Loan question, on different types, and ease of getting

[Anonymous]

PS- IMHO- doing interest only is only for investors who are flipping a house and KNOW they will be out of it real soon- doing int. only gives you absoultely no equity, and so if things get in a pinch you won't even have your own house to count on for assets...

just really getting the feeling you need to get those FICO's 720 and above- and since this is not your last duty station you could really get stuck in a rock and a hard place...

where are you at that you are paying 1050 for rent? can't you find anything cheaper?

[Anonymous]

Well I appreciate all the info. But I do disagree with some. I know it is all a roll of the dice when you buy a house, especially being in the military. But I know guys who bought houses, got changed duty stations and made 40-60 just in 2 years. I know one guy who bought a house in england and when he sold his house he walked away with 300K. So yes you can get in a hard place, but you can also be in good place. If I stay in the military I will retire in 13 years, i'm not holding off 13 years to buy a house. But I will wait a little while and get my scores up. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Not trying to be so nosy, but when is your wedding date set for? Are you going to have a big wedding that you have been planning for a long time? What duty station are you at that has such a high rent charge? Are you close enough to base or are you living far away? Is fiance working too and does  she fully understand what mil. life is going to be like w/ you moving all the time and going to field/or temp duty a lot?

Just trying to get you thinking about all these areas that need to be touched base with...

If you are dead set on getting a house it would be so much better if you were married, not trying to rush you into anything but then finally you could live in quarters, DW have health care and she can shop at commissary, plus depending on post she could get wive's preference to apply for job on post, you can stay in housing for a while and really sock some money away for when you do want to buy...

Or- if you want to buy house then you would get more being married having a dependent- but really, really think about how long you are going to be stationed there and what is your plan if you get called up to go to overseas, etc.-

Again IMHO- I would set a goal to get Ficos above 720, make sure every bill is paid off, save money to make some kind of down payment, have a six mos. emergency fund, have wedding planned and know when the date is set, be able to pay for wedding in full and not charge anything related to it that you can't PIF, check and make sure fiances finances are just as good as yours so that both of you have great credit...

plan, plan, plan. and you will be fine. You are thinking well about buying a house- but I am just wondering if the time is right- wondering if timing would be better if you did a little more crunch work and got really stable...

ok enough from me. Good luck w/ fiance and future.

[Anonymous]

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pavetim wrote:
Well I appreciate all the info. But I do disagree with some. I know it is all a roll of the dice when you buy a house, especially being in the military. But I know guys who bought houses, got changed duty stations and made 40-60 just in 2 years. I know one guy who bought a house in england and when he sold his house he walked away with 300K. So yes you can get in a hard place, but you can also be in good place. If I stay in the military I will retire in 13 years, i'm not holding off 13 years to buy a house. But I will wait a little while and get my scores up. Thanks.

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That's because his house was in England. And what rank was he? No one says you have to wait till your last duty station to buy but the reason why most do is because of others getting really stuck in pinches where they were PCS'd to another station and having to cover the mortgage cuz their house didn't rent yet...you will have to make sure whatever you buy is rentable and appealing and  will rent fast... just so much to think of--- think maybe you should make a list of all the action items and make an appt. w/ financial advisor on post- do they still have them for free? Used to, but so much has been cut back in mil.

[stpn2me]

Pavetim,

I know this may be hard to hear, but you need some tough love. I have been in the military for 14 years. I wouldnt even THINK about buying a home unless you are going to be at a duty station at least 5-10 years. Especially in this market, there is no way I would buy a home. I saw something really interesting in your past posts. You mentioned twice the amount of money other people made. Understand, IMHO, those days of overinflated prices and values are OVER. There is NO more easy money. With credit scores like yours, you will NOT get good rates, if you are able to finance at all. And going with interest only is just insane. Honestly, it would be one of the dumbest moves you could make. That is just the way things are, and rightfully so. Your best bet is to WAIT, SLOW DOWN, do the right thing and get your credit back in line and find out what is going to happen in your personal life. The time for realestate speculation is almost over for a while, and now isnt the time to be buying a house that you may get stuck in and have to keep if you move to another duty station. I have seen too many military members ruin themselves and their financial lives rushing to do things such as you are doing. As a commander, I almost would never recommend lower enlisted or even middle enlisted or officers for that matter to buy homes unless they were 1. Stable, 2. going to stay in the home for the long term, and 3. possibly retireing in that neighborhood. Remember, the best way to get credit is to NOT USE THE CREDIT YOU HAVE. Save your money, Save your money, SAVE YOUR MONEY. That VA eligibilty is a good thing, but if you waste it on a house you cannot afford, you MAY LOSE IT. Remember, you have to sell your house to another person who is eligible for the VA note to be able to keep yours to buy another house. Please think about this before you leap. I know the BOQ sucks, but free housing isnt that bad. If your fiance loves you, she will wait until both of you are financially ready for marriage. Good luck and please think before you leap. Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Plan, Plan, Plan....

Stpn2me

Sleep well America, The Army's Premiere Military Force is on Point

THE 82ND AIRBORNE!

[Anonymous]

I have decided to wait.  I do agree with alot of what you all are saying but not every situation is the same.  First off i'm not married so I can't get base housing, and can't live in dorms cause i'm a SSgt.  The rent usually everywhere around a base is high.  I am looking for a new place and there were places renting for 8-900 with roaches everywhere, it's bad what ppl think they can get for their homes, and they do get that rent too.  I found a place for $750 not in best area of town, but hey have to save money to buy house right.  And almost always around a base there is no problem renting a house, here you find tons, and tons of homes for sale but nothing at all for rent.  So i'm not too worried about having to rent it out later.  As far as wait until I know where i'll be stationed somewhere stable LOL.  Your in the army, not sure if it works the same as the air force.  But I will not know if i'll be stationed in one place for a long time.  Thats the military life.  I know guys who get stuck at a station for 10 years or more, I know guys who pcs after 6 months.  Thats the chance you have to take.  And like I said i'll wait for a while but i'm not waiting 13 years LOL, hell if an average house is 150k  Whats it gonna be in 10 years.

  But yeah i'll wait until I can save up some more down payment, and get a 700 or above fico.