[Aces4]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

What does never running out of money have to do with the cost of homes. There are thousands of independently wealthy people here that will never run out of money. The fact is by renting you are losing the opportunity to actually make money on your investment and basically live free. When you rent you can't improve your home, you have to abide by the terms of your lease. We purchased our home 4 years ago and with the appreciated value of our home we have lived here free and still made a six figure profit.

Please share how you lived here “free”. We think it’s quite expensive if you own a home in The Villages.

[Laker14]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

She's loosing out on any appreciation which could be a lot more than carrying costs. The new homes south of 44 have been going up consistently since opening in 2017, several price increases every year and then this years crazy high increases. I don't think they have maxed out yet. Just one man's opinion right or wrong.

"COULD BE".... a very important disclaimer, there, my friend. Remember all of those ads for mutual funds on TV..."Past performance is no guarantee of future returns"...we may think the market will always go up, and it may, but there is no guarantee. I personally made the decision, along with my wife of course, that given the current valuations of equities in the US stock markets, and the P/E ratio of the S&P 500, and the pittance one receives in "safe" investments like CDs, bond funds, etc...AND our decision that we wanted to be in TV 6+ months/ year, to buy...luckily we did this in December 2020 before the recent crazy spike, but that was what made sense to us at the time. Realistically, there are certain expenses and responsibilities that come with owning that I don't love. I can completely understand why someone would make a different decision than I did.

Originally Posted by Velvet

Unless this would be a second home in TV, doesn’t she have similar costs now where she lives? If she is renting, it’s rolled in to the rent and that money is gone forever.

I look at the house expense in various categories....if you buy you pay taxes (money down the toilet), insurance (flush), lawn care (flush), interest on loan (flush) or if you don't take a loan, you have a chunk of money no longer available for investment in other areas(another potential flush)...amenity fees (flush), sewer and garbage and water (flush flush flush),, bond payment, (flush twice),none of those expenses goes into equity on your home.

It's very dangerous to base a house purchase on the belief that housing prices will always go up, and particularly dangerous to base it on the belief that housing prices will go up at the rate they've gone up in the last year. The OP has made a decision that is right for her. If she decides to buy later, she'll know a lot more about TV after having rented here for a period. She may "lose out" on a year of appreciation, but she also may lose out on a year of depreciation as things revert to mean, as they typically do.

[Babubhat]

A house is not an investment. It may build equity but that is a by product of needing a place to live. At current prices you should not expect much more appreciation.

[Bay Kid]

Originally Posted by Babubhat

A house is not an investment. It may build equity but that is a by product of needing a place to live. At current prices you should not expect much more appreciation.

A home is an investment. You can pay my home payments by renting, or yours by owning. Pride of ownership will reap rewards when you sell.

[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by Aces4

Please share how you lived here “free”. We think it’s quite expensive if you own a home in The Villages.

The annual appreciation of our home since being purchased far exceeded the cost to own the home including all utilities, upkeep, taxes, bond, etc., etc., and there is still a six figure surplus and I am basing the value of our home at a quick sell price.

[tvbound]

Originally Posted by Penglobal

Hello and thank you for your reply -
In """"""MY""""" opinion, my rental house is a structure to live in and call home, not a business venture, but a home and thanks to the market, I am living comfortably and I don't require any more money nor stress. As a single female, the ability to rent allows """""me""""" the opportunity to feel my way around which is an experience as a married male you may never understand. Additionally, I still hold residence in PA. and I enjoy the ability to move and live anyplace I wish. BTW - You will not profit six figures or any amount until after you sell and move out of your residence. Thank You again.

"BTW - You will not profit six figures or any amount until after you sell and move out of your residence."

A simple fact, that all too many don't seem to be able to grasp. Like stocks, you haven't "made" anything until you sell or in the case of a home, use a HELOC and/or refinancing to take out equity. The universal philosophy ahead of every single bust or recession this country has ever been through, is along the lines of - "buy now, prices will always be going up."

[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by Babubhat

A house is not an investment. It may build equity but that is a by product of needing a place to live. At current prices you should not expect much more appreciation.

A house is an investment, if you only "need a place to live" you can rent a little condo somewhere and not enjoy the appreciation opportunity of owning a home. Also not everyone that "invests" in homes lives in them and many of us have multiple homes here., they are truly great investments and based on the number of boomers still retiring every day I believe that the values of these homes will continue to rise.

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

The annual appreciation of our home since being purchased far exceeded the cost to own the home including all utilities, upkeep, taxes, bond, etc., etc., and there is still a six figure surplus and I am basing the value of our home at a quick sell price.

For a savvy investor, it is realized an investment in housing is a poor one for growth. There are no guarantees prices will rise after you buy since any growth can be quickly eroded by a down turn in the economy, decimation of the area by a series of either sink holes, hurricanes/tornadoes, sharp tax/cost of living increase, increase in population density, pressure on natural resources availability such as the aquifer, crime increase, etc. There is not a FDIC for housing and it should not be considered an investment unless it is strictly a rental unit. And even then a pandemic may wipe out all income for a great length of time.

[vintageogauge]

Originally Posted by Aces4

For a savvy investor, it is realized an investment in housing is a poor one for growth. There are no guarantees prices will rise after you buy since any growth can be quickly eroded by a down turn in the economy, decimation of the area by a series of either sink holes, hurricanes/tornadoes, sharp tax/cost of living increase, increase in population density, pressure on natural resources availability such as the aquifer, crime increase, etc. There is not a FDIC for housing and it should not be considered an investment unless it is strictly a rental unit. And even then a pandemic may wipe out all income for a great length of time.

Not to worry, I've been doing this for decades and haven't lost yet. Realestate by far has been the best investments of my entire life. Even when the economy goes down, unlike some other investments, you still own the property and it will eventually go back up.

[justjim]

Originally Posted by Babubhat

A house is not an investment. It may build equity but that is a by product of needing a place to live. At current prices you should not expect much more appreciation.

Over the last few decades houses have been a very good investment for me and my wife. "

[Velvet]

Originally Posted by tvbound

"BTW - You will not profit six figures or any amount until after you sell and move out of your residence."

A simple fact, that all too many don't seem to be able to grasp. Like stocks, you haven't "made" anything until you sell or in the case of a home, use a HELOC and/or refinancing to take out equity. The universal philosophy ahead of every single bust or recession this country has ever been through, is along the lines of - "buy now, prices will always be going up."

You are right. The first house I bought didn’t increase in value for 15 years. Although I brought up a family in that home. Then prices started to increase, year after year - after 15 years of holding steady. When we sold the house it was 5 times for what we paid but it was 30 years later. It was a sad affair for me, I hoped to live out my life in that home.

But then I could afford a better property. Actually 2, one here in TV.

The price of houses in TV are going up but I bought a home not an investment. In an emergency it would serve as an investment. But for me what counts is not how many zeros I have in my bank account, but the quality of life I can live each day.

[Normal]

Originally Posted by Penglobal

Hello All - I'm Susan, from Lancaster, single and have finally made the decision to buy a home here in The Villages. I'm currently here in The Villages searching for a home and I'm very amazed by the prices of both new and used homes here.

In the new southern area, homes are selling very quickly, supply is low ( compared to last year ) and new homes prices are just crazy. Used home prices are even worse.

How are you guys dealing with the massive increase in home prices within The Villages?
Should I wait until the prices stabilize?

I can't believe that a new house I saw three years ago when Fenny first became developed is now on sale on the used home market for 40% more in just three years !

I have no idea what to do, please help. Thank You Susan of Lancaster

Ask yourself if you see inflation in the future. If you do, know that the Fed will raise prime lending rates to tamper it down.

So, if you want to buy a home, I wouldn’t hold off.

YOLO so enjoy, you can take it with you.

[Stephen13]

Originally Posted by Normal

Ask yourself if you see inflation in the future. If you do, know that the Fed will raise prime lending rates to tamper it down.

So, if you want to buy a home, I wouldn’t hold off.

YOLO so enjoy, you can take it with you.

This, to me, is the most relevant post in the string. If you're a smart buyer and do it right you can put yourself in a great position. Good luck with the search!

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

Not to worry, I've been doing this for decades and haven't lost yet. Realestate by far has been the best investments of my entire life. Even when the economy goes down, unlike some other investments, you still own the property and it will eventually go back up.

We have also owned many homes over the years but most people living here don’t have twenty years to wait for a recovery and then you also have the major expenses year to year that won’t be recovered.

Everyone needs to evaluate what tolerance they have for potential loss.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by vintageogauge

Not to worry, I've been doing this for decades and haven't lost yet. Realestate by far has been the best investments of my entire life. Even when the economy goes down, unlike some other investments, you still own the property and it will eventually go back up.

A friend of mine was in the USAF stationed at SAMSO in the Los Angeles area and bought a house on the Palos Verdes Peninsula around 1970. He was a First Lieutenant and worked with another First Lieutenant with the last name of Marvel. Marvel had been stationed there prior to my friend and had bought a house for $40K the year before which was now worth $70K. Marvel then refinanced the house and bought another. Using this technique over several years he acquired 19 rental houses in the area. When the fellow made Captain he wore to the office a Captain Marvel outfit his wife had made. Lol. After a few years he resigned his commission as his houses had become worth about $650K each. Bet they are maybe $1.5M houses today!

My friend, now 80 years old, went on to obtain about half a dozen rental houses (although not in that area) which he still owns.

Residential real estate can make one a multimillionaire.

I wonder how many residents in The Villages have acquired multiple rental properties in TV over time? More than a few I will wager!