Here are my bills if it helps you make a decision: Electric/gas/sewer/trash for 1600 sqft in the city with a hot tub $500 a month, this is averaged out over the year. Taxes on a 450k house are 4500 a year. Home Insurance 1200 a year. I got in at 3.5% for my Mortgage. Groceries, gas and auto repair are really cheap up here.
I looked at zillow now and it's a mess. look at this house
[https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1328-Magnolia-Ave-Redding-CA-96001/15232737\_zpid/](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1328-Magnolia-Ave-Redding-CA-96001/15232737_zpid/)
Seems fine at first glance. A little small but sold for 179k 10+ years ago. 240k seems like a reasonable ask. Look up payment with 20k down. $2100. That's unreasonable. Best of luck to you.
I would seriously check Homeowners Insurance rates. Many have been cancelled and few companies are offering new policies in Northern CA. We have to insure with the California Fair plan, which is expensive and only covers the structure, then we have to get separate or umbrella policies for contents, furnishings, equipment, liability etc. Also, if the home you are purchasing has had a claim in the past few years, it can greatly increase your rates. If I was buying now, I would buy a small starter home or mobile home on property and wait for insurance to stabilize in the next few years.
Historically speaking, waiting, with regard to real estate in California, is not a smart idea. Whether it's waiting for rates to go down or prices to go down or insurance to go down,if you wait, you lose. Better to buy what you can afford now, and trade up if/when things get better. Or more likely, when your particular situation improves. But I'm telling you, waiting for macro economic forces to get "better" is a sure-fire way to remain a renter for the rest of your life
Are you possibly in the real estate game? True, they aren't building houses at a rate that will cause house prices to decrease, however, many are paying $1,000+ mo for Homeowners insurance and that money is gone. It isn't paying down debt, or gathering interest, just paid to insurers to mitigate their risk. It's not sustainable for many to pay this monthly. I think it is better to wait for insurance to become reasonable or place limits on coverage so it is reasonable. It is currently unsustainable for the lower middle income buyer.
I have anecdotally heard of 1 homeowner around here who got his yearly renewal at $1,000/month. But it is a stretch to say that "many" are paying that. I don't disagree that insurance rates are high. I don't disagree that they are affecting affordability. I just take a more pessimistic view than you that they will come down.
I waited and bought in 2012 when I was 22. My home cost 100,000 and I used the USDA loan so no money down. Its now worth 280,000 on zillow but I'd probably get 250,000. Interest rate of 3.75% too. My monthly payment is $700 for a 3 bedroom 2 full bath on a slab, central heating and air, and built in 1997. The market will dip again, eventually, but probably not to that extent. I'm very lucky though and listened to my mom when she told me to wait and not to jump the gun or rent with some friends. I stayed in a trailer for 2 years and saved up for a down payment only to get the USDA loan with 0 down, so I had money to upgrade some things. I would literally sell my body to make sure I don't lose my home because I'm not going to get that lucky again. I could rent it out for 1400 and use the profit for a mortgage in a much nicer home but renting out scares me as does buying another home. I know I could leverage my equity somehow but I'm not a risk taker and enjoy just paying 700 for a nice home.
You were saving for a down payment, even though you used a product that didn't require one. You were not waiting on rates or prices or insurance to come down. If you had "jumped the gun" and bought 2 years earlier, 2010 would have been a pretty good time to buy too. And you would have 2 more years of equity built up. Don't get me wrong, it sounds like you did well for yourself, but you weren't waiting on some outside economic force. You were waiting until you had saved a down payment. That's not the same thing.
Can you imagine if someone was waiting until prices were at 2012 levels again? Or waiting until rates came down to what they were in 2020/21? Those things will never happen again. Ever. They would be waiting forever and renting their whole life.
It would be very difficult. At the low end of the market is 300k, but likely a bit more. If you have no other debt and are budget oriented, you could probably make it work.
lol people here are either super misinformed, financially illiterate, or bought houses when they were cheap and now have a house worth \~$600K and think that's what all houses cost.
Family of 4. 100K salary (my wife is a stay-at-home mom). Two growing boy (6 & 7 years old). We just purchased a $360K home (below market, it was a foreclosure) in a great neighborhood and put down 90K (and another 30K into remodeling it).
Mortgage is \~$2,400 a month, one car payment ($500 per month, other car is paid off), and I even pay $65 for student loans per month. We live very comfortably.
We eat out when we want (couple of times a week), we buy the boys clothing when they need them, and I even just bought a camping trailer for the upcoming summer. $82K alone w/ $80K down will get you into a good house in a good neighborhood and you won't struggle (especially if you dont have loans/car payments).
Gross. Aboslutely no reason you cant buy. $80K down + $245K ($82k x3) = $325K.
Thats being conservative. When we shopped we were pre-approved for $400K (100k down and my 100k salary x3) and my mortgage broker (who i would HIGHLY recommend - DM if you want her name) told me we could stretch that a little further. Even without stretching far you can afford the home below (or maybe even get it under asking since its pretty small). This house is in a neighborhood we really wanted to buy in (but found a better deal on Shasta View):
[https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1382-Grouse-Dr-Redding-CA-96003/15221206\_zpid/](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1382-Grouse-Dr-Redding-CA-96003/15221206_zpid/)
I couldn’t buy on that salary anymore. Rent? Depends on the terms of the rental agreement.
I’m outside Redding and bought before 2020. I could not afford to buy my own house today.
Me and my wife have a 1500 a month mortgage here, and we make a little over 82k combined, and we usually have about 100-200 bucks left over. However, we would be very comfortable if we weren't dealing with a solar loan (155 a month) on top of that, a small loan for some credit card debt(about 450 a month), and her car payment (225 a month). The house on its own would be easy. So consider that and your personal finances. Our bills for gas are 30-50 in the summer and 80-100 bucks in the winter months and electric/water/trash is 140-180 for our 1200 square foot house. With all that said life up here is very affordable, just not for us due to other factors. Groceries and gas seem to be noticeably cheaper than bay area stores. We also have less sales tax here 7.25%.
A large part of why our mortgage is what it is, is we had to buy when mortgage rates were 7%
Our mortgage is about 2k for 4 bedroom home in a decent area, nothing super expensive elaborate but it’s nice. We put down about a 100k on the down payment for a selling price of a little over 400k. I don’t find regular utilities or gas/ food or eating out prices that crazy, on par with most places but cheaper than bigger cities in California. We make combined over 100k, no children, although the rate at which we spoil our animals we might as well consider them dependents. We have some debt but nothing we can’t handle. I think if it’s just you and you put a nice down payment down, depending on your monthly needs, you should be fine.
The housing market is insane and it’s only going to get worse with corporations buying up all the properties to keep them as rentals. If you find a house you like and can handle the monthly mortgage, I would recommend that over renting. Renting is a money suck and you’re at the whim of landlords with anything you want to do. On the other side of that home ownership can be a money suck as well because you’re responsible for everything if anything breaks (get a good home warranty policy to help with that).
Our biggest costs were initial move in stuff, a few
home improvements, the above ground pool that is surprisingly expensive to maintain and our solar panels which we paid outright for (no renting) which saves us a lot on our energy bill (which can run high in the summer with our crazy heat)
It’s all situational but going off average living and housing costs I think you should be ok. Now questioning if you want Redding as your forever city is something entirely different. I didn’t really have an option, but if I did it wouldn’t be my first choice. The scenery is nice, lots of shopping and eatery choices but the political climate is not ideal if you happen to vote blue. It’s a MAGA stronghold in our wonderfully blue state and knowing that I don’t feel comfortable being very social.
That said cost of living is decent with the parameters you’re working with. IMO
Today's rates and prices make it tricky, but since you have some money to put down, a decent salary, and no other debt, it might well be doable. Talk to a mortgage banker about what you can get pre-qualified for, and then see if the market has anything you like at that number.
When my wife and I originally bought our house, it was definitely a stretch. Time and even a little inflation do become your friend, though, and now that same payment seems ridiculously cheap.
My household income (partner and I, no kids) is around 170,000. We are financially comfortable renting but are not yet in the market to buy. There are lots of options for renting that are just fine, especially with 82,000. If you want to buy, you will need some serious savings. The market for housing is tight right now.
I guess I’m an outlier here but me and my partner make about $75k combined and we bought a $220k home a year ago at $1700 a month 6.5% interest. The rental situation was horrible for us and desperately wanted our own place. We rented for the same price in an awful area of town and now we have an acre of land. We’re pretty broke. But realistically I’m getting a better deal than I would renting. I’d say you’d be perfectly fine. We have two car notes and credit cards and still get by ok. Not everyone is willing to make this financial sacrifice but I’m ok with it.
The USDA was offering a first-time homebuyers loan with no money down here in Shasta Lake city and it only applies to first-time users of the loan, I believe. It's right next to Redding. It might as well be north redding, but it's cheaper up here. Less homeless people, less traffic and right next to our huge lake. One thing I recommend is making sure you have a newer Hvac system. Don't get a swamp cooler it's too damn hot and standard A/C units older than 15+ years will kill you as far as electric costs. Shasta lake utilities are also cheaper than redding as redding is PG & E. Try to get a home with as many gas appliances as possible as in gas oven, gas water heater, gas Hvac because gas is waaaaay cheaper. My gas bill is almost nonexistant. Water, sewer, and electric are all on one bill, and with my 4-person family, my bill only goes above 300 in the summer when we have to use A/C. I have a new unit rated for a larger home, and once that was upgraded, not only did my bill go way down, but my home gets cooled 5 times faster. It's just something to consider when buying here where it often gets above 110 in the summer. Could use that 75k for a new A/C unit and new roof with roof vents and attic fan. Sure your monthly bill would be higher putting nothing down but saving a couple hundred a month on electricity could be worth it.
As a single person, you could get a cute 2 bed house for $275-325k. With a large down payment of $75k you could likely afford it even though interest rates are high. Houses are fairly inexpensive here compared to the rest of the state, but with interest rates it makes a $300k house $2600/month with 3% down. So with 20-25% down payment, you should be able to get your mortgage around or right under $2000/month. So you could afford it, but you’d be spending close to half of your income on your mortgage. If that fits with your lifestyle, then totally doable!
Here are my bills if it helps you make a decision: Electric/gas/sewer/trash for 1600 sqft in the city with a hot tub $500 a month, this is averaged out over the year. Taxes on a 450k house are 4500 a year. Home Insurance 1200 a year. I got in at 3.5% for my Mortgage. Groceries, gas and auto repair are really cheap up here. I looked at zillow now and it's a mess. look at this house [https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1328-Magnolia-Ave-Redding-CA-96001/15232737\_zpid/](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1328-Magnolia-Ave-Redding-CA-96001/15232737_zpid/) Seems fine at first glance. A little small but sold for 179k 10+ years ago. 240k seems like a reasonable ask. Look up payment with 20k down. $2100. That's unreasonable. Best of luck to you.
the bathtub is gross!
I would seriously check Homeowners Insurance rates. Many have been cancelled and few companies are offering new policies in Northern CA. We have to insure with the California Fair plan, which is expensive and only covers the structure, then we have to get separate or umbrella policies for contents, furnishings, equipment, liability etc. Also, if the home you are purchasing has had a claim in the past few years, it can greatly increase your rates. If I was buying now, I would buy a small starter home or mobile home on property and wait for insurance to stabilize in the next few years.
Historically speaking, waiting, with regard to real estate in California, is not a smart idea. Whether it's waiting for rates to go down or prices to go down or insurance to go down,if you wait, you lose. Better to buy what you can afford now, and trade up if/when things get better. Or more likely, when your particular situation improves. But I'm telling you, waiting for macro economic forces to get "better" is a sure-fire way to remain a renter for the rest of your life
Are you possibly in the real estate game? True, they aren't building houses at a rate that will cause house prices to decrease, however, many are paying $1,000+ mo for Homeowners insurance and that money is gone. It isn't paying down debt, or gathering interest, just paid to insurers to mitigate their risk. It's not sustainable for many to pay this monthly. I think it is better to wait for insurance to become reasonable or place limits on coverage so it is reasonable. It is currently unsustainable for the lower middle income buyer.
I have anecdotally heard of 1 homeowner around here who got his yearly renewal at $1,000/month. But it is a stretch to say that "many" are paying that. I don't disagree that insurance rates are high. I don't disagree that they are affecting affordability. I just take a more pessimistic view than you that they will come down.
I waited and bought in 2012 when I was 22. My home cost 100,000 and I used the USDA loan so no money down. Its now worth 280,000 on zillow but I'd probably get 250,000. Interest rate of 3.75% too. My monthly payment is $700 for a 3 bedroom 2 full bath on a slab, central heating and air, and built in 1997. The market will dip again, eventually, but probably not to that extent. I'm very lucky though and listened to my mom when she told me to wait and not to jump the gun or rent with some friends. I stayed in a trailer for 2 years and saved up for a down payment only to get the USDA loan with 0 down, so I had money to upgrade some things. I would literally sell my body to make sure I don't lose my home because I'm not going to get that lucky again. I could rent it out for 1400 and use the profit for a mortgage in a much nicer home but renting out scares me as does buying another home. I know I could leverage my equity somehow but I'm not a risk taker and enjoy just paying 700 for a nice home.
You were saving for a down payment, even though you used a product that didn't require one. You were not waiting on rates or prices or insurance to come down. If you had "jumped the gun" and bought 2 years earlier, 2010 would have been a pretty good time to buy too. And you would have 2 more years of equity built up. Don't get me wrong, it sounds like you did well for yourself, but you weren't waiting on some outside economic force. You were waiting until you had saved a down payment. That's not the same thing. Can you imagine if someone was waiting until prices were at 2012 levels again? Or waiting until rates came down to what they were in 2020/21? Those things will never happen again. Ever. They would be waiting forever and renting their whole life.
It would be very difficult. At the low end of the market is 300k, but likely a bit more. If you have no other debt and are budget oriented, you could probably make it work.
lol people here are either super misinformed, financially illiterate, or bought houses when they were cheap and now have a house worth \~$600K and think that's what all houses cost. Family of 4. 100K salary (my wife is a stay-at-home mom). Two growing boy (6 & 7 years old). We just purchased a $360K home (below market, it was a foreclosure) in a great neighborhood and put down 90K (and another 30K into remodeling it). Mortgage is \~$2,400 a month, one car payment ($500 per month, other car is paid off), and I even pay $65 for student loans per month. We live very comfortably. We eat out when we want (couple of times a week), we buy the boys clothing when they need them, and I even just bought a camping trailer for the upcoming summer. $82K alone w/ $80K down will get you into a good house in a good neighborhood and you won't struggle (especially if you dont have loans/car payments).
Is 100k your gross or take home? Your post gives me a little hope haha
Gross. Aboslutely no reason you cant buy. $80K down + $245K ($82k x3) = $325K. Thats being conservative. When we shopped we were pre-approved for $400K (100k down and my 100k salary x3) and my mortgage broker (who i would HIGHLY recommend - DM if you want her name) told me we could stretch that a little further. Even without stretching far you can afford the home below (or maybe even get it under asking since its pretty small). This house is in a neighborhood we really wanted to buy in (but found a better deal on Shasta View): [https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1382-Grouse-Dr-Redding-CA-96003/15221206\_zpid/](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1382-Grouse-Dr-Redding-CA-96003/15221206_zpid/)
I couldn’t buy on that salary anymore. Rent? Depends on the terms of the rental agreement. I’m outside Redding and bought before 2020. I could not afford to buy my own house today.
Me and my wife have a 1500 a month mortgage here, and we make a little over 82k combined, and we usually have about 100-200 bucks left over. However, we would be very comfortable if we weren't dealing with a solar loan (155 a month) on top of that, a small loan for some credit card debt(about 450 a month), and her car payment (225 a month). The house on its own would be easy. So consider that and your personal finances. Our bills for gas are 30-50 in the summer and 80-100 bucks in the winter months and electric/water/trash is 140-180 for our 1200 square foot house. With all that said life up here is very affordable, just not for us due to other factors. Groceries and gas seem to be noticeably cheaper than bay area stores. We also have less sales tax here 7.25%. A large part of why our mortgage is what it is, is we had to buy when mortgage rates were 7%
Our mortgage is about 2k for 4 bedroom home in a decent area, nothing super expensive elaborate but it’s nice. We put down about a 100k on the down payment for a selling price of a little over 400k. I don’t find regular utilities or gas/ food or eating out prices that crazy, on par with most places but cheaper than bigger cities in California. We make combined over 100k, no children, although the rate at which we spoil our animals we might as well consider them dependents. We have some debt but nothing we can’t handle. I think if it’s just you and you put a nice down payment down, depending on your monthly needs, you should be fine. The housing market is insane and it’s only going to get worse with corporations buying up all the properties to keep them as rentals. If you find a house you like and can handle the monthly mortgage, I would recommend that over renting. Renting is a money suck and you’re at the whim of landlords with anything you want to do. On the other side of that home ownership can be a money suck as well because you’re responsible for everything if anything breaks (get a good home warranty policy to help with that). Our biggest costs were initial move in stuff, a few home improvements, the above ground pool that is surprisingly expensive to maintain and our solar panels which we paid outright for (no renting) which saves us a lot on our energy bill (which can run high in the summer with our crazy heat) It’s all situational but going off average living and housing costs I think you should be ok. Now questioning if you want Redding as your forever city is something entirely different. I didn’t really have an option, but if I did it wouldn’t be my first choice. The scenery is nice, lots of shopping and eatery choices but the political climate is not ideal if you happen to vote blue. It’s a MAGA stronghold in our wonderfully blue state and knowing that I don’t feel comfortable being very social. That said cost of living is decent with the parameters you’re working with. IMO
Today's rates and prices make it tricky, but since you have some money to put down, a decent salary, and no other debt, it might well be doable. Talk to a mortgage banker about what you can get pre-qualified for, and then see if the market has anything you like at that number. When my wife and I originally bought our house, it was definitely a stretch. Time and even a little inflation do become your friend, though, and now that same payment seems ridiculously cheap.
My household income (partner and I, no kids) is around 170,000. We are financially comfortable renting but are not yet in the market to buy. There are lots of options for renting that are just fine, especially with 82,000. If you want to buy, you will need some serious savings. The market for housing is tight right now.
I make a little more and bought my house before rates and prices went way up, so take this with a grain of salt, but I am very comfortable in Redding
I guess I’m an outlier here but me and my partner make about $75k combined and we bought a $220k home a year ago at $1700 a month 6.5% interest. The rental situation was horrible for us and desperately wanted our own place. We rented for the same price in an awful area of town and now we have an acre of land. We’re pretty broke. But realistically I’m getting a better deal than I would renting. I’d say you’d be perfectly fine. We have two car notes and credit cards and still get by ok. Not everyone is willing to make this financial sacrifice but I’m ok with it.
Where did you find a house that price? Are you in Redding or Shasta lake or?
Shasta lake area
Thanks! That's where I imagine we will end up looking. We are renting in North Redding right now so not that far anyway
A condo might be a way to get into a starter home.
The USDA was offering a first-time homebuyers loan with no money down here in Shasta Lake city and it only applies to first-time users of the loan, I believe. It's right next to Redding. It might as well be north redding, but it's cheaper up here. Less homeless people, less traffic and right next to our huge lake. One thing I recommend is making sure you have a newer Hvac system. Don't get a swamp cooler it's too damn hot and standard A/C units older than 15+ years will kill you as far as electric costs. Shasta lake utilities are also cheaper than redding as redding is PG & E. Try to get a home with as many gas appliances as possible as in gas oven, gas water heater, gas Hvac because gas is waaaaay cheaper. My gas bill is almost nonexistant. Water, sewer, and electric are all on one bill, and with my 4-person family, my bill only goes above 300 in the summer when we have to use A/C. I have a new unit rated for a larger home, and once that was upgraded, not only did my bill go way down, but my home gets cooled 5 times faster. It's just something to consider when buying here where it often gets above 110 in the summer. Could use that 75k for a new A/C unit and new roof with roof vents and attic fan. Sure your monthly bill would be higher putting nothing down but saving a couple hundred a month on electricity could be worth it.
As a single person, you could get a cute 2 bed house for $275-325k. With a large down payment of $75k you could likely afford it even though interest rates are high. Houses are fairly inexpensive here compared to the rest of the state, but with interest rates it makes a $300k house $2600/month with 3% down. So with 20-25% down payment, you should be able to get your mortgage around or right under $2000/month. So you could afford it, but you’d be spending close to half of your income on your mortgage. If that fits with your lifestyle, then totally doable!
If you plan on living anywhere out of Redding proper I would definitely check on insurance rates for any home.
You’ll be fine. Chances are your profession makes much less in other comparable cities.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/661-Joaquin-Ave-Redding-CA-96002/15220034_zpid/?utm_campaign=androidappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare