Yikes! Interest rates rose almost 1/2 percentage point last week.
There were a couple homes we were considering, and they suddenly got more expensive!
Not sure if this is giving me more incentive to jump before they go higher, or less, as I wait for the home price to come down further to compensate.
At any rate, although expected, this is not a welcome development.
(I have to admit, this is happening a bit sooner than anticipated, I figured they would start rising substantially around Aug/Sept....so I thought we had a bit more time to shop while rates were low).
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Yeah, I noticed that too. The way the non-REO market has frozen up, I wouldn't expect prices to move much in the near term. Also, there are reasons to believe rates will soon be much higher in the future.
Damned if you do, damned if you don't. :)
My philosophy is; I'd rather have a higher rate than a low price. You can always refi later, but you can never change what you paid.
Exactly max,
I'm one of those wackos who keeps a budget and retirement forecasts in huge excel. Our plan is to get into a fixed 30 but pay extra to principle each month. Those paydowns will go a lot farther at a low price - run the amortization tables and you'll see.
Plus, you lock yourself into a lower property tax rate - that's important in places with Prop 13 or similar tax structures.
BT,
I finally started freaking. Last night as I was falling asleep, all I could think of was could I find Burt's Bees tinted lip balm in StL? Will the grocery stores still sell curry?
There is a Nordstroms and Sephora within 15 min. BlueFly is online only. Barneys and Bloomies are right up in Chicago along with tons of other great shopping. Besides, I'm a huge online shopper. I hate casual shopping (yep A type cronic list maker). I have no clue why I'm stressing.
ps. totally forgot to scope out the grocery stores. I asked Mr Jane, who is from the midwest, if I would be able to find green thai curry paste and loose european spring mix salads greens in StL. He just rolled his eyes at me muttered something like "freaking californians" under his breath. That was short of "of course you crazy estrogen based life form. It's not like we're relocating to Lacus Somniorum".
Honestly, I think he is more worried about how directionally challeneged I'm going to be without a coastline to the west to reference too.
DJ -
The flavorless produce does take some getting used to. Growing up in CA, I never realized how spoiled I was till I left. (Although these days, even here we seem to get produce from other South America.)
Speaking of south of the border, there was also a serious lack of good Mexican food.
Sorry, I'm probably not helping...I'm being selfish cause I don't want you to go. I already left the state once...and look what happened!
BT,
I'll be back in Nov for my best friend's wedding. Maybe we can get a meet up going then and I'll be able to show off my new drawl and hopefully a new belly >; )
So here is a question, how much will the changes in retail sales operations affect personal preference in residential locations?
I have oodles of friends still living in LA and SF. They always cite fabulous stores as part of what makes they reluctant to move. So if more folks, like myself, start switching to online shopping, how will that change the old urban/suburban desireability equation? How energy efficient is online shopping and will energy costs make it prohibitive in the future?
Oh, goody. Shopping. My favorite subject. One of the things I most miss about the Bay Area is the shopping--and I don't even do that much of it. I find that I do a lot of my shopping online--particularly clothing and books--as the Sacramento purveyors of same are weak, weak, weak. As I said to Mr. Peon some time back, "Who ever thought I'd be excited about the opening of a Cost Plus?"
But I'm still close enough to go to SF for non-daily shopping. What I most miss is the quality of the food. I think that all the good stuff gets shipped to the Bay Area and we get what's left over. And, of course, food is more expensive here too. We went to Berkeley Bowl a couple of weeks ago. I thought I was in heaven.
So you blink, and buy your house as prices drop further as rates rise, only to save a few bucks a month. I don't get it. Makes more economic sense to wait for prices to fall further.
BTW, Burt's Bees is sold at Walgreen's nationwide. The even have a generic brand almost exactly like the original for half price.
I'm in DFW this weekend to look at property. Things always seem more depressed and lacking something outside of Cali. There are new townhomes within walking distance of the Ranger's ballpark and new Cowboys stadium but they are asking SoCal type prices. I doubt this place makes it. There are high powerlines at both the front and back of the property. They have been marketing it for almost 2 years and only now have one unit framed. Spent part of yesterday in Ft. Worth at the Red Bull X-Fighers event. That place is a complete dump. I thought I was in Mexico City. There is nice shopping in the better parts of the city like Plano, Grapeville and Allen. Less panhandlers here than in SF.
I head to STL on Tuesday to look at more property and see the Cardinals play in their new stadium.
Sorry DJ, I'm pretty useless when it comes to shopping. Although I have to admit, I am doing more catalog these days. Shopping around here is seriously lacking. I worked right near amazing shopping in Tysons Corner VA.
Not sure that STL could be much worse. I would imagine the Magnificent Mile in Chicago should rival SFO shopping any day.
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