Should I sell my house?

[Mark80]

My opinion - It depends.

 

Yes, you could most likely "sell high" right now.  I've been in the buying market the last 6 months and I can definitely tell you that if your house is in good condition with modern updates/upgrades it will sell in a matter of days with multiple offers and most likely above list price.  However, on the flip side, if you are purchasing now you are going to have to deal with that as you make offers.  As another poster noted, this is the case for low to moderately priced homes in the WNY area.  Once you start getting up to the 400+k range the market of buyers dwindles and you don't have to "overpay" to get as much. 

 

I am of the belief that there is going to be somewhat of a market bubble that bursts when the deferment of mortgage payments and rent payments from Covid is over.  I'm expecting a lot of foreclosures and evictions to happen at that point, potentially flooding the market with available properties.  If you can sell now and wait until that happens (if it happens), you could make quite a nice profit.

 

Also, you can get homes under list price still if you are willing to deal with outdated interiors or ones that need a decent amount of work.  I was a able to find an outdated interior house that was structurally sound and perfectly livable as I'm going through and updating on almost 4 acres for over 20k less than their asking price.  It is really only the ones that are already updated or in super "hot" neighborhoods that are going instantly at crazy prices (in the WNY area at least).

 

So - if you are buying 400k+ home, then yes.  If you are able to wait around for the market to come back down by renting, then yes.  If you have other debts still (CC, cars, student loans, etc), no, get those taken care of first while you have cheaper mortgage payments. 

[\GoBillsInDallas/]

1 hour ago, EmotionallyUnstable said:

I have gone back and forth a million times.

 

The guys on Chippewa Street can confirm this.

[Augie]

A few thoughts:

 

* We have always been conservative. Don’t plan for the best case, be ready for the worst case. 

 

* If you are selling at the top, you are also buying at the top. Unless you rent, you’re not really ahead, and renting is a gamble betting that values drop. I’m not a gambler, especially with my home.

 

* Never underestimate the transaction costs. Sales commission is just one piece. You also have layers of closing costs both selling and buying again, moving expenses, etc. [Edit: If you do buy again, don’t forget the buyers title insurance. You will be required to get title insurance for the lender, but the owners insurance is separate. I’m a big believer in that!]  Also, I’ve learned the hard way the stuff/furniture you bought for one house is never quite right for the next house and we end up starting over for the most part. We replaced 95% of the furniture on the first floor since our last move. 

 

* We are kind of looking for that perfect place. We found a house that is better (oddly just 3 doors from us), but not perfect. I’m not going thru the process for a little better......I want what I’m 100% happy with. Look around and see if you fall in love with something before you act. At the very least you’ll get better educated on your market. 

 

 

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Edited July 25, 2020 by Augie

[Mike in Horseheads]

Turbo would say no.

[dpberr]

Absolutely not.  IMO, the remainder of 2020 is for conserving the dry powder in every category of life.  This isn't the time for big moves because there's still a bunch of rough road ahead.  The election will be a mess, the economy is an unpredictable mess, and the fall wave of flu and COVID is expected to be challenging.

 

I'd pay down debt, retain as much cash as you can, hang tight and stay healthy.    

 

 

[Augie]

23 hours ago, EmotionallyUnstable said:

The Magic 8 ball has spoken.

 

I’m not sure if you are the devil, or I am just pathetically weak. I suppose it could be BOTH. I have spent my afternoon looking for houses listed for sale in my preferred areas that would be EXACTLY what we want. 

 

What I have learned is we can easily afford a house we we would absolutely love, but it would be unwise to double what we have into our current house. Our long term plan (OK, at least MY plan) is to have a place in Sarasota, FL and another somewhere in the NC mountains to escape the summer heat and achieve my wife’s dream. We don’t need one big(ish) place when two smaller ones could meet our needs for every season. When the other half retires, we will know.