I need help deciding what my next move is. This involves some questions that are not strictly financial, but financial factors are a huge component of this and I couldn’t think of anywhere else to ask.
I feel torn between two paths:
1. Buy a house in my hometown
2. Move to Seattle
I am from a small city in the Southeast that has so far been fairly insulated from the housing market craziness, i.e., I could actually afford to buy a decent house here. The problem is that I don’t really want to live here. I might want to move back when I’m older, ready to settle down, and start a family, but it is not a good place for a young professional. But I am experiencing FOMO. I’m worried that if I wait until I’m ready to settle down, the housing market will be even worse and I won’t be able to buy.
Why move to Seattle? I work in tech and I like the culture of the PNW. I’m thinking being out there could help my career, though I’m not really sure it would make a difference with remote work becoming a thing. But the main reason I want to move somewhere else is because I might like to get married and have kids within the next 5 years. I think my chances of meeting someone with whom I want to do that will be much greater somewhere outside of the Southeast (due to some values I have that are pretty rare in this area). I’m not dead set on Seattle. I would definitely be open to other suggestions. I was also considering SF, Portland, (I know those two are also pretty expensive) or maybe somewhere in CO like Bolder, Fort Collins, or Colorado Springs.
Third option: Could I possibly do both? Buy a house here and rent it out, that way when I decide to move back I’ll already have a house. One problem with this scenario is that I’m a first time home buyer and would be doing an FHA loan meaning it has to be my primary residence (but for how long?).
I work remotely. My salary is roughly $120,000. I have been pre-approved for a mortgage of around $400,000. To keep housing costs (including taxes, PMI, etc) under 30% of income I would aim to buy something around $300,000. Here in my hometown that would get me a 3/4-BR house in a desirable part of town. In Seattle I would expect to pay $2,000 a month in rent for an apartment and I could swing that. When I was making $85,000 I moved to a larger city and paid $1785 in rent and it was doable. I am very frugal, single, no kids, no debt.
I would really appreciate any insight anyone could offer to help me make this decision.
Edit 1: Added primary reason for wanting to move.
[deleted]
Dating in Seattle is the worst. I wouldn’t come here expecting to meet your husband. I recommend researching the dating scenes in the areas you are considering in addition. Career opportunities are fantastic but remote work is a thing forever. Why not take a job with a company in Seattle that will allow you to come and go, while choosing to live in a LCOL area?
From a personal finance perspective buying a home in a low to medium cost of living area is probably better than moving to a very high cost of living area like Seattle. Having said that if you really want to live in Seattle, think your career prospects may be better in Seattle, can afford to live in Seattle, and don’t really like where you’re living now… move to Seattle.
First time I do anything, I make a bunch of mistakes. For me, I’d hate to make them all twice on something as big as purchasing a home. I don’t know if you share those concerns.
Let’s say you move to Seattle, meet a swell person, and get married.
1. You don’t know that that person will want to move to your hometown. So you’ve got a bunch of capital sunk into a home you’ll never live in.
2. Your renters may screw you and trash the place. On average, investing money in the market has a better return than buying a single property and renting it out.
3. Even if your partner does agree to move to your hometown, they may want different things in a house than you do right now. Better to look at homes together so it is both of yours.
4. You don’t know what you want/need in a house right now. You just can’t know that. What you want will change dramatically over the next few years, especially once you reach the point of having kids. I’d give it 99.9% odds that any house you bought right now would not serve your needs/wants in 5 years, let alone 10-15.
I think you have two options:
1. Put your current down payment into a HYSA so you’re ready to pull the trigger when the time comes. The downside of this is that you’re losing money value to inflation and you actually have no idea how long it will be before you’re ready to buy a house.
2. Invest the money. I’m guessing you’re at least 5-10 years from really needing to buy. Your down payment amount may actually shrink over the next few years depending on what the market does, but you’ll also have a partner to help supplement. Alternatively, it may actually be 10-15 years before you’re ready to buy, and your down payment amount may grow a fair bit over that amount of time.
My wife and I bought a starter home after our first year of marriage. Then, we moved 6 years later after realizing that it didn’t come close to meeting our needs or wants. We thought it was fine, and it just wasn’t. With all the money we put into fixing it up, and the 2008 crash, and the next several years… we lost quite a bit of money on that house once everything was said and done.
Our second home is intended as our forever home. I’m already worried a bit that it may be too small if we’re able to have a 3rd kid, but we’re going to make it work.
I moved to the Seattle area from the Midwest and it was excellent for my career and finances. There are more job opportunities that pay you your worth. Employers up here generally treat you better – in comparison to the Midwest I am not expected to work more than 40 hours per week, my insurance is free compared to $200 per month, and I get merit and COL raises. I also have a better retirement package. The south and Midwest are cheap but you end up paying for it with quality of life.
From a strictly financial perspective, it might be worse to move to Seattle.
However, there’s a lot more to consider. For your career, Seattle is going to have better networking and opportunity which could skyrocket your future income even if you move away later. For dating, Seattle is going to have a larger pool and likely have more of the kind of people you are looking for.
Now is the time to take a chance and gain some life experience before you start a family and buy a house, so may as well take advantage of it. Worst case you hate it you can move back and can confidently say you gave it a shot but it wasn’t for you.
I’d move to Seattle (or surrounding areas) in a heartbeat. I moved from the Bay Area to north of Seattle last year. Best decision I’ve ever made. With no state income tax you’ll be comfortable with your salary here but a house for $400k is long gone. Could probably buy a condo for that.
I am about to move to Seattle with my wife, coincidentally from south Florida as well lol.
The reasons are similar to yours (besides the part about finding a partner of course). I’m in the tech field, so it makes sense to make the trip over there for better opportunities. Also, the nature is beautiful! Anyways, not every decision in life needs to be solely financially backed haha. If you want to move there, then go for it. It looks like you can afford your own studio apartment if you choose to go down that route, while still being able to save some money on the side. Depending on your work experience, you could potentially increase your salary as well.
I’ve been exploring for a little bit for any high-quality articles or blog
posts in this kind of house . Exploring in Yahoo I ultimately stumbled upon this site.
Reading this info So i am satisfied to exhibit that I’ve a very
excellent uncanny feeling I discovered just what I needed.
I so much definitely will make certain to don?t disregard this site
and provides it a look on a constant basis.