Colorado B.S. Thread

A real estate agent should have a entire team to get you taken care of. Contact one you're comfortable with and make em work, per-approval then go baby go! GL, oh and I would suggest taking a few G's and put it some where they don't know about, they gonna want it all.

 

Huh thought that kitchen counter looked familiar. You are still a DB for posting that other pic.

Some things to think about:

• Do you want exterior and yard maintenance? If no, then look at a condo / townhome / Patio home?
• Do you want neighbors above or below you? If no, then rule out condo.
• Do you want neighbors on either side of you? If no, then rule out town home.
• Think about other costs that come with own besides mortgage.
• HOA
• Energy bills
• Trash (possibly)
• Water
• Interior maintenance
• Home owners insurance - type depends on what you buy. Contact your insurance company to get estimates on cost.

Find a good realtor but remember they can only guide you and answer questions. They are not supposed to help you decide. Also speak with banks and mortgage lenders prior to looking at homes so you know ahead of time what you can really look at. Keep in mind lenders also still qualify you based on gross income not net (why I do not know) so you need to figure out all of your monthly expenses (estimate if you have to) and then see what you have left over for a mortgage. From that you can use an online mortgage calculator to kind of gauge what price range you can REALLY afford. Don't forget you should really put away some saving money each month for incidentals too.

Have at least 10% down and don't forget closing costs but a good realtor typically can get that put into the closing for the buyer to pay. You have a few other outside costs like credit check, inspection, and any moving costs.

Sorry to be a downer and take away the fun I just feel it is best to well informed going into this type of purchase then to find out the costs after the fact.

 

Given it is an 05 I would say the springs have seen their day. Time for a new pack.

EXPOS. That added weight and then your traveling gear for camping and stuff? You will like the EXPOS.

If you are not going to carry weight on a regular basis or add weight to your truck in the future these will work. But for $30.00 more...\/

This.

 

I have a great retaliator. She is my chiefs wife he is bad ass when it comes to buying homes.

 

Dang, I wish I would have known you back in 2006 when I bought my condo!!!

If anyone needs to refinance or needs a mortgage broker I have an amazing guy! He has refi'd most of our office.

 

Being a first time buyer qualifies you for some good credits/incentives. You really don't need much of a down payment. With an FHA loan you can come in with 5% down, maybe less. The mortgage rates are ridiculous right now, my realtor was saying that some of them are coming in below 3%. Definitely an awesome time to buy.

The more down payment you have the better off you are. If you come in with I think 20% you don't have to pay mortgage insurance which cuts that much more out of the monthly payment but it's usually tough for first time buyers to come in with that much.

Even with the extra costs like HOA fees if you move into a neighborhood that has them, taxes, utilities etc it's still better to be investing in a home than paying a landlord imo.

It just sucks when something breaks and you don't have a land-lord to make fix it any more

 

Not is the leaf pack is shot

x2. I'll be switching to these in the future.

Edit: x3 Eric already said it haha

 

You put an AAL in the Dakar Pack? I wonder if I should have gone with a heavier-duty leaf pack than the Dakars because I will be doing some expedition-style traveling and want to maintain my lift when loaded up. I guess I've never heard of adding an extra leaf to the dakars. If that exists, maybe I should look into that down the road.

I seriously recommend buying property to most people. I used to sell real estate but I got started at the beginning of the housing bubble and couldn't make it with all the office fees and crap like that. But like people have said, there is some prep you should do before making a final decision like looking at all the other expenses and responsibilities. Getting pre-qualified with a bank also goes a long way when bargaining for price, it shows the seller that you won't get held up on financing when it comes time to close. But interest rates are killer right now, thats why the wife and I are buying a mountain property with a cabin. It will probably be in Red Feather. Speaking of which, we will be renting it out to family, friends, acquaintances so if you guys ever want a weekend getaway I will be able to hook you up cheap.

 

Thanks for all the answers guys. Looks like I need to go talk to some people. I've mostly been looking into condo's/town homes...something I can rent out to someone else, should I want to buy actual property.

 

I wish I wasn't. I did residential real estate investment for several years.

As far as looking to buy and not rent, I'll try to play devil's advocate here since you've already got some good advice.

Renting isn't so bad. You get a lot of bonuses that you will lose as a homeowner. For starters, kiss a large portion of your free-time goodbye.. more so if it's a house versus a condo/town home. There are always projects that need to be done and the list seems to never end. This leads to my next point, responsibility. As a renter you basically have none so it's hard to understand how nice it is to have a problem and just make a phone call and it's done or if it's not done you have someone to vent your frustrations to who's responsibility it is to make sure it's done. Another thing to consider is that when you own you worry more about the little things. Every single little scratch, scrape, drip or wear mark can become cause for consternation. When you rent, you really couldn't care less for the most part other than getting your security deposit back and even that is just small amounts that aren't returned on certain non 'wear or tear' items. In the state of Colorado you have a REAL advantage should it go to small claims court as a tenant against a landlord. Don't ask how I know. Another large factor is the ability to move. With a rental, if your needs change or you want to move elsewhere you simply move. When you own you pretty much say to yourself 'I'm going to live in this same sport for years to come, regardless of how inconvenient that makes my day to day life' especially in a market like this. Lots of times things can be out of your control too and if you had a rental it's no problem. Just wait for your lease to expire (or don't) and simply move closer to work or whatever is your reason for moving. I can't explain how useful this idea is until you're tied to one place. Hell, my wife has worked for the same doctor for over a decade now but thanks to them deciding to build a new office her daily commute has more than doubled. Her boss doesn't care because he just built another million dollar home closer to the new office. Us peons don't get that same luxury. So there's actually a decent list to NOT commit yourself to home ownership and I could go on for quite a while but I just wanted to give you another angle on the decision so you can think through what's best to you.

Also, when it comes to your 'professionals' that you hire keep one thing in mind: They earn a payment from the $$ you spend. That's not to say they're all bad but they have a vested interested in selling you a house and not so much finding you the right house or getting you the best deal. Now that's not to say that they're all evil but a LOT more of them are than you would think. If you go into it thinking they all are you will be more careful with your dealings with them and in the end this only serves to help you. Some in the industry may not like that statement but they will hard pressed to convince me that being more careful about your dealings with them will somehow harm you in any way. I had a lot of people that I worked with for years on many projects and when all the dust settled I discovered where their allegiance lied and I've spent a lot of time with many people from all the faucets of real estate so I'm not basing this on just a couple dealings with a couple of people. I also went to real estate school and loan origination school so I've seen what type of people get involved with these industries and what their goals are. That's not to say some don't change and some bad ones get weeded out but I happen to know for a fact that there are LOTS of bad ones still around. Just be careful man and don't lose sight of YOUR priorities and don't let anyone convince you to do anything that doesn't benefit YOU so they can make a paycheck. Keep in mind how big of a decision this is and more importantly how much liability you are putting yourself on the hook for.

Lastly, don't buy a home because you think it's a good investment or a good way to make some money. Lots of people have taken rather sizable financial hits the last several years for buying because of this reason. Make sure you're buying for the right reasons.

If you do buy don't put down anymore than you absolutely need to get qualify for the loan unless you're trying to avoid PMI. The cost of money right now is STUPID cheap and it doesn't make sense to tie up all your cash in real estate.

Condos & townhomes don't appreciate as fast as a single family home in most markets (there have been rare instances in Northern Colorado where condos were on the demand and their value went up because of it but we're now WELL past that point) so if you want to make sure your home has the best chance at appreciation go with a home.

BUY A SOUTH FACING LOT! DO NOT BUY A NORTH FACING LOT! These are both tips for those who don't enjoy year-round snow/ice cover.

Buy the house you want most and not the best 'deal' if you plan to live in it. Try to keep the idea of investing and living separate as much as possible. You will be happier in the long run.

DO NOT RENT OUT. EVER! SALE FOR A LOSS BEFORE YOU RENT!

If you value your sanity I can't stress this last one enough. Some will say it's not a big deal but that's like riding a motorcycle: It's not if you wreck but when and how bad. They just haven't wrecked yet.

 

You should be able to get a condo / townhome very cheap right now, the housing market has turned around some but I would still lose my ass if i sold my condo right now. So its going to be a rental property for me for a while i think. You could probably buy a pretty sick condo with a cheaper mortgage than renting

Let me know if you want a mortgage broker, I'll PM his info if you wish, He is great. Walked me through my refi with my condo through the bank without getting paid a cent, we also just used him for the purchase of our home.

 

CBI rear bumpers on sale this week

http://www.cbioffroadfab.com/store/index.php?cPath=27_29&osCsid=f944844931dd09d011a1e9b6d76eac1a

$100 off

 

ok so i have another question for you guys.
what would you rather have for a rear bumper? something like this

http://www.cbioffroadfab.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=27_29&products_id=81

that has you cut your bed.

Or something like this

http://www.relentlessfabrication.com/05tacomarear.html

that is a direct bolt on replacement.?
I know there is alot out there for rear bumpers, Im just not sure if i want to cut my bed, but I do know that I want/need the protection an off-road rear bumper provides, even when on normal black top.

So what does everyone think?

 

Go HC. If you get a direct bolt on you will eventually wish you had gone with the HC.

 

X2. Cut that shit. . I'm waiting till the trail
Removes my bumper so I can do a HC bumper.

 

you don't NEED HC...you'll be fine with the non-HC bumpers...

yes you may still hit and you aren't quite as high as the HC bumpers...

but if you have a hitch recessed in the bumper you will gain TONS of clearance in the rear, don't have to cut your bed sides and can always change your mind later and go HC

once you go HC you can't go back without buying new bedsides...

so if you're unsure, i'd stay with the non-HC

 

Im with bob, id say non HC because you can always decide later to go HC.

someones insurance will pay for my rear bumper at some point

 

So HC is what High Clearance? Can I Not get a HC bolt on rear bumper that doesnt have me cut anything?

 

be heavy on the brakes this winter

 

HC=high clearance

there is no HC bumper that does not have you cut....you can look into demello or cbi's tube rears that offer side protection