Charlie and I decided to try another route for our house - we listed in on Craigslist.com in the "for rent" section. Within one hour, we had out first call. Within 12 hours, we had over 14 people interested, and within 24 hours we had to create a spreadsheet to keep track of all of the interest. So the question is - with the same pictures posted of the house to rent it versus buy it, why are so many more people interested in renting?! It's not like it looks better or different than it does on the real estate website.
If you do the math, it's actually cheaper to buy the house than rent it... and that's even using a 15 year mortgage! With a 30 year mortgage, people could not only invest in an asset (instead of wasting money on renting) but they could also be paying close to HALF the price! Maybe it's just the outlet where we're listing - Craigslist does seem to be a popular place to get rid of things fast - maybe moreso than the Multi-list for houses? Maybe we'll list it "for sale" on Craigslist and see what happens!
So now we might be changing our course. It's kind of a relief to think that we don't have to get rid of our house forever as of right now, plus we can store some things here (tools, paint, the gas grill) that would have been a pain to move or sell. Our biggest concern was having to pay for our mortgage until it sold AND rent payment in an already ridiculously high-priced geographic area, but having rental income would really take a load off. If we go this route, we'll officially be "landlords," which from a distance might be tricky, but we'll be back in town often enough to keep an eye on things.
It's just an option right now, but it's looking pretty attractive at this point!
Monday, May 26, 2008
What's the Deal?
Posted by Beth at 9:17 AM
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2 comments:
This is the predicament my parents are in, and they've been considering alternatives like you are (including renting out my childhood home). With home sales and mortgages going downhill recently, those who are inclined to buy may have a hard time getting a mortgage and those who are wary of the market may be more inclined to rent until it settles. ('Course, my parents are out in CA, a very different housing market). But it seems like the old "rules" of rent vs. buy have been turned upside down lately...
I'm happy to hear there are lots of people out there who like your home :-) and we'll pray that the right solution comes along for your family.
Hugs,
Autumn
i hafta say, i like the idea of you keeping roots in PA:)
couldn't get my email to work this morning...camp orientation has already begun, but i think we could still find a night to meet up for dinner. i don't know quite when...i'll talk to jim.
we missed you, but of course, i know very well about feeling icky and pregnant. keep saying no to whatever you need to take care of yourself and your boys! xo
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