Wanted: your opinions on a real estate purchase

[tobypaddock]

hey guys, i was looking for a few other peoples opinions/suggestions on what/where they would buy with a mortgage of 350k or less.
i am not interested in condos/townhouses with monthly maintenance charges.
just wanted to see what other people would do in my situation.
i am a 23 year old guy with a dog, i work very early in the morning so rush hour commute doesnt affect me.
thanks in advance :)

[Kloubek]

Can you wait for 7 months or so? There are new builds in the NW (Kincora, Sage Hill) for as low as 340k. Some deals way down south too- Copperfield, Silverado, etc.

If you don't want to deal with landscaping, buying blinds, etc, and want to purchase used, I would consider Hidden Valley or Coventry Hills area.

It would be a lot easier if you could mention where you work, or at least what quadrant you're hoping to find something. No point in suggesting the NW if you work in Bridlewood...

[tobypaddock]

oops yeah i work downtown.
i would prefer to move closer to downtown (currently live in mckenzie towne) but i would be fine staying in the s.e too!
and i would like to purchase asap so waiting 6 or 7 months wouldnt be ideal...

[Xtrema]

$350K, 0 down, close to downtown, no condo fee. What you're looking for sounds like it's going to be a hole.

I would rent for the next few months til market stabilizes. A dog would be a problem but just like the Herald said, it's renter's market right now.

It will also buy you time to consider some places if you are being evicted from you current place. You should not rush into buying a house. Rushing always make mistakes.

[Kloubek]

Unfortunately, you're not going to find a lot downtown for your price range. You're looking at 1950's houses in need of repair and upgrading. If you go up north, you might be able to find something somewhat ok in the Thorncliffe/Huntington region in your price range. At least they are late 60's, early 70's.

Areas like where I live in Abbeydale are actually only about 15 minutes away. This area was built in the early 80's, and still looks kinda icky.

If you're cool with staying in the deep NE, then you're already in an area of decent value. Mckenzie, and again, Silverado and Copperfield have some nice places going up at reasonable prices...

[tobypaddock]

im not talking inner city, i know thats not gonna happen i just mean anything closer than where i am right now.
and i have around 30k possibly 40 to put down- sorry i should have mentioned that (im sure theres lots of things i have forgotten to mention)

[BigMass]

i found a lot of places i like close to the center. If i was shopping at this point in time i'd consider any of these. For me, location is so high up on the list when i look at realestate that a lot of little things don't bother me like they may other people.

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7528958

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8004037

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7850158

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7707481

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7738885

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8094980

[prae]

Like BigMass said, there's plenty to choose from in the downtown or near-downtown areas for 350k.

check out what ExtraSlow's old place: http://forums.beyond.ca/st/255161/fs-renod-inner-city-bungalow/

[Weapon_R]

350k can get you a single family home with attached garage in Riverbend.

Very close to downtown and an excellent SE community IMO

[ryanallan]

Originally posted by BigMass
i found a lot of places i like close to the center. If i was shopping at this point in time i'd consider any of these. For me, location is so high up on the list when i look at realestate that a lot of little things don't bother me like they may other people.

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7528958

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8004037

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7850158

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7707481

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7738885

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8094980

I agree :thumbsup:

[stinky_1]

I love how the new MLS site has the live map on it. It makes it very easy to SEE where a house is located, and it filters out based on your criteria.

I personally moved to airdrie from arbour lake about 5 years ago and would not move back. The taxes are a bit cheaper, it has almost everything you need to sustain life. And if you start work in the morning early enough it will only take you 20 minutes to downtown. If you are leaving any time around 6:30 or 7 you would take closer to 35 minutes. But its not that bad.

there are a lot of spec homes built and ready to be moved into. You can always walk in and low ball them. Nothing lost, but a whole lot gained if they take it.

Personally I think its a great time to buy. As long as you can afford the payments, it wont matter if you buy now or wait. So I would buy whenever you can do it

[barmanjay]

You are going to need to be specific with yourself on what kind of property you want.

older, fixer-upper, in an established community where you can gain some sweat equity?

older, already renovated

newer, modern, newer community


Styles of home:

Bungalow
hillside bungalow
bi-level
4 level split
3 level split
rare 5 level split
2 story
1 & 1/2 story

Quadrant:

NW: crowfoot centre, northmount, university, foothills/childrens hospital, etc

NE: Sunridge, Peter Lougheed, etc

SW: Shawnessy, Rockyview, Signal hill, COP, etc

SE: Riverglen, deerfoot casino, Future hospital near auburn bay, etc.


Obviously being on this forum,.. you would likely require a garage.


Without any criteria, I searched just with a max 350k and minimum double garage: for single detached houses on the market - 339 listings inside calgary limits

Doing a radius search with DT as center and going out as far as cochrane, airdrie and okotoks; including calgary - 430 active listings

[core_upt]

^^ this guy must be a realtor! ;)

Inner city in your price range will get you nothing more than a former rental property, on a major route/bus route. ith no upgrades (just basic maintenance done), on a sub-50 ft lot. You potential is really capped for what you can do with it - not worth a major reno, not worth a lot to developers who wold rather invest in a 50' lot for future development.

Since you said you work non-peak hours, there are great non-inner city areas to consider where you will find a nicely reno'd 60's era bungalow for $350,000.

Haysboro, Canyon Meadows, Willow Park, Westgate, Acadia, are great South options....

[B20EF]

Originally posted by BigMass


http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7528958

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8004037

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7850158

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7707481

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=7738885

http://www.realtor.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=8094980

Great locations but those are incredibly small for $350,000 IMO

[BigMass]

Originally posted by B20EF


Great locations but those are incredibly small for $350,000 IMO

quality >>>>>>>>> quantity for me. It's also just him and his dog. Not some huge family with 3 kids etc.

[tobypaddock]

wow, thanks to everyone for all the great responses! its interesting to hear different peoples views on such a specific budget.
i've gotten a lot of messages from realtors offering their services but at this point i do not feel i need one, so thank you - i will keep all my pm's for consideration when/if i do get a realtor.

i definitely like the idea of haysboro, southwood area [basically anywhere between deerfoot and macleod (east to west) and anderson all the way to downtown(north to south)]
i dont mind a little renovation but i wouldnt want to do a major overhaul so no "fixer uppers" but im definitely okay with remodelling a bathroom, flooring, drywall, painting etc.

a garage isnt a necessity for me as i have a huge shop where i work with a pneumatic lift and all the tools i could ever want so i usually do all my work there.

[stinky_1]

One thing to keep in mind (maybe you all ready though about it).

I am going to assume you are single, or married but with no kids (just the dog)?

If so, you may want to consider looking for a place that is able to be suited or all ready has a suite. That way, you can live in the basement (if you dont need much room) and then rent out the upstairs.

Then as time moves on and you decide you need more space, you take the upstairs and rent the basement. And again, as you decide you need more space you can then stop renting the basement and have a nice little kitchen to use as a home theater room (or something like that).

The advantage to doing this is that you dont have to keep buying bigger houses. Unless you are planning to buy really big right off tha bat. Especially with the way the market is now, it could be a few years before the value comes back up to match what you are looking to buy it at. It would suck to have your situation change and NEED more space, and be forced to sell your house at a loss just to get more space.

Where, if you had part of it rented, you always have the optioon to stop renting.

not to mention, with the way the market is, it may be worth it to have the option to rent just so you have a little extra income to suppliment your mortgage.

You can take that for what its worth. I know suiting is not for everyone. And some people dont like the idea of being a landlord. But it could be a good option to consider

[stinky_1]

Originally posted by BigMass
It's also just him and his dog. Not some huge family with 3 kids etc.

I love this statement!

I have 4 kids and 2 massive dogs. I always considered my family big but no where near "HUGE". Kinda caught me off guard.

[tobypaddock]

haha i wouldnt consider that huge either, but i grew up in a family of 7 and we always had a dog and birds etc...

i like the idea of renting out a basement suite, but if not its not a problem as i know i could get one or two of my friends as roommates for the next few years.