Home Buying & Real Estate Thread

[ballinsam23]

If you’re buying a house in NY, it better have a full basement

 

[yogetoffmykickz]

If you are paying PMI and have more than 20% equity, you probably want to refinance immediately. Call your lender or shop around.

You will probably want to calculate what you are paying in PMI vs. what increased rate would cost.

/\ what he said.

The PMI will 100% be more costly than half a pt though, with very few exceptions

Thanks for the replies fellas ..

My PMI is about $170/month...

My current rate it 2.875%

After running some rough number through some different lending websites, it estimates that with my current "fair" credit(took a big hit down from 740 after losing income to take care of my sick old man) I'm looking at a 4-4.5%

Might just have to ride the PMI untili can stabilize both my income and credit again... Hopefully rates are lower then...

 

[dmbrhs]

But do y’all use basements like they do in NJ and stuff? Them mf’s got bedrooms, living rooms, all sorts of set ups in their basements.

Yep. Every basement around here has living areas. When it gets unusually hot in the summer, people talk about sleeping in the basement. Nobody has AC here, so you gotta go underground to stay cool.

 

[spizike231]

Yep. Every basement around here has living areas. When it gets unusually hot in the summer, people talk about sleeping in the basement. Nobody has AC here, so you gotta go underground to stay cool.

Man.. best of luck with that to those that gotta deal with it.

Hits 115 here in NorCal sometimes and I be runnin my AC at 72.. my master bed is the coldest room in the house. I think mid summer that room sits around 68 degrees as the rest of the house is 72.

 

[fluid hips]

I'm spending 75000 to finish my basement


It's gonna look nice though but damn.

75k is robbery in broad daylight without a mask or gun

 

[deusavertat]

75k is robbery in broad daylight without a mask or gun

Peace of mind, great reputation, great reviews, safety, and a lifetime warranty is what I'm paying for. This is a new build I don't want shoddy work being done on it.

I'm starting with 40 grand to do everything but the bathroom and a bedroom. Dry wall, carpeting, electrical, the ceiling, covering up random things, storage and lighting will be all done. I'll figure the rest out later.

 

[nachobroadweezy]

Peace of mind, great reputation, great reviews, safety, and a lifetime warranty is what I'm paying for. This is a new build I don't want shoddy work being done on it.

I'm starting with 40 grand to do everything but the bathroom and a bedroom. Dry wall, carpeting, electrical, the ceiling, covering up random things, storage and lighting will be all done. I'll figure the rest out later.

sump pump?

 

[deusavertat]

sump pump?

I think my basement came with one even though I am a really low flood risk.

 

[solewoman]

We’re still shopping around to get our basement done. Last quoted 40k for about 1400 sqft. Still think that’s a little high for mainly open space and one room already framed out. Any recs in dmv please shoot ‘em.

We don’t even want anything extravagant.

 

[jewseejay]

Thanks for the replies fellas ..

My PMI is about $170/month...

My current rate it 2.875%

After running some rough number through some different lending websites, it estimates that with my current "fair" credit(took a big hit down from 740 after losing income to take care of my sick old man) I'm looking at a 4-4.5%

Might just have to ride the PMI untili can stabilize both my income and credit again... Hopefully rates are lower then...

Head up champ. Dont feel penalized cuz you got a phenomenal initial rate.

Id check with someone in the industry but im fairly certain you can pay for an independent appraisal and if it comes out right have them remove the PMI. If not now it wont be long before it might be worth risking the cpl hundred bucks thatd cost.

 

[spizike231]

I was told that I can’t remove my PMI unless my valuation is higher due to things we’ve added to the house. Not due to market and a new appraisal.

 

[jewseejay]

I dont understand that... you made upgrades to the home, theoretically that should raise the value not lower it. I know wells fargo has a tool you can request cancellation of PMI on the website but they also send you hella reminders when you "should" hit the threshold. I put enough down to not have it but they still send the automated junk.

 

[spizike231]

I dont understand that... you made upgrades to the home, theoretically that should raise the value not lower it. I know wells fargo has a tool you can request cancellation of PMI on the website but they also send you hella reminders when you "should" hit the threshold. I put enough down to not have it but they still send the automated junk.

Sorry my message came off wrong.

I thought I could get a new appraisal at the market value and remove PMI.. refinance and yada yada.

WF said no because they would only increase the value of the home if we added things like a pool or additional rooms or something.

 

[glasses]

Yea the guy at quicken loans said my credit was A1 he was going remove it to help me out with my payment . Ive never paid pmi.

That’s Lender paid PMI. He gave you a higher interest rate than you actually qualified for. If that’s a 30 year mortgage, you’ll want to refi when the rates drop again because you’re paying more interest than you should. LPMI is good if you’re only going to be in the mortgage short term.

 

[s0lefunk]

Sorry my message came off wrong.

I thought I could get a new appraisal at the market value and remove PMI.. refinance and yada yada.

WF said no because they would only increase the value of the home if we added things like a pool or additional rooms or something.

That still doesn’t sound right. Appraisals are done by an independent third party, no? Your mortgage company shouldn’t have any influence on what your home is valued at. The market dictates that period. They do, however, control the refinancing aspect of it and you can definitely look elsewhere.

But also keep in mind your property taxes will likely increase as your home increases in value. Any savings from removing PMI might be short lived due to higher property taxes. Just something to keep in mind.

 

[sneakaprince]

The city appraisals are different from 3rd party appraisals. The city really doesn't have to know what you refinanced for.

 

[townbidness]

That’s Lender paid PMI. He gave you a higher interest rate than you actually qualified for. If that’s a 30 year mortgage, you’ll want to refi when the rates drop again because you’re paying more interest than you should. LPMI is good if you’re only going to be in the mortgage short term.

This was back in August 2017 in california , i got a 4.125% 30 yr loan. That was pretty normal rate at the time.
I refinanced in 2020 and got a 2.875% now at 30yrs again.

 

[sneakaprince]

Happy for all you refi'd bros.

I actually had some trouble with refi'ing last year. I was able to get my PMI dropped but I wasn't able to get the HELOC I'd hoped for.

Had 2 different appraisals come back lower than they should've. It ran me about 1k out of pocket and I said eff it...

 

[thenewjs23]

Peace of mind, great reputation, great reviews, safety, and a lifetime warranty is what I'm paying for. This is a new build I don't want shoddy work being done on it.

I'm starting with 40 grand to do everything but the bathroom and a bedroom. Dry wall, carpeting, electrical, the ceiling, covering up random things, storage and lighting will be all done. I'll figure the rest out later.

Question, are they doing anything the involves having to break the concrete floors in the basement (ie plumbing and/or digging down and pouring a new floor) and what’s the sq ft of the basement?

 

[deusavertat]

Question, are they doing anything the involves having to break the concrete floors in the basement (ie plumbing and/or digging down and pouring a new floor) and what’s the sq ft of the basement?

850 square feet. They aren't doing anything like that to my knowledge. They are doing some weird stuff with the ventilation system though and fire/water proofing it. Not sure what that entails. They are giving me a 3D model of what it should look like this week.

 

[Nereyda Vuelve Por Dios]

Yoo i need a legit, knowledgeable, and a negotiable structural engineer who can level out my floor in the tristate area. Im located in westchester county.

Based on youtube, my situation seems quick and simple. Its literally just replacing/reinforcing a terribly placed beam that sticks up on the first floor causing the side of it to still drop down.

 

[pdino]

Yoo i need a legit, knowledgeable, and a negotiable structural engineer who can level out my floor in the tristate area. Im located in westchester county.

Based on youtube, my situation seems quick and simple. Its literally just replacing/reinforcing a terribly placed beam that sticks up on the first floor causing the side of it to still drop down.

I got my architect on Fiverr.com for relatively cheap.

 

[HarlemShakeStory]

You do not need to ”add stuff” for appraisal to go up. As previous posters mentioned - the market dictates value. Look for comps on Zillow (both for sale and sold) to get a good idea.

 

[deusavertat]

I just talked to the basement project company. The carpet they are laying down is water damage resistant. They put extra layers of foam and other materials below it. I was a little concerned about that but like I said I don't live in a flood area.

 

[lovehateself]

I just talked to the basement project company. The carpet they are laying down is water damage resistant. They put extra layers of foam and other materials below it. I was a little concerned about that but like I said I don't live in a flood area.

did they also say the words " rust proofing"