Wowza! Go to lunch and find lots of responses when I get back. Cool………thanks, patientlywaiting, vishon, PSD, HLS, CBad, SD realtor etc. You gave me a lot to think about. There seemed to be some consensus that 250-300 would be about what we could get funded for. It was particularly good to receive this snippet:
“at todays BEST rates FULL DOC you are looking [a] payment of about $600 per $100K [per mo.] for a fully amortized 30 yr fixed….[plus] at least $100 monthly for property taxes per $100K of Purchase price … ”
A couple of more thoughts: I don’t know what our credit score is but I assume its high: we have both been at the same jobs for over 25 years; my wife pays the bills so we are never late (if it were up to inebriated ol’ me to pay them it would be a different story)….I drive beaters and we have just paid off our credit card debts but are keeping the accounts open.
In general I agree that renting may be the best option under today’s conditions. My question however assumed that we would be looking down the road once we are fully in the predicted “trough” when renting might not be such a no-brainer.
Right now I am a pre-geezer. When I actually am “old old” don’t want to have any debt (“solutus omni fenore” means free of all/any debt) but I do want to have big piles of green greasy investments so as to be able leave some security for the one “lost boy” (the other two turned out okay) among the scions of my noble loins and so, god forbid, I might be able to have a couple of swell GFs down in Baja (suena bonito, verdad?) with whom to while away the hours of my disolute senectitude. Just joking ! (or am I?)
I am 56 (or 57, I forget); the rules that apply for 403bs are different or so I am told. Anyhoos supposedly no penalties apply after 55 for me if I want to pull out funds which I don’t want to do but it is nice to know you can. Renting sounds great specially now that we are in a bubble but my nice lady (she’s a hard-working gem, she is) thinks otherwise. If we get 30% declines by 2010 in the preferred zips, we’ll buy and still get to hold onto the nest egg. Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond.
Beatus ille qui procul negotiis … paterna rura bobus exercet suis, solutus omni fenore….. Horace
