Anybody out there live in a house this expensive or higher? If so, what do you do for a living?

I'm just curious what kinds of salaries it takes to sustain a mortgage that large. I feel like my wife and I make decent salaries, but our house was like 209 and I don't feel like we could have gone any bigger comfortably, and also afford to keep up a child and two decent vehicles.

I see these neighborhoods all over the place and just wonder how many jobs out there pay the kinds of salaries that can sustain all these large mortgages.

5/1/2016 8:26:05 PM

That's what, a mortgage payment of $2,000-$2,500 a month? I guess kids are expensive though.

5/1/2016 8:28:44 PM

Our daycare alone is 1000/month.

And with insurance and taxes, it probably pushes the payment to more like 3k/month.

[Edited on May 1, 2016 at 8:34 PM. Reason : sdas]

5/1/2016 8:29:37 PM

it costs ~$300k to raise a child

so there's the difference

5/1/2016 8:36:57 PM

My rent is 3100 a month. I'm in finance , wife is a nurse. NYC. Pre approved for 1.1mm mortgage

5/1/2016 8:47:06 PM

If you bought a "cheap" house in your mid 20s, you could probably sell it in your early 30s and afford a $500k house on a "decent" salary.

5/1/2016 8:50:09 PM

I chose the wrong major!

5/1/2016 8:50:25 PM

So, this is a thread begging for humble brags. I'll leave our personal situation out of this. You do have to ask yourself a few questions before you even think about it... Do you really need/want it? We have opted to stay in a reasonable house (the one I purchased when I was 23, but was in a really nice neighborhood) to allow for really nice vacations. We are actually buying a second home at the lake. If we had an expensive Raleigh home, it would be difficult to have vacation homes. In fact, I think in about 10 years, we will also be able to have a beach home. Again, if you spend all your money in one basket, there isn't much left for other things (vacations/shopping/etc).

A 500k mortgage would be around $3000 a month after taxes/hoa/insurance.

A lot of people don't start with that level of home to begin with. They purchase, get a lot of equity, and then fold it into a new home. Requires patience, and probably a 15 year mortgage on your first property to get there.

As to salaries... I think once you get around 180k combined, you are probably in the region to start to think about it. I think 215k+ is probably where it would be 'comfortable' if you have car payments and children.

[Edited on May 1, 2016 at 8:59 PM. Reason : .]

5/1/2016 8:58:07 PM

I think there a lot of people who make very good money in the area. And people inherit as well. And they come from other parts of the country with more equity in their previous homes and higher salaries in general.

I'm a little disappointed because the affluent people haven't brought quite enough cool stuff with them to justify clogging my roads and shit. More bottle shops are always nice though.

5/1/2016 9:22:49 PM

The biggest challenge isn't the monthly payment but coming up with the 20% down.

5/1/2016 9:31:01 PM

Quote :

"The biggest challenge isn't the monthly payment but coming up with the 20% down. "

Where's the I can't tell if you're joking meme?

5/1/2016 10:05:30 PM

^^ I agree with that. $100k in equity can be hard to get to while young unless your property value has jumped significantly or you have lived well below your means on a 15-yr mortgage (or paid extra to your principal)

I've moved 5 times now in my 13 year career and thanks to a solid relocation package my company offers, we've been able to slowly climb that property ladder. We could "afford" a $500k house technically, but I have no desire. I like being able to save, max out retirement accounts, and still feel like I can buy whatever I need when I need it. Fuck being house poor. Also fuck the idea of paying PMI on a jumbo mortgage over $500k.

Also I have two kids and a third on the way so saving in 529s and daycare are more important than a baller home.

5/1/2016 10:17:34 PM

Quote :

"And people inherit as well"

I think this is the case a lot of times. Some Y2K kids come from families with successful businesses. They get a business or accounting degree and take over the family business. As long as they don't fuck up too much they are set up for success. Before you know it they are making six figures and get a nice $10,000+ dollar gift from the rents for a nice down payment.

On the other hand, I know someone who was given $20k for a down payment on his first home and then got foreclosed on in about 3 years.

5/1/2016 10:44:45 PM

$1000/month for daycare is insane but I don't have kids so what do I know!

My gf and I pay 2k a month in NYC and could probably swing 3k but I would get rid of my car and have less "fun" money. We both work in real estate related stuff.

5/1/2016 11:20:35 PM

Shit, I got two in daycare at $2400/mo.

5/2/2016 12:01:23 AM

My buddy pays $600/month for daycare in Creedmoor

5/2/2016 12:05:25 AM

People pay $1000/month for their dogs. So I mean, I'm sure people pay a lot for their kids.

5/2/2016 12:06:46 AM

My house is :$humblebrag:

I make $humblebrag

My job is $humblebrag and i am in the $humblebrag field

[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 1:17 AM. Reason : Ssly tho, in nc, 200-225k combined should be fine if you dont spend tons of money on stupid shit]

5/2/2016 1:13:15 AM

^^ my point was more how cheap it was

5/2/2016 8:22:33 AM

after my ex moved out my neighbor had the balls to ask me if i could afford to live there on my income. hey asshole, this ain't the hamptons, house is only worth around $225k

5/2/2016 8:40:27 AM

If everything goes to plan (it won't) I'll probably be close in 10-15 years. Not because I make a lot of money, but because I build houses. The house we're moving into now is probably going to be worth $300-325k, but to build we're only going to pay about $225 or so with the lot. Sell it in 5 years, roll the profit into a slightly nicer house, repeat every 5 years. I probably won't ever make a lot of money in my salary, but eventually the thought is I won't have a house payment and a pretty nice house.

But we only have 1 kid, and don't really plan on having more than 1 more, so we won't really ever need 4000 sqft or anything. Just nicer finishes inside

5/2/2016 9:00:45 AM

That's my question though...are there that many couples out there that make 200-225 combined? I mean, that's a lot of money.

5/2/2016 9:05:17 AM

Everybody in this thread got duped

5/2/2016 9:05:21 AM

I live in a nice house in Cary - 4,000 SF on 0.6 acres on the end of a culdesac (backs up to Arboretum @ Weston & Harrison)...love the location.

My wife is a manager at United Health Care (home based) and I am a commercial real estate broker.

I did the maximum traditional loan ($417K) and got a 30 year mortgage at 2.95% (super low back in May 2013), but where I get raped is property taxes - $5,500+/year. That said, mortgage, home owners insurance and property taxes add up to $2,450/month before utilities. We just had our second kid last week, so we'll have 2 day care tabs to cover as well starting in August at a number similar to my mortgage. Utilities are about $350/month.

When we first bought it, it was a little stretch - only had about 5 months of expenses saved up after the 20% down...luckily, do to a very hot commercial real estate market, finances aren't really a concern for the time being.

5/2/2016 9:12:54 AM

for the technology-related field - i don't think it's extremely rare for couples (or even one side of the couple) in their mid-late 30s or older make 200+

plenty of other fields that this applies to as well i'm sure

5/2/2016 9:13:10 AM

We've been semi house hunting in case we find something perfect. We are looking in the $275-375k range though. Our oldest son starts school in 2017 so we are looking at houses in better school districts. If he gets into a charter school it is a moot point though.

We are in a similar situation as others with the kids and daycare. We get a pretty good deal and it is still $1200/mo for 2 kids (Louisburg). Our current mortgage payment is like $930. House was $165k but we refinanced when we owed about $158.

Relative to the down payment issue. We finished the upstairs which added 1100 sq feet so I'm hoping it will now appraise/sell for $220k - 240k. This would give us 80-100k to put towards a new house.

I'd say without kids we might be able to afford a $500k house but that is including the 80-100k in equity we would have to pay down on it meaning the mortgage would be $400-420k.

[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 9:17 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2016 9:14:08 AM

Doesn't this seem like a trick to everyone else? Or is it just me

5/2/2016 9:27:36 AM

Quote :

"but where I get raped is property taxes - $5,500+/year"

You think that's high? Maybe for the area, but somewhere in the Northeast that's nothing.

5/2/2016 9:58:27 AM

I think some people would live with less if the socioeconomic status of neighbors was sufficiently high

5/2/2016 10:00:42 AM

I live in a northshore suburb of CHI and my taxes are 15k lol

5/2/2016 10:21:23 AM

^

Why does this seem like a trick? Have I not been posting long enough for folks to know I don't do those kinds of threads?

5/2/2016 11:54:19 AM

We bought just under that range and it's way more house than we need now. However, our boys are young so we'll grow into it. It's also on a acre, which was important, 10 minutes to downtown, no city taxes, and it was a foreclosure so we got some instant equity. Worth the stretch to us for the long term investment.

I'm in residential real estate full time. If any of you are thinking about putting your home on the market and/or looking to buy and would appreciate someone working on your behalf, shoot me a pm.

5/2/2016 12:11:03 PM

In this thread we confirm that property taxes in high density population areas are greater than those of lower density population areas.

5/2/2016 12:27:44 PM

High property tax is one thing. 15k is another. My property taxes in Southern Wake are going to end up being around 1400/year after the re-assessment.

5/2/2016 12:52:35 PM

It was a struggle for me to accept a $165k mortgage 5 years ago. I can't imagine being in debt half a million, or even a quarter million. Maybe I'm just absurdly adverse to going into unnecessary debt...

5/2/2016 12:55:55 PM

one mans "unnecessary debt" is another's "soon to be gobs of equity"

[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 1:11 PM. Reason : there's no right or wrong here]

5/2/2016 1:10:41 PM

Quote :

"High property tax is one thing. 15k is another. My property taxes in Southern Wake are going to end up being around 1400/year after the re-assessment."

The property taxes on my family's house in New Jersey were over $20,000 a year...




in the mid 1980s.

5/2/2016 1:15:06 PM

Some thing to keep in mind is that some areas have no sales tax at the expense of higher property tax.

^^My statement was under the assumption of a $500k+ mortgage on a $500k+ home. It's another thing when you owe say $250k mortgage on a $500k valued home because you've put half down or rolled over equity to bring down the debt ratio on the new home. There's no real right or wrong as long as you live within your means. I just prefer a liquid life over an equitable one, though it feels like our culture leans towards the opposite.


[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 1:36 PM. Reason : /]

5/2/2016 1:23:32 PM

^ I wish that were the case. Illinois is a complete shithole and cant even pay out weekly lottery winners bc it is so broke. The worst all around taxed state in the country. 10% sales tax

in short:

DON'T MOVE HERE IF YOU CAN HELP IT

5/2/2016 1:41:02 PM

I think the last time our house was appraised, it was ~$460,000.

3,500 sqft, 0.91 acres. Located in North Raleigh (outside of city limits)

I'm a stay at home home and my husband owns his own catering company.

5/2/2016 2:26:38 PM

My wife works in HR and has access to salaries... I shit when she told me her boss (senior HR exec who manages 6 people) made $320k a year.

I was like WTF?!? What does he bring to the table that would justify $320k? I've always seen things through the view of sales, so everything else seems like overhead to me.

She quickly reminded me that HR is like oil to an engine.

5/2/2016 2:28:02 PM

HR is more like permanent spike strips, installed in the wrong direction.

5/2/2016 2:43:19 PM

Quote :

"HR is more like permanent spike strips, installed in the wrong direction. "

I'm going to use that

5/2/2016 3:03:29 PM

I know it's fun to think about HR as the hall monitor who deals with all of the interpersonal drama between YOU PEOPLE, but HR as an organization does a lot more than y'all think.

* handles all the administrative work in recruiting, hiring, and onboarding. Then internal job changes, promotions, raises, etc. and obviously attrition and termination as well.

* maintains personnel information (identifying info, job history, salary, PTO, benefits) as well as the security of that information.

* Handles compensation and benefits - 401k, insurance, vacation, and whatever other benefits packages you have. Even if there's a "benefits" group, as many large corporations have, they typically roll up to the HR organization, as does payroll.

* Compliance -- labor, employment, safety, and depending on industry, regulatory compliance.

* interpersonal bullshit -- probably the smallest part of HR's function but the only one people are really aware of.


So, a senior HR exec at a decently large company making $320k a year doesn't sound completely out of whack.

5/2/2016 3:21:35 PM

I work in software development for a defense contractor managing the applications team. My wife is a teacher. Together we are > 150k but < 200k. Paying 3k a month in mortgage would get pretty tight.

* both cars are paid off
* kid in daycare at $1400/month
* mortgage ~1850/month (including taxes and insurance)
* both max out retirement plans and rothira
* 250/month for 529 plan
* rest goes to savings
* no cable, $275/month internet/water/electricity

I work a second job as a contractor to bring in $500 to $800 extra a month. If we didn't have a kid (daycare is a bitch), we could swing the higher mortgage. Otherwise we would have to cut back on retirement plans.


[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 4:15 PM. Reason : ^ 320k seems like a lot to me, but I guess C-suite peeps get the $$$]

5/2/2016 4:13:57 PM

We're about to roll our renovation loan into a $417k mortgage...should be interesting to see how we handle it on a monthly basis, but I think we'll survive.

5/2/2016 4:50:47 PM

You'll die eventually

5/2/2016 5:20:08 PM

Yeah..... let me show you what 500k gets in my neighborhood:

http://www.trulia.com/property/3230541555-226-1st-St-2A-Jersey-City-NJ-07302
$529,000
Condo
2 Bedrooms
1 full Bathroom
785 sqft
$674/sqft


http://www.trulia.com/property/3228851139-352-7th-St-Jersey-City-NJ-07302
$579,000
Apt/Condo/Twnhm
2 Bedrooms
710 sqft
$815/sqft

[Edited on May 2, 2016 at 10:50 PM. Reason : I guarantee you'l feel better ]

5/2/2016 10:49:35 PM

We must be pretty much neighbors because that second listing is just over a block from where I live

5/2/2016 11:02:01 PM

my ex lives a drunken stumble from the grove street PATH

5/2/2016 11:31:44 PM