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Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

shouldigetahouse.com

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Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#201

Post by benglish11 »

hatchnyc wrote: post #163
mauvehaus wrote: post #119

You get old enough, and you get tired of somebody else making decisions from afar that affect your day to day life with no real consequences to them. Little things like the kitchen layout being moronic and having zero drawers get old when it isn't your choice to remodel or live with it. And while it's nice to say "just move", let's not forget that moving costs a couple months rent and a massive time investment to fin…

Yeah, I wish we had German-style "unfurnished" apartments available in the US where you can rent an apartment that's literally concrete subfloor and unpainted walls, no kitchen appliances or cabinets, etc. I guess Americans move too frequently to make this viable.

Don’t Germans generally move their whole kitchen? I think I remember this correctly from taking German a bunch of years ago.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#202

Post by djrogers »

pessimizer wrote: post #129
drfuchs wrote: post #47

Where do I enter the intangible value of owning: "Don't have to worry about getting priced out if the neighborhood becomes popular; can do any improvements I want, when I want, how I want, and they become an asset; don't have to worry about not getting lease renewed at an inconvenient time (perhaps in the middle of a school year) when the owner's nephew gets divorced and needs a place; on the other hand, don't have t…

> Don't have to worry about getting priced out if the neighborhood becomes popular That's what property taxes are for.

That depends on what state you live in. CA property taxes can't go up by more than 2% (or thereabouts - the specifics don't matter) per year, and aren't pegged to the actual current value of your home.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#203

Post by [deleted] »

pessimizer wrote: post #118
fennecfoxen wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is missing a rate of return on the money you would otherwise use for the down payment, information on whether that return would be taxable or is sheltered in a Roth or similar tax shelter, current and anticipated tax brackets if one sees that income taxed (at both time of sale and possibly retirement), current and anticipated capital gains rates that might apply to the gains from the home sale in the future (if…

> rate of return the money you would otherwise use for the down payment Really the most important number, but all of these suggestions are crucial to the calculation. Money that doesn't get invested in a house gets invested in other things. Pretend it's in an index fund.

[deleted]

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#205

Post by vel0city »

ramraj07 wrote: post #172
mauvehaus wrote: post #119

You get old enough, and you get tired of somebody else making decisions from afar that affect your day to day life with no real consequences to them. Little things like the kitchen layout being moronic and having zero drawers get old when it isn't your choice to remodel or live with it. And while it's nice to say "just move", let's not forget that moving costs a couple months rent and a massive time investment to fin…

Eh, almost no one I’ve seen has ever spent less by moving to their own home. They’ll typically end up spending at least half of what they spent as rent just on things other than the mortgage (which would typically be much higher than the rent by itself). Now of course they often would get a larger, nicer place that’s exactly what they wanted, but let’s not kid ourselves that home ownership is somehow cheaper. It neve…

My home's mortgage + escrow payment is ~$200/mo more than the apartment I moved from. Of course there are additional costs, I now water a lawn in addition to my usual water usage, I have to factor in some savings for repairs, etc, so closer to ~$650/mo increase.

But in the end I have 2.5x the square footage, a private yard/pool/grill vs. community, a two-car private garage with guaranteed electric vehicle charging, the ability to furnish however I wish, and to top it off much less reduced risk of housing inflation (a very real concern).

Nine years ago in the same market where I own my house an apartment unit I used to rent was ~$900/mo. The same unit on the market today is $2,352/mo. Even if home values increase and my property taxes jump it won't jump that high.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#206

Post by simonw »

ghaff wrote: post #199
simonw wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd love it to provide some mechanism for guestimating my taxes (maybe based on the state or city I live in) - I was too lazy to dig out a tax return to fill out those fields, which meant I couldn't easily use the calculator.

Especially outside of major cities, there are about a gazillion towns that have different tax rates that go to paying the local schools, emergency services, and town administration. Maybe there are APIs for that sort of information but I don't know.

That's why I want a guesstimate - give me a rough idea of how the tool works and that will convince me to dig out a tax return and fill in the fields for the most accurate estimate possible.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#207

Post by Johnny555 »

chiefalchemist wrote: post #183
crazygringo wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, I'm the opposite. The more I get older the less I want to deal with bullshit home maintenance, and the infinite time suck that is customization and endless improvements. Really part of a general life shift from "if you want it done right, do it yourself" and "if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right" -- to "outsourcing is a valuable tool" and "perfection is the enemy of the good". I realize my time is valua…

Regardless of age, needs and priorities change. There's no joy in moving, but it's still better than the time suck of hiring a contractor, electrician, and/or plumber. AND having to pay them. Owning is nice. But it's more limited and more time consuming. There's a cost associated with that.

Owning is nice. But it's more limited and more time consuming. There's a cost associated with that.

I'm not sure I agree that owning is limiting, it can be more time consuming if you don't want to hire people to do the work that the condo gives you "for free", but there are few limits.

In my last condo, a neighbor spent months trying to get approval to put a pre-fab sauna on her outdoor patio, she submitted the architectural review forms, made several changes so it would "fit into the character of the complex" even though it was on a back deck facing a natural area, no one would see it unless they walked in that 5 foot strip of land behind the complex. I'm not sure if it ever go approved, I moved out before she had final approval.

On the other hand, my wife and I decided on a whim a few months ago that we wanted to put in a hot tub in our new house’s back yard. We talked to a contractor, he came out and did a site survey, then put us on a wait list for a hot tub. A few weeks later, he had a returned unit (new owner didn't like the way it looked) that matched what we wanted, the next week he brought it out and installed it. The whole process took about a month from start to finish, and probably could have taken a week or two if demand wasn't so high.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#209

Post by Johnny555 »

ramraj07 wrote: post #172
mauvehaus wrote: post #119

You get old enough, and you get tired of somebody else making decisions from afar that affect your day to day life with no real consequences to them. Little things like the kitchen layout being moronic and having zero drawers get old when it isn't your choice to remodel or live with it. And while it's nice to say "just move", let's not forget that moving costs a couple months rent and a massive time investment to fin…

Eh, almost no one I’ve seen has ever spent less by moving to their own home. They’ll typically end up spending at least half of what they spent as rent just on things other than the mortgage (which would typically be much higher than the rent by itself). Now of course they often would get a larger, nicer place that’s exactly what they wanted, but let’s not kid ourselves that home ownership is somehow cheaper. It neve…

If you look at the home as a long-term investment, it's almost always cheaper than renting since your mortgage stays the same, while rents almost always rise.

You may be paying more in mortgage+taxes+insurance+maintenance when you buy the house, but 10 year later, rents have almost certainly gone up.

Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator

#210

Post by jurassic »

conductr wrote: post #178

Anyone have luck with that default $2500 maintenance budget? My lawn guy is basically that whole budget. Any service call is $500 minimum. I’ve replaced roofs, siding, HVAC systems, water hearers, etc. Trimming my mature trees costs over $3000! I know it’s just a placeholder but I always see an insanely low placeholder on these calculators and can’t help but think they are not properly setting expectations for prospe…

I interpret the typical advice to cover DIY materials, required service calls (e.g. plumbing issue), and occasional high-ticket items (roofs, water heaters) but not relative luxuries like paid lawn care. I guess it depends how fancy your neighborhood is, but professional lawn care is not the norm at all where I grew up.
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