My Real Estate Search. . . The Story Up 'Til Now
I’ve been interested in buying my own home since 1992. The problem then was I was 12 and had no income. Fast forward to July 2003, I was 22 and ready to begin the first steps. I met with a realtor and I was interested in purchasing a 2 family house in Jersey City, NJ right across the Hudson River from New York City. I was looking for something simple. I just needed a place with two units where the tenant could pay me rent, to help out with my mortgage. My only criteria were that at least one of the units had to be habitable that way, I could live in the not-so-good unit and rent out the better one. I also needed something where I could feel comfortable coming home at a late hour. After speaking to a mortgage broker, I qualified for a $150k, 3% down FHA mortgage, which was great but I suddenly found myself being priced out of the market. Which is not surprising considering, New York/New Jersey area is among the fastest appreciating housing rates in the country. Frustrated, I put my search on an indefinite hold until I had more income to qualify for more house.
The next year, in April 2004, I was ready to give it another go. I was making more and decided 2004 was going to be my year. This time, I qualified for a $200k FHA loan with 3% down. I started looking further away in Newark, NJ. My simple criteria was the same, at least a 2 unit home, where I could feel comfortable coming home at a late hour. For quite some time I was reluctant to consider Newark because of it’s seedy past. But a lot has changed in 30 years. Apparently, I wasn’t the only person reconsidering Newark. I bid on four homes in three weeks and walked through almost 10 times more. None of my bids were accepted. Frustrated and heartbroken, I temporarily abandoned my search again.
This time, I am ready to make it happen. I am ready to purchase a house this year. I hear you saying how are you going to afford it. . .don’t you live in New York? You’re right. New York is extremely expensive. And where I am from, in California, isn’t any better. I was really frustrated when I my first two attempts were unsuccessful. Recently, I was watching The Apprentice and wondered what Donald Trump would do in my situation. He would do two things I didn't: thinking outside of the box and perservering, even when I really, really want to give up. For me, that means looking into a different geographical area, and since I like the wages and lifestyle I have in New York, that also means renting out the property instead of living in it. Suddenly, I was inspired by MTV's Real World: Philadelphia (it pays to watch TV sometimes). I decided my new search would be in The City of Brotherly Love, which has been going through its own transformation in recent years.
The next year, in April 2004, I was ready to give it another go. I was making more and decided 2004 was going to be my year. This time, I qualified for a $200k FHA loan with 3% down. I started looking further away in Newark, NJ. My simple criteria was the same, at least a 2 unit home, where I could feel comfortable coming home at a late hour. For quite some time I was reluctant to consider Newark because of it’s seedy past. But a lot has changed in 30 years. Apparently, I wasn’t the only person reconsidering Newark. I bid on four homes in three weeks and walked through almost 10 times more. None of my bids were accepted. Frustrated and heartbroken, I temporarily abandoned my search again.
This time, I am ready to make it happen. I am ready to purchase a house this year. I hear you saying how are you going to afford it. . .don’t you live in New York? You’re right. New York is extremely expensive. And where I am from, in California, isn’t any better. I was really frustrated when I my first two attempts were unsuccessful. Recently, I was watching The Apprentice and wondered what Donald Trump would do in my situation. He would do two things I didn't: thinking outside of the box and perservering, even when I really, really want to give up. For me, that means looking into a different geographical area, and since I like the wages and lifestyle I have in New York, that also means renting out the property instead of living in it. Suddenly, I was inspired by MTV's Real World: Philadelphia (it pays to watch TV sometimes). I decided my new search would be in The City of Brotherly Love, which has been going through its own transformation in recent years.
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