the neutral position on most assets is zero. Neutral stock? Zero. Neutral bonds? Zero. Neutral gold? Zero. But housing is one. Complicates any comparison wrt returns.
Second, if home ownership is a dominant strategy over stocks or bonds, then presumably those that feel this way will buy a second house anytime they can come up with the down payment, rather than having the capital invested in underperforming assets. Is that that truly the plan? Or are we struggling with how to deal with my first point?
And lastly, any attempt to monetize happiness is a foolâs errand. Ownership in a place you enjoy and take pride in is a really good thing. Being happy, in the one life you may have, is hard to put a $ figure on.
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I think one key aspect of âhome ownershipâ is that you have a âreadily consumableâ item that youâd need anyway (i.e., you have shelter secured). All other assets that are generally considered are useful in and of themselves . . . they have to be exchanged (some work involved) to acquire something that you need (or want).
I think land ownership is very similar to the extent that the land is arable. You need food and having arable land provides an assurance that you can âtake care of itâ.
As to the point about owning a second house . . . Iâm not sure that itâd fit into the same category as having just one house. The offset of care & maintenance for something that isnât utilized all the time can reduce itâs âneutralâ position utility.
Put another way, my view on the neutral position for a second home would be closer to zero than one (but will admit that it would be higher than other assets to be considered.
The neutral position is you need somewhere to live.
Housing prices generally go up, rents generally go up, mortgages payments generally stay the same.
The neutral position is you donât need two places to live.
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