elizabethsmum

Hi I was wondering if the USA has any rental websites like rightmove here in the UK that I can go on and start looking for properties? We have been away from the USA for 7 years now so I am assuming we wont have any credit history so buying a home out the gate is not an option, how long will we have to be in the USA before credit is able to start building? What is the best way to start building up credit? I know its normally by getting a credit card etc but if we have no credit we wont get one?

My husband is a USC I am British, when he left the USA he did have some medical bills that he never cleared off completely I am not sure how much they were for, will these show up on his credit when we do go to buy a home or even when we want to rent?

We are not leaving until next year early spring but I am a planner and just want to get started on plans etc and would be interested to see the average rental prices for Upstate New York.

Pulaski

Rent.com is one web site, there are others you can Google up fairly easily.

If you have a 20% down payment you might be able to buy from the start if you also have a job(s), and rates are still very low, so even if you're forced to pay a rate premium you might still be locking in a historically low rate.

If you have had an Amex card in the UK for at least 12 months you can use that to get Amex in the US to issue a card. I think it may be possible to do the same with a Capital One card, though I haven't heard of anyone doing that recently.

If you're going to buy a new car, or are open to the possibility, buying through International Autosource will get you a standard US finance deal with reporting of your payment history from day 1 (as you already have SSNs).

I think that everything drops off your credit history after seven years, so I don't think the old medical bills will be an issue, but on the other hand don't be entirely surprised if a debt collection agency pops up and tries to collect the balance.

elizabethsmum

Thank you.

My husbands previous medical bills what will happen do they show up on his credit report after being so long?

Pulaski

See edits to my post above.

elizabethsmum

THANK YOU!

Leah326

I've been using Trulia and Craigslist to get an idea on prices.

HartleyHare

I used Realtor.com and you could also try MLS.com. I know you are not coming until next year, but sometimes these websites are not always up to date. I saw several properties recently when looking to rent that had already been let but were still on the websites.

Good luck with your move.

Sue

Yep, those are great. Also check out Zillow for rentals.
www.zillow.com that's how we found the house we are currently renting.

notonuksoil

Good friends of ours are moving back to NY in the fall. They have been in the UK for the past 2 years but prior to this had been living in NY for 6 years and owned a small studio apartment which they sold as they thought the move back to the UK would be permanent. (Both UKC)

They came over to visit in June and also to start the house hunting process, they have the 20% deposit but after speaking to a few mortgage brokers they have been told they will need 40% down. Something to do with the fact they have been out of the US for 2 years and that they will be here on a visa.

http://www.zillow.com/ is a good site to look at.

tonrob

I like the idea if Zillow, but the "value" of my house is up and down like a bride's nightie so not sure how reliable this is.

Sue

Yep for house value I totally agree, it's way off. It was handy to look for rentals though.

Pulaski

Agreed. The value is often unreliable, though IME seems fairly good when looking at a house a homogeneous subdivision, but the house I bought ten years ago is in a very mixed development, with some houses almost 40 years old, but mine is less than half that. Most houses are ranches, but mine is two story, most are on an acre, but mine is on an acre and a half. Some are all brick, mine is all siding, most are on a straight and ridiculously fast spine road, mine is at the end of a cul-de-sac. All things considered, it is unrealistic to expect a computer algorithm to be able to calculate a price for that house.

notonuksoil

Another site I like is http://blockshopper.com/ to look at previous sales and prices. The site is slow at updating recent sales but gives a good indication of past sales and prices if you know the area well.

MarylandNed

By federal law everyone is entitled to a free credit report from each of the 3 agencies annually. Why not take a look?

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

sir_eccles

My Realtor friend says the Zestimates are rubbish.