Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire B&M stores closing; restaurants down.... Apartment complexes being built everywhere

There was a thread about brick & morter stores closing, which lead to a thread about restaurant sales dropping. I did not want to hijack the restaurant thread, but there were a few comments in it about people with less descretionary income which got me thinking about something I've been trying to wrap my brain around for the last year or so. When I was a young man I wanted to buy a house as soon as possible. I always said "there is no value in a shoe box full of rent receipts".

Around my area (Kansas City) there seems to be a boom in apartment complex construction, much more so than new home construction. It seems a lot of people see no value in home ownership anymore. I am amazed at the number of new apartment buildings I see when I am out. Who are these people paying $1200+ per month for a two bedroom apartment?

Do you see the same thing where you live? Does anybody know what is driving it? Young professionals saddled with student loan debt cannot qualify for a mortgage, maybe?

the younguns ain't in no hurry to buy a house. schitty job market in a lot of areas is the main reason, no matter what anybody says. that and the fact that in a lot of places you can't buy a decent house for less than 300k. the american dream has changed while nobody was looking.

Home ownership is a pain in the ass. People are more mobile these days, it will take ten years or so on a 30 year note to build any appreciable equity. And fricking houses are HIGH. A $450k house is nothing extravagant in lots of places. Twenty percent down on that is $90k.

Most millenials see little value in home ownership.

And some of their reasoning makes sense.




Travis

The older I get, the less value I see in it.

Color you special.

Buying and selling homes has been nothing but good for me.




Dave

Yep, I'd rather just throw away all 30 years of payments to rent rather than buy... YMMV

I work in the south KC area and I think alot of the newer complexes are catering to the inner city crowd , that and replacing the ones that have burned down lately .

Well, I'm glad it has worked well for you.

You and Jeff0. Coincidence?

Many in my grandparents generation built their own homes. My parents generation owned their own homes. The generation after me will pay someone else for a place to live.

You think Jeff O has owned and profited from ownership?




Dave

Paying rent is just pissing money away

I can't see the reasoning to get a 30-year note. Did mine on 15 for not much more per month. Mine will be paid off this year.

When I started college, instead of throwing away money on rent, I found a house near the college in rough shape that no one had bought. I picked it up cheap. Lived in it while in college and then remodeled the whole thing before soon to be wife and I got married. Sold the house for $50k profit and put that money down on new house. That's the house that will be paid off in couple of months.

Current house is valued at twice what I paid for it. Yep, what a waste
Boys will start college in 3 years and I won't have mortgage or rent. Yep, complete waste.....

OP is right. Tons of apartment complexes going up in our area too. More than I can fathom.

I live north of the river. If you drive highway 152 west from Liberty to Zona Rosa you will see a ridiculous number of new, very nice looking apartment complexes.

I work downtown, and that's a whole 'nuther subject there. People are moving downtown as fast as developers can make space for them, it seems. At least the people buying condos will have some equity.

Bet you didn't have a $450k note either. Most people don't have the squeeze to do houses today on 15 year notes, which is one reason home ownership is decreasing.

But congrats on your sound financial sense.

Well it ain't no guarantee of a big payday someday like it used to be. Still, even with taxes and HO insurance rolled in, plus interest, my mortgage is less than renting even a small older home around here, assuming you can find one, and about on par with decent 2-bedroom apartments. Factor in the tax deductions and it gets better.

There's a lot of work and expense involved, of course, but a lot of benefits as well, including space for fruit trees and a big garden.

Years ago my wife and I thought about buying a house in Bozeman($$$). We really didn't even have any net worth or down payment at the time but they'll give you a loan!


My very conservative parents warned us bad idea.



Ended up moving back home and housing was cheap at the time.



Bakken crept in and homes doubled in price, ours might have tripled. Pure luck but we have the best location in town so resale will always be there.



Only downside is our property taxes have doubled.

30 year loan(3.375%) and we are on track to have it done in under 10 years. 3 more to go.




Find a deal and buy...

Expensive housing markets definitely drive people towards rentals. It's one thing to buy a home in a rural area, quite another if you live in areas with average home prices near or above $400,000.

Another thing is mobility. A lot of people change jobs a lot more often than they used to and it is a pain to buy and sell houses every two years.

The housing market in Kansas City is less expensive than a lot of places around the country, but I'm sure developers are always trying to push prices higher. I bought a forty year old starter home - 900 sq ft 2 BR true ranch with single garage on a crawl space - in 1992 for $41,000. In 2001 I moved across the street to a 1650 sq ft 3 BR, 2 bath true ranch with 2 car garage and full basement for $110,000. I started with a 20 year note on the current house and after 1 year I refinanced to a 15 year note. I paid additional principal and paid it off almost two years ago. I still have the first house and have it rented out.

I could sell my current house and "move up" but why? I'm a bachelor living in a house that was built for a family in 1963. I don't need more room, I don't need a bigger yard to mow, and I sure as hell don't need HOA dues to pay!
I drove through a subdivision about a mile from my house recently and saw a sign with an arrow: NEW HOMES FROM THE $300's. I just shook my head in disbelief.