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The key is to buy during a downturn and save during a boom. It's far easier to negotiate a discount if the person selling it to you doesn't have anyone else in
by 3pt14159 8y ago
The key is to buy during a downturn and save during a boom. It's far easier to negotiate a discount if the person selling it to you doesn't have anyone else in the store. You make way more money on the market if you buy when there is blood in the street than if you get in when unemployment is at a ten year low.
The rest is the same advice you get everywhere: It's expensive not to exercise. It's expensive to own a car. Biking to work solves both those problems. Don't overspend on depreciating assets until you don't need to work for the rest of your life. Don't underspend on your education. Don't waste time fretting the small stuff, focus on maximizing income. Be tax efficient. Don't buy overheated assets. In the short term it always looks like it will be the end if you don't get in _right now_. Things always correct.
- lotsofpulp 8y agoIn a downturn, lenders get more strict so one may not be able to get a loan in the first place.
- bluGill 8y agoright, but if you have good savings you can pick up a bargain in the downturn without a loan.
- lotsofpulp 8y agoA significant portion of the population can’t save up for a 20% downpayment in good times, I doubt it’s a realistic expectation for many. The whole thing keeps churning because of FHA (taxpayer funded) lending.
- bluGill 8y agoTrue, but we are talking about a single person, not the population at large. You can personally change your behavior and save up a 20% down payment. You can probably save to a 100% down payment - if the market collapses at the right time (unlikely) in 10 years of living cheaply. Of course you forgo a lot of other things: I personally would rather have the toys now vs a paid for house in 10 years. YMMV, your goals are not mine. If you want to tour the world on a 6 star cruise ship for 30 years staring at age 50, you can save up enough money to do that if you live cheaply enough from age 20 on. (I can't help you live that long though, average lifespan is just under 80, and you could die in an accident at age 49.5 just before you retire)
- 3pt14159 8y agoA mortgage guarantee is normally good for a non-trivial amount of time. If you're really worried about this you could string them along "until you find something".