Buy a Home with a Friend or Two
Homes are becoming more and more expensive as the years pass by. In many places they now cost more than ever before. Times like this make me want to share two insights with my friends, especially the younger ones just starting out. First, just because home prices reach a new high, doesn’t mean they’re about to crash. Remember how your parents told you they bought their home for much less? And their parents even less than that? It’s true! The median price of a home in the 1940s in Utah was only about $2300. Imagine the heartburn everyone felt when homes hit $10k! There are more Americans today than ever before. They want to live in the same place. There’s a constant bidding war going on that drives prices up potentially forever; so long as the population continues to grow.
The second thing I want to share with my friends is for those wanting to own something. Many first-time-would-be-buyers tell me they can afford $800-$1000/mo only to hear me tell them that they’ll most likely not find anything cheap enough for that to work. First time buyer homes are now consistently over $180k. That’s $30k over what I used to see the floor at. Finding homes under that price today is super tough. Getting that home is even tougher. But it’s not impossible. Many friends and siblings find themselves in the same position and feel hopeless to ever own their own place. So here’s a thought to consider. And there are plenty of articles to read on the internet about it. Use those to point out areas that you need to understand better to be ready to do this. Consider buying a home, with a friend or sibling. If you both separately qualify for $150k, you could qualify for perhaps $300k combined. You could buy a rambler or split level and designate the upper and lower half to each other. You could take it a step further and turn it into a bachelor(ette) pad by renting out some rooms to other friends or siblings. This way you each get a better home in a better neighborhood making it a better investment.
We’re not accustomed to this here in Utah, but in states like California, Hawaii and many east coast states, this is old old news. But we’ll get used to this and my article will soon seem obsolete. For now I like this idea a lot. I’d love to see many more youth preparing themselves to own a home and be able to bring more into their future families than debt. This isn’t a flawless plan. But I believe it can offer many people a serious step up in the right direction for the future of their lives. Be sure to SHARE this with your friends and relatives. Encourage them to call us and prequalify with their friend today. Be the catalyst that improves their life!
