Jan Alaska

Up here in the top corner of Michigan rents are still pretty affordable $1200 for a 4 bed 2000 sq ft home. Homes to buy vary a lot by area, just out of town (15-20 minute commute) you can still pick up a home with 2 -3 acres for under $100K, on the big lake expect to be paying upward of a million.
As I said before, unless you are in the city limits property taxes are low.

Pulaski

Even a "code minimum SEER" ACs are a lot more pricey than they were 8 years ago, and if you're planning on staying in a house for a few years an even higher SEER rated unit would make a lot of sense (but cost more), especially in somewhere like Texas where ACs get a lot of use. ..... I hope he got a high SEER rated unit.

Bob

Speaking of houses and Maine.

Not far from the in-laws, there's a small 4 bed for sale, it's on the river...cons are, only a half bath, pluses include all original punched tin ceilings going for $19K.

Then somewhere in between, there's a 6 bed on 10 acres going for $125K....which wouldn't even get a garage down my way

Pulaski

Ooops! I should have said that the minimum acceptable SEER was increased a few years ago, making the units more efficient but more expensive.

kins

There's definitely a north Maine/south Maine divide!

Steve_

Pretty strong limits in the Florida constitution on property tax increases, this is why I asked if their home is subject to the homestead exemption.

Steve_

Er... and what do those links prove exactly. That Texas gets hot and so does Florida... which is what I said. The fact that Texarkana has highs that are one whole degree Celsius cooler than Pensacola for example doesn't really disagree with my point.

Are you seriously arguing that Texas generally speaking doesn't get hot?

Steve_

Same applies to Florida, where she doesn't want to live, apparently.

Bob

What's crazy, it's not far from the Loaf and at that price, it's almost cheaper to buy than to rent a furbished place for a few weeks over the summer

Uncle_Bob

In 2005 I paid $15k to replace my 9 year old HVAC. Now i need to be thinking about a new roof in a couple of years to the tune of 25k. I also recently resurfaced the pool for $7k.

scrubbedexpat091

I think a lot of people don't take into account maintenance of a house, I know a few who own and they have tarps over their roofs as they leak, but they can't afford to have them replaced, my current neighbor has a 1/2 done roof that's been sitting waiting to be finished for over a year now.

I see so many just comparing rent vs mortgage payment but seem to not include the maintenance costs related to owning a home.

I do enjoy just calling the landlord when there is an issue and having no worry about needing money to pay for a repair.

I only want to own so I can have a dog, but its not a good reason to own....

Pulaski

All valid points, however, as a buyer you

(i) get part of your monthly payment back when you sell, i.e. your equity in the property increases,

(ii) may benefit from an increase in the price of the property when sold,

(iii) so long as you keep up your mortgage and tax payments, and barring divorce or stupidity by the US supreme court on eminent domain, you have guaranteed right to live in the property,

(iv) get to choose brands and materials for repairs and upgrades, for example choosing more efficient appliances or heating/AC,

(v) have fixed mortgage payments (more or less), and have a finite life, whereas rent is open ended and goes up over time, and

(vi) in the US you might be able to deduct mortgage interest from your taxable income.

Yorkieabroad

What I took from it was that, for the cities reported, there is a range in Texas of average highs from 70-87, average lows of 44-68. Corresponding ranges for Florida were 77-89 and 53-73. The ranges are lower, and the variations larger in Texas than Florida. Doesn't really seem to confirm your assertion that "Texas is hotter than Florida". Or that you can look at the State as a whole and just dismiss it as "hot".

My whole point is that while a lot of it is, some of it isn't. You can see the ranges for yourself on those links. Personally I don't consider the Guadalupe Mountain area (49-70) to be hot - when we were there it was refreshingly cool, but "hot" is subjective and personal. Houston on the other hand is, by my reckoning, "hot" during the summer months. It's a big state, and there isn't a "one size fits all" for the climate - as I said in an earlier post, looking at cities rather than the entire state would be more representative and, to my mind, more useful.

scrubbedexpat091

True. I agree with most. I'd gladly own, but the banks won't let us, so no point in worrying about it.

A mortgage + tax bill would also exceed our entire monthly income, so that doesn't help...lol

Looking at MLS cheapest listed house is 359,000 but it's a handyman special and needs some TLC, built in 1957, but has had some upgrades recently.

If we ever have the opportunity we may move to Vancouver Island where there is still cheaper housing, but jobs are the issue since it not exactly a hot bed for decent jobs.

I should add its a 1 bed/560sq foot house on a 7,300 sq foot lot. Our apartment is bigger.....lol

Uncle_Bob

Humidity also factors into how hot and sticky a place feels. That is why i can stand Arizona, because its a dry heat. Florida is as humid as hell whereas Texas is humid to the east and pretty arid on the west side.

I recently got back from a vacation in the Carolinas and with the humidity out there at around 80 degrees i felt more uncomfortable than i do here at 100 degrees. But i did enjoy being in the ocean