Got some timely good news today ! ( NOT about the baby ! ) lol , babies fine though

[son of the revolution]

So Im over at Dads tonite , returning the lawn tractor I had borrowed from him on Sun to cut my back 2 acres . ( Hey Pop , you should lend me your stuff more often ! you got it back with a full tank of gas and a tune up ! )

Anyway , we're shooting the breeze for a few minutes and he asks about how our house hunting plans were going . Blah , blah , blah ................

Dad " You know your step mother and I have been doing a little investing , buying tax certificates and such " .

Me " Yea , I remember we were talking about that the last time I was here a couple weeks back "

Dad " Well , I stumbled across this listing , and it gave me an idea "

Me " Whats that Pop ?"

Dad " Im willing to invest in some property , if you can find something , I'll buy the house , and you and Steph can rent it from us , until your in a position to buy it "

Me " .................... TOTALLY FLOORED ! Probably the nicest unsolicited gesture my old man has made towards me in more then 20 years .


I was doubly shocked that my step mother had already signed off on it , as we didnt exactly like each other to much from the time her and my Dad met , up until I had my own kids . Its a long story for another day , but basically ALOT of tension between HER kids and me and my brother , and her views about what we should or shouldnt have been doing as teenagers . Basically the bad side of " blended families " . My brother flat out wrote my Dad off years ago , and hasnt spoken to him .

Truth be told , I think Dad has his own motives , not that their " bad " , but I think he's trying to make up for the way he was when I was a kid, by overcompensating now that he has one granddaughter ( mine ) and another grand child from me on the way. Plus the fact that my brother just had his first kid and simply will not allow my Dad contact in any way .

Suffice to say , if it was just me and the wife , I doubt the offer would have been made . Who knows , maybe Im wrong and he's changing in his " twilight years ( mid 60's ) . Either way , Im not about to look a gift horse in the mouth ! This means NO MORE having to ask permission to do stuff , being able to , and not minding spending money on " upgrades " knowing we will eventually get it back when we own it . Takes a good burden off my shoulders for sure .

Now things get REALLY interesting ! I have to start contacting Realtors and start looking! Im hoping we can find a repo or an auction , something that maybe needs some rehab ( water heater , paint , dry wall , appliances , etc ) , nothing " major " repair wise , just something thats WAY under market price due to needed repairs , that I can drive over and work on during the summer /fall . Our lease isnt up till Feb 2010 , so I have sometime to fix things.

Oh yea , theres one " catch " Dad made no bones about no matter what , the monthly nut had to be within his " comfort zone " for him to handle the mortgage if the worst happened and I croaked or something . So Im limited to 150 k and under , and thats probably pushing it to be honest .

[The_Game]

Lucky you. I just got my birthday card from my dad.... and my birthday was in April.

[normanvin]

Do what you need to. But can you imagine renting from someone who you have said isn't your most favorit person?

[imp81318]

Lucky you. I just got my birthday card from my dad.... and my birthday was in April.

My birthday is this Saturday... My dad and I are installing windows in my sun porch together...


Good offer man, hopefully things work out well for ya!

[markshere2]

Oh yea , theres one " catch " Dad made no bones about no matter what , the monthly nut had to be within his " comfort zone " for him to handle the mortgage if the worst happened and I croaked or something . So Im limited to 150 k and under , and thats probably pushing it to be honest .

You are a lucky young man- your dad is "forcing" you into buying a house that you can afford to pay on.

I recommend you jump on this with both feet.

When the time comes for a mortgage, insist on a 15 year mortgage.
Do the math and force the lender to show you how much more you will pay in interest on a 30 year vs 15 year note.

The monthly payment will only be about $100 more, and your equity will build MUCH faster.

Insist on a fixed rate .

Now y'all know about the mistakes I made as a young man.

Mark

[camper]

I'll be the lone voice of dissent then....I think this is a bad idea. Family partnerships, family loans, business deals etc end badly more often then not.

What happens if the roof needs to be repaired, who pays for it? You're living there getting a deal, so are you expected to or is he?

Seen it happen too many times, that something like this sounds like too good a deal to pass up and it ends up being something that both ends wish they never did.

You'll do what you want, but don't look through rose colored lenses. If you're shocked that your dad is 'turning a new leaf' and you're trying to justify his actions (that's what it sounds like) that should be a major red flag that this might not end well. What if you want to move in 10 years somewhere else and your dad is pissed you don't buy the house? Or what if he wants more than you're willing to pay because the real estate boomed and he sold it to a stranger who was willing to pay 15k more than you? Or your dad resented you for giving you a 15k deal, and that gets mentioned every Thanksgiving or other gathering?

I'd pass, despite how tempting an offer it sounds.

camper

[son of the revolution]

I can certainly appreciate the words of caution , but my take on it is Pop is in a position to do something to help , and he's willing to do it . Theres alot deeper things at play here that lead me to believe he's sincere . It'll only be temporary anyway . We had planned on buying a place anyway , just not for another couple years . I planned on having an attorney draw up something to protect both of us as much as possible , and to make sure we're both on the same page with expectations , etc .

I see it as getting to "own " the place a couple years earlier then we otherwise could , from the sense that Pop isnt going to care what changes or improvements I want to make , plus Im not putting money into some landlords pocket to make them rich . He's not in it for a profit motive , or an " investment " , just trying to do something to help out .

We're not getting a " free ride " by any stretch . I'm going to be paying the mortgage , taxes , etc . When we're able to buy it , we'll pay the original price , plus maybe a small percentage ( have to work that out yet ) but the bulk of the equity and improvements will go to me . Technically its something that should have happened years ago . My Grandmother had almost 1 million left to my Dad , Uncle and me and my brother when she passed . She had told me and my brother privately that we wouldnt have to worry about buying houses due to the inheritance , but she never modified the will to expressly state that , just trusted my Dad to " do the right thing " . So I'm chalking this up to him doing what was supposed to happen anyway , just 7 years later then expected .

[Michele]

WOW! How did I miss this thread?

Its about time your housing situation is looking promising! I know you've been through allot lately.

Good luck in your new endeavor.

Oh, and definitely get all paperwork done with a lawyer. Make sure all t's are crossed and all i's dotted.

Oh, and under 150K? You can DEFINITELY find something turnkey with property up here in the west. The further west you come, the cheaper homes get. Trust me on that I researched and looked for 2 years.