Bachelor Pad.

[4wrestling]

I had considered that sofa, but I really didn't like the chrome bar body. I ended up going with this:
http://www.motiffurniture...is-Sofa?sc=2&category=27

The leather on this thing is ridiculously nice. Super comfy, even though I don't let anyone sit on it.


I would be careful about buying a cheap leather/faux leather sofa. It may feel like you're sitting on plastic.

 

[4wrestling]

Also just wanted to give people a warning of something that ended up costing me a lot of money.

I bought 2 prints off Fab, total of $45 shipped. However, they needed to be framed (I wasn't just going pin them to the wall). I went to a frame shop, and in order to get them custom framed and matted cost $124 per print. So I spent spent 5.5x the cost of the prints to get them framed. Granted, they're going to look great, but if you're planning on buying prints, framing ain't cheap.

 

[lyonbc1]

@PharelFor3, appreciate the advice man, good lookin out 

 

[4wrestling]

Originally Posted by LyonBC1

Man, props to everyone in this thread...truly inspirational for a college kid like myself still stuck in the slum school apts 

 but I had a question for some of the guys posting their spots on here though. All of you guys have pretty dope places for yourselves, but I was wondering (not trying to get in anybody's personal business) at about what age were you able to afford a good downpayment on some of these spots? I guess, did any of you live at home w/parents while you got a solid job in order to save up....or did you just start out w/ a small spot that allowed you to save up till you were able to get the newer places posted in here?.....again sorry for the long post but I'm trying to get an idea of what some other people have done once they finished school...i'm trying to get on that level..but plz lemme know if I'm asking something thats more personal, I dont wanna step on anybody's toes 

I was lucky to have only one very small student loan (thank you parents + a combination of going to a state school... Penn St).  When I moved to Philly, I rented an apartment that was only $600/mth + utilities, so I was able to save up a good amount of money.  Plus, I had the same car since high school, so I didn't have a car payment.  I was in that apartment for almost 4 years saving up until I was able to buy my condo.  It also really helped that I got a new job during this time that was a significant pay raise.
Honestly, I think the most important thing coming out of college is to try and find a job that will give you good experience, even if it doesn't have your dream pay.  Then after a year or two, you can use that experience to find a new job to get the salary and job you want.  Hard work pays off.

 

[scshift]

This might not be the best place to ask, but with so many different NTers all living in apartment style homes, I'll give it a shot.

Which major city has the lowest cost of living? I'd love to live in a bachelor style apartment when I leave college and I'd prefer that it be furnished a little nicer, even if that means moving cities. I haven't even entered college yet so relocating isn't a huge deal, but I love city life and I'm sure some places are cheaper to live than others.

Houston is one city I'm very interested in. The higher-end apartments there were incredibly cheap compared to my native Boston, not to mention the weather and city itself were both great. How does it rank compared to other cities?

 

[4wrestling]

Originally Posted by scshift

This might not be the best place to ask, but with so many different NTers all living in apartment style homes, I'll give it a shot.

Which major city has the lowest cost of living? I'd love to live in a bachelor style apartment when I leave college and I'd prefer that it be furnished a little nicer, even if that means moving cities. I haven't even entered college yet so relocating isn't a huge deal, but I love city life and I'm sure some places are cheaper to live than others.

Houston is one city I'm very interested in. The higher-end apartments there were incredibly cheap compared to my native Boston, not to mention the weather and city itself were both great. How does it rank compared to other cities?

I don't have exact stats, but the south and midwest are going to be your cheapest options (I know this just from watching a ton of House Hunters and Property Virgins 

).  Cali and the North East are way more expensive.  And for the NE, I would say of the major cities, prices probably go in order of NYC ... Boston ... DC ... Philly/Baltimore.

 

[yanks7384]

Originally Posted by LyonBC1

Man, props to everyone in this thread...truly inspirational for a college kid like myself still stuck in the slum school apts 

 but I had a question for some of the guys posting their spots on here though. All of you guys have pretty dope places for yourselves, but I was wondering (not trying to get in anybody's personal business) at about what age were you able to afford a good downpayment on some of these spots? I guess, did any of you live at home w/parents while you got a solid job in order to save up....or did you just start out w/ a small spot that allowed you to save up till you were able to get the newer places posted in here?.....again sorry for the long post but I'm trying to get an idea of what some other people have done once they finished school...i'm trying to get on that level..but plz lemme know if I'm asking something thats more personal, I dont wanna step on anybody's toes 

I just purchased my first home in Connecticut.  I'm 24, and after graduating college and getting a full time job (which started in college as an internship), I lived at home for 2 years and saved up.  No student loans for me which was huge, obviously.

 

[keithsweatsjordans]

Originally Posted by 4wrestling

Originally Posted by scshift

This might not be the best place to ask, but with so many different NTers all living in apartment style homes, I'll give it a shot.

Which major city has the lowest cost of living? I'd love to live in a bachelor style apartment when I leave college and I'd prefer that it be furnished a little nicer, even if that means moving cities. I haven't even entered college yet so relocating isn't a huge deal, but I love city life and I'm sure some places are cheaper to live than others.

Houston is one city I'm very interested in. The higher-end apartments there were incredibly cheap compared to my native Boston, not to mention the weather and city itself were both great. How does it rank compared to other cities?

I don't have exact stats, but the south and midwest are going to be your cheapest options (I know this just from watching a ton of House Hunters and Property Virgins 

).  Cali and the North East are way more expensive.  And for the NE, I would say of the major cities, prices probably go in order of NYC ... Boston ... DC ... Philly/Baltimore.

This man knows. I swear I could probably be a decent realtor just based off the time I've spent watching those shows

 

[scientific method]

Originally Posted by scshift

This might not be the best place to ask, but with so many different NTers all living in apartment style homes, I'll give it a shot.

Which major city has the lowest cost of living? I'd love to live in a bachelor style apartment when I leave college and I'd prefer that it be furnished a little nicer, even if that means moving cities. I haven't even entered college yet so relocating isn't a huge deal, but I love city life and I'm sure some places are cheaper to live than others.

Houston is one city I'm very interested in. The higher-end apartments there were incredibly cheap compared to my native Boston, not to mention the weather and city itself were both great. How does it rank compared to other cities?

You have the right idea, the South is ridiculously cheaper than either coast and up north. Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, OKC, Tulsa, Albequerque, St Louis, Kansas City, etc. Of course, it somewhat evens out in that you make less money generally but it goes further if you understand what I mean. Also, you don't have to live in studio "apartments" that are the size of what we call walk in closets down bottom. Like I said above, I bought a new construction house with a 3 car garage for under $100 sq/ft. It's Elgin though, which is a small rural town 10miles outside of a mid sized Army town (Lawton) with about a 180k population, same house would be about $115-120 a sq/ft in Lawton, in fact my same builder has a neighborhood here in town, and he charges 198k for it here.

There is a Cost of Living Calculator here http://cgi.money.cnn.com/...living/costofliving.html you can use as a reference. Also check out http://www.bestplaces.net/ for some ideas. Austin is a city I have been hearing so much about, particularly being a place for young professionals, that I really want to go check out myself one day. I hear decent things about North Carolina too.

Originally Posted by LyonBC1


smiley: pimpMan, props to everyone in this thread...truly inspirational for a college kid like myself still stuck in the slum school apts smiley: laughsmiley: laugh but I had a question for some of the guys posting their spots on here though. All of you guys have pretty dope places for yourselves, but I was wondering (not trying to get in anybody's personal business) at about what age were you able to afford a good downpayment on some of these spots? I guess, did any of you live at home w/parents while you got a solid job in order to save up....or did you just start out w/ a small spot that allowed you to save up till you were able to get the newer places posted in here?.....again sorry for the long post but I'm trying to get an idea of what some other people have done once they finished school...i'm trying to get on that level..but plz lemme know if I'm asking something thats more personal, I dont wanna step on anybody's toes

I, like 4wrestling, saved tons of money by going to school here locally. It has expanded more since then so I doubt they still do, but in the 00's they used to come through the high school and make it rain with scholarships. As long as you maintained like a C average, you'd get at least a yr free to some school and then you just stay in good academic standing and they'll renew or have some good assistance so I didn't pay much of anything for school. My parents bought my first car when I was 15 and my sophomore year bought my current car so tons of savings there.

I wasn't even really thinking about buying until about 5 months ago. My duplex lease was coming up and I looked at the rental market and wasn't excited about anything so I started talking to a realtor since I look at housing sites all day at work anyways out of boredom. My parents convinced me go new construction or under 10yrs since most builders do a 2/10yr warranty.

I have great parents and they live in a huge house so they had no problem with me moving back in in Sept since I wouldn't really be able to find somewhere to stay on a short team lease or would have to pay an extra surcharge of usually 100$ a month for short term lease. So I've been here a couple months just stacking up as I'm looking.

While 20% is recommended, you really don't have to put any money down if you don't want. It's such a buyer's market, you can move in with literally nothing out of pocket; get the seller to pay all or most of your closing, give you a fridge, make some renovations to your liking, literally just go for it all. I probably could have gotten a lot more but I was just excited when he told me the house came back on the market and I could have it, I didn't even try to lowball him or squeeze a fence + fridge out of him (at $18 a foot that fence is going to cost me a bit). Also, OK has a bond money program where they'll give me 3.5% free and I don't have to pay it back unless I move out the house in less than 5 yrs.
Whether or not, "in this economy," is a good time to buy a house or not is totall subjective. Some will say it's the best time because prices and rates are down. Others will say it's a bad time because of that. You're not going to get that quick appreciation of value like a decade ago, in fact your house will probably drop considerably the first yr, but that's up to you whether you see it as an investment and/or as a place to live and if you plan to sell soon. You can research a lot of that type of information on zillow.com, realtor.com and trulia.com too. Just google the address of the house you want info on or the neighborhood and they'll give you that type of stuff like what it last sold for, estimated current value, appreciation/depreciation pie charts, and all that.

I don't have exact stats, but the south and midwest are going to be your cheapest options (I know this just from watching a ton of House Hunters and Property Virgins Laugh). Cali and the North East are way more expensive. And for the NE, I would say of the major cities, prices probably go in order of NYC ... Boston ... DC ... Philly/Baltimore.

Truth. I like Property Brothers too. Then the DIY channel I have to give props for having SO MANY cute white woman contractors, since generally you'd expect a female carpenter to be butch as hell and wear flannel shirts but they got like 10 of them and all are attractive women (yes I know, it's on purpose), and all the Crashers shows are entertaining.

 

[skunkindunks]

Originally Posted by Mez 0ne

I'd be too scared to sit on a white sofa, that sectional is nice though I may have to go that route so I can fit each piece in my doorway

Wish it came in gray....and thanks for the link Rome.
I saw this on Overstock, price of $1300 is pretty reasonable....only issue is that its 140 inches wide

....sofa is huge (unless I am reading it wrong).

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garde...ctional-Sofa-with-Chaise/2241719/product.html

It's a 3.5 seater, I'd ant no more than a 3 seater sofa at most, no wider than 120" (and very sleek not plush so it does not take up a huge amount of space). It'd definitely have to be available in pieces so it can fit in my doorway (door width is 28  3/4" and door to wall is 35  1/2", so its a B)

I have this sofa. Bought it from overstock.com for around $1300. It was a @!#$@ to get in the front door of my apt. but I really do like it. It comfortable and can seats 3 people with 2 of them laying down. I think the Crate and Barrel - Era tables match it well. I want to throw a few more pillows on it eventually. Nice pillows are expensive.

 

 

[scientific method]

Originally Posted by SkunkInDunks

Originally Posted by Mez 0ne

I'd be too scared to sit on a white sofa, that sectional is nice though I may have to go that route so I can fit each piece in my doorway

Wish it came in gray....and thanks for the link Rome.
I saw this on Overstock, price of $1300 is pretty reasonable....only issue is that its 140 inches wide

....sofa is huge (unless I am reading it wrong).

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garde...ctional-Sofa-with-Chaise/2241719/product.html

It's a 3.5 seater, I'd ant no more than a 3 seater sofa at most, no wider than 120" (and very sleek not plush so it does not take up a huge amount of space). It'd definitely have to be available in pieces so it can fit in my doorway (door width is 28  3/4" and door to wall is 35  1/2", so its a B)

I have this sofa. Bought it from overstock.com for around $1300. It was a $%*%+ to get in the front door of my apt. but I really do like it. It comfortable and can seats 3 people with 2 of them laying down. I think the Crate and Barrel - Era tables match it well. I want to throw a few more pillows on it eventually. Nice pillows are expensive.

 

Any chance you can post a pic? I'm wondering about the color because some of the reviews said it was a darker grey

 

[skunkindunks]

That is a picture of my living room. Those overstock pictures show the color well.

 

[scientific method]

Thanks. That looks great. I don't know why the photo wasn't loading for me at first. I think I might buy it unless Big Lots has something better. Let me ask you this though, do you have any hefty friends who constantly sit on it? I like your floors too.

 

[4wrestling]

That sectional looks good. When you said 140 inches, I thought it was going to look massive, but it looks like a perfect size for a sectional in that pic. A few nice throw pillows will definitely liven it up, but like you said, they're not cheap.

 

[lyonbc1]

Thanks guys for the responses....definitely gonna heed your advice about that

 

[1stwitit]

4wrestling, what area of philly do you live in? Me and my lady have been looking into spots in the graduate hospital, bella vista and point breeze area.

 

[4wrestling]

I'm in Northern Liberties, about 3 blocks from The Piazza.

 

[pharelfor3]

I'm kinda Jelly seeing the white couch in person

 

[dakid23]

anybody watch HGTV?

 

[chaostheory]

^ yessir.

HGTV, FOOD, Sports all I watch on tv

 

[ii flash ii]

Just moved into a new place... Coming from a studio basement apartment

I need a new stand that would like nice under my 42 LCD... Any suggestions? My living room/dining room is all mirrored btw...

A good computer desk would be appreciated also...

I just ordered a new sof set from bobs, comes in tomorrow... Then I'll post some pics

 

[scshift]

Originally Posted by 4wrestling

I don't have exact stats, but the south and midwest are going to be your cheapest options (I know this just from watching a ton of House Hunters and Property Virgins 

).  Cali and the North East are way more expensive.  And for the NE, I would say of the major cities, prices probably go in order of NYC ... Boston ... DC ... Philly/Baltimore.

Ah LA and NYC used to be my two dream locations but the cost of living there is ridiculous. I know companies will usually pay you more to account for that but still, like Scientific Method said, I don't want to live in a shoebox of a house

Originally Posted by Scientific Method

You have the right idea, the South is ridiculously cheaper than either coast and up north. Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, OKC, Tulsa, Albequerque, St Louis, Kansas City, etc. Of course, it somewhat evens out in that you make less money generally but it goes further if you understand what I mean. Also, you don't have to live in studio "apartments" that are the size of what we call walk in closets down bottom. Like I said above, I bought a new construction house with a 3 car garage for under $100 sq/ft. It's Elgin though, which is a small rural town 10miles outside of a mid sized Army town (Lawton) with about a 180k population, same house would be about $115-120 a sq/ft in Lawton, in fact my same builder has a neighborhood here in town, and he charges 198k for it here.

There is a Cost of Living Calculator here http://cgi.money.cnn.com/...living/costofliving.html you can use as a reference. Also check out http://www.bestplaces.net/ for some ideas. Austin is a city I have been hearing so much about, particularly being a place for young professionals, that I really want to go check out myself one day. I hear decent things about North Carolina too.

I'm checking that calculator out right now. Right now I'm trying to go to college in Texas, either Austin or Houston, and that is where I'll probably find my job and start living when I graduate.

Texas feels like a great place to live though. Endless heat/sunshine, high speed limits, low property costs, Houston is something I'd really look into after graduation.

 

[1stwitit]

@ 4wrestling...I heard that was a good neighborhood. Good for resale value.

 

[subywill]

SO many amazing places here: http://www.maccollum.com/#/0

 

[keithsweatsjordans]

Anyone ever rock with a loft bed? I'm thinking about doing one for the added space but I don't want it to look kiddy