House buying decision

[Deleted]

How long would you stay in the town home if you move now?

[rootbeerfloat]

Is the townhouse what you see yourselves buying in 2-3 years?

[House4Me]

Lots of decisions to make. I would want to sell my first home first before buying a second home. What if your home you are in now takes many months to sell and now you are stuck with 2 homes for a long time. You could always put a deposit down on the town home, may not be refundable? but could help alleviate stress of quickly selling the first house.

I have moved 9 times in 12 years. I have had children in 3 different countries. I have moved pregnant and with a baby as young as 9 weeks old to a foreign country. I would not stress about what could be in the future, it will all work out as it should but I would really think about selling my current home first. Good luck!

[Deleted]

Jun 30, 2015 18:50:27 GMT -5 @vicmo said:

Jun 30, 2015 18:48:56 GMT -5 @awinter said:

How long would you stay in the town home if you move now?

Ugh, no clue. Theoretically we could stay for a long time, since it would be big enough for our family forever (?). I don't think we'd be looking at it as a temporary stopgap between first and third homes.

Ok. Because I was going to say if this is just a temporary thing I wouldn't do it. Moving is a pain especially with kids and you could lose money on selling costs if you did.

So, since that's not an issue I'll say that I wouldn't move. Single family homes are super pricey in my town. But for us, it just wasn't worth it to pay less for an attached home. We really just don't want to be attached to anyone else. So we opted for the smaller house until we can afford the larger one in about 5 or so years.

[Deleted]

Jun 30, 2015 18:58:01 GMT -5 @vicmo said:

Jun 30, 2015 18:55:10 GMT -5 @awinter said:

Ok. Because I was going to say if this is just a temporary thing I wouldn't do it. Moving is a pain especially with kids and you could lose money on selling costs if you did.

So, since that's not an issue I'll say that I wouldn't move. Single family homes are super pricey in my town. But for us, it just wasn't worth it to pay less for an attached home. We really just don't want to be attached to anyone else. So we opted for the smaller house until we can afford the larger one in about 5 or so years.

That's fair. And it seems to be the refrain I'm getting from people locally - buying an attached home is really seen as a step down from a sfh, even when you're improving several the other qualities (size, location, age, quality of house construction). I don't really care if people think we're downgrading, but it's something to consider if it could affect the quality of our lives and resale value.

Not sure how it works there, but here if we were to have purchased an attached home there would have been a condo type association between the owners (most often 3 units) and monthly fees to cover things like exterior home repairs etc. And that was our main reason to delay purchasing a home and purchase a smaller one rather than the attached one.

But I don't necessarily view it as a step down. Most of the attached homes being built in my town right now are about 2000+ sq ft each. They are tearing down single family homes and putting up 3 attached homes in its place. Each of the units are selling for over 600k with the largest unit for over 700k. Or more. One at the end of my street, the third unit was 2400sq ft and was listed for 849k. I'm not sure how much it sold for but I'm guessing close to that. My house was a flip and paid about 500k for what is listed at 1236sq ft (it's actually closer to 1400 or 1500). So I just see it more as a lifestyle choice and then the condo fee I didn't want..

[zarapipe]

I think it's your call. I hate moving and I wouldn't settle. If you want a detached, wait. If Not and you think you would be happy then buy. Moving with a baby isn't the end of the world. We sold a house while pregnant and with a baby and Are closing next week with a 5 yo and 9m old. We did end up in a rental between both closings and the baby is in a closet but it's temporary and the kids won't remember.

[lg28]

@vicmo PM me if you want some names of good realtors where you live, I know a few!

So, as a realtor, knowing your area a bit (my sister lives in the forest hill area of kW too), I would consider moving if the new neighbourhood is a lot better, but probably not otherwise. It's tricky though, because SF homes could keep increasing in $$ and even though town homes don't normally increase as much in value, it's still appealing.

[lg28]

Oh and I'd seriously consider school neighbourhoods.

[cherry1111]

I would probably wait and hope I could make the long term house work in a few years. Would not having daycare expenses make the larger mortgage work? We're waiting until all kids are in school before taking on a larger house payment. 1 in daycare is more than our current mortgage.

[cjeanette]

The house sounds great and if you liked the community and thought you would stay forever then go for it.

If you don't hate your current house and know a detached is in your future regardless then I would wait.

[ny96]

We live in a townhouse that we purchased close to 3 years ago. We are looking to move in a short while (due to huge HOA fees and no yard), but it was not a bad decision at all. We have neighbors on both sides, but our place is so well constructed that we haven't had any noise problems. We bought in an up and coming neighborhood and our home value has increased significantly. I don't think a townhouse is a step down, and if it offers everything in a home you're looking for I would say go for it.

[minzy]

We were sort of in your shoes earlier this year. We wound up buying a townhouse instead of spending an additional $175-250k (which we strongly considered) on a single family house. Yes, we share one wall, but I literally never hear them.

I admit, a single family house would be "nice," (I had a little house envy after visiting a new friend recently) but what it comes down to is that this place really, really works for our family right now. It is a beautiful space and layout is good. We love the neighborhood. We aren't big yard people, and we like the efficiency of (relatively) smaller utilities. Staying cheaper now gives us more options down the road, and we love having options. I don't regret our decision at all.

After losing quite a bit on the first home we owned, I was hesitant to lock us in again until we had a large cushion, felt like we wanted to live in the area long term, felt employment was secure, and we had a good idea of our family size. As it was, we waited so long for all those things to line up that we were able to buy this place outright. So my vote might be to wait 2-3 years and then still buy the townhouse.

[MadamePresident]

It kind of seems like you want to move because you are bored and went shopping. Maybe just spend some money improving something you don't like in your current home and hold off until you really know what you want.

[niq]

wrt carrying two mortgages, can you borrow from your canadian 401k as a bridge loan? I know borrowing from 401ks is generally not advised but this is the sort of situation where it makes sense.

I have no advice on the actual home decision, it's too late and my brain is too busy with work stuff

[justjen]

I vote no. If you're this on the fence about it, you should probably wait

[anna7602]

Jul 1, 2015 7:41:39 GMT -5 justjen said:

I vote no. If you're this on the fence about it, you should probably wait

This. But I'm a very "you know it when you see it" person and I think you lean more rational and analytical than I do. I have known within minutes of stepping through the door when I wanted to buy or live in a place. Anything I had doubts about from the beginning (just rentals, fortunately) has ended up not being ideal for me. 

[aspentosh]

I haven't read all the responses, but this is my thinking.

If you're just antsy to move, don't do it.
If you're just excited because it's shiny and new, don't do it.
If you're not sure you'll stay for a long period of time, don't do it. (mainly because I hate moving)
If it doesn't hit every check mark you have, don't do it.

If this is a home you'd want to live in for many years to come, and is a place you would buy today, next year, or even five years down the road, then do it.