Buying a house and attending school

Pete495 · Apr 1, 2005

Althought I can't give you much information, I too have contemplated buying a house instead of renting. I will have a somewhat steady income as I go through school, but I worry about the cost of maintaining it if anything happened. Lord knows I would not be able to spend a lot of upkeep time or afford many repairs while going through school. Also, many people tell me that you need to own a home for at least 3-5 years before you can actually make a profit on it. Between that and needing to put money into it, I'm not sure this is feasible.

Since you are married, I wouldn't think having a mortgage would affect your student loans much, assuming you have good credit.

I have been looking at Rental complexes around the area where I will be attending school, and some of them have so many units in the complexes that I seriously question their reliability. I've looked at apartmentratings.com, and they don't have many positive remarks. Renting an apartment at one of these places is basically a crap shoot. You eitherget a great apartment with all the fixings, or one infested with cockroaches and noisy neighbors with domestic disputes every night. My fear of buying a house, however is being in debt up to my ears, but at least like you said, there's the potential to get something out of it. It's just very risky.

Maybe there is somebody else on this board who bought a house before attending school.

TraumaNurse · Apr 1, 2005

Personally, I think if you can get approved for the mortgage before you start school, buying a house is a good idea (As long as you don't get over your head with too bid a mortgage!). I was in a similar situation (supported by wifey-poo) and we bought our current house a few months prior to school. We are paying the same amount or less than what we would have in rent but we get the tax benefits and are making a sound investment.

If you are buying in an area with decent home appreciation, you could even turn a nice profit after owning your house for 3 years. On the flip side, if you are in an area of poor appreciation and are planning on moving again in 3 years, then investing into a house may not be a good idea.

Buying the new house did not affect my ability to get all the student aid I need in the least. If your credit scores are good, you will be fine. I even re-financed my house during school (while we were on 1 income only) and saved a bunch of cash every month. Owning your house does add some extra upkeep such as lawn maintenance, leaf raking, gardening, repairs etc that can be costly and time consuming (Not always good during CRNA school).

That said, I am just finishing a complete remodel of my kitchen (Including new walls, windows and cabinets). I have been doing the work myself but it is tough to balance renovation, study, clinical, class, and family time. The renovation has been a nice reprive from the constant pressure of school.

Look at your situation and decide what works best for you. For me, I would not have done it differently. Good luck.

Lawnurse · Apr 1, 2005

Is the rate on the educational loans lower than the mortage rate?

I have to start paying back my school loans in about 8 months. While its tempting to want to pay those down as fast as possible, they are REALLY low interest loans, so instead of paying them faster than required, I'm going to save money to buy a house in 2-3 years.

TexasCCRN · Apr 1, 2005

What are the best interest rates you all have seen so far for loans?

heartICU · Apr 5, 2005

Just wanted to give my input on the housebuying issue....let me give you a sample of the timeline I had.

I graduated undergrad with my BSN in May 2003, and began looking for a house in Nov 2003. I found one and bought it in Dec 2003, and also found out that I got into CRNA school for the following fall (Aug 2004). I thought I would be able to swing it, and financially I could, but timewise...that was the issue. I have only been in school for 7 months, and I have discovered that I simply do not have the time for a house. I don't have time to shovel the snow in the winter, mow the grass in the summer, or find a repairman to fix my furnace if it would break. I ended up buying a condo six months after I moved into my house, and put my house up for sale. I am MUCH happier in the condo...easier to keep clean, and no yardwork or snow shoveling! And the price was about the same.

For the right person (or family) buying a house might be the right option. For me, I just didn't have the time. However, after you get out of school and begin to make quite a bit more than you did, remember....you may start wanting a bigger house. It might make sense to get a cheap apartment for a few years and save the money you would be spending on the house for a downpayment on your dream house. You really won't gain that much equity in the 2-3 years you will be in school...just something to consider. Good luck!

UCDSICURN · Apr 5, 2005

You really won't gain that much equity in the 2-3 years you will be in school

That all depends where he lives. Two to three years where i live is a lot of money seeing our home prices are going up about 15 percent per year, and that's conservative.

Jess RN · Apr 5, 2005

You really won't gain that much equity in the 2-3 years you will be in school

That all depends where he lives. Two to three years where i live is a lot of money seeing our home prices are going up about 15 percent per year, and that's conservative.

True- do your research. We bought our house in '02 and (based on the seeling price of similar homes on the market now) it would sell for about 20% more than we paid for it. I'd say it was pretty rare to not at least have your property appreicate to the point where it "paid you" for living there for a few years. And then that's MUCH better than throwing that same money away in rent. I also agree that you should look into condos. A house is a LOT of work!

-Jess

Trauma1 · Apr 5, 2005

I have been accepted to school, and was in the town I will be living. My wife and I were looking at houses to rent, and decided we would rather buy a house, considering rent and a mortgage are the same cost. Besides, to me it only makes sense to come out with something instead of throwing that money away. My wife will be the main source of income for us, along with the Montgomery GI Bill and of course loans. Has anyone done this? Is it a good idea or a bad idea? The way I see it, I will have this cost one way or another. Will having a mortgage affect my ability to get student loans? I have known several residents that buy houses while attending medical school, and having very little income except student loans. Any information or advice will be much appreciated.

My husband is graduating from pharmacy school this May and I was the primary source of income while he was in school. We decided to buy a house and now I will be entering nurse anesthesia school in August. I think that buying a house is a good investment. Depending where you buy, the house can appreciate value pretty quickly. We built a town house (found the community while it was being built) so we were able to choose all of the features. We also don't have to worry about yard work which can be time consuming and expensive. Hope this helps!

DSAC · Apr 5, 2005

Let me give a little more information about my situation. I was accepted to TWU and will be living in Fort Worth, TX. My wife and I were in Fort Worth last week, looking for a place to live. As I said before, we were not going there with the intention of buying, however the more we thought about it, the more it made sense. We found a newly built house in an up and coming community (new neighborhood development). There are only a few houses presently built, but more presently being built. There are 3-4 new subdivisions being built in the area, so I have to believe that the house will appreciate. My main concern has to do with being able to receive supplemental loans while in school. My wife's income and my GI Bill will be enough to get by, but leaving no room for anything. Thoughts and comments are appreciated. Thanks.

Jess RN · Apr 5, 2005

Let me give a little more information about my situation. I was accepted to TWU and will be living in Fort Worth, TX. My wife and I were in Fort Worth last week, looking for a place to live. As I said before, we were not going there with the intention of buying, however the more we thought about it, the more it made sense. We found a newly built house in an up and coming community (new neighborhood development). There are only a few houses presently built, but more presently being built. There are 3-4 new subdivisions being built in the area, so I have to believe that the house will appreciate. My main concern has to do with being able to receive supplemental loans while in school. My wife's income and my GI Bill will be enough to get by, but leaving no room for anything. Thoughts and comments are appreciated. Thanks.

I think anyone can get an unsubsidized stafford loan- regardless of income or assets. I don't know 100% for sure because I havent done my FAFSA yet (I start in the fall). Does anyone else know if this is true?

-Jess

lifeLONGstudent · Apr 5, 2005

A house can be a great investment, but it can also be a tremendous liability. I tend to be more conservative with money and I just think that "what if" you got into a house and later discovered that you really needed to sell it. ... It could take months to a year to sell and what if you cannot finance everything during that time. At least with rental property, you can get out from under it more easily than if you are buying it. Also, I cringe to think about forclosure stuff being on your records.

We drove around TWU this weekend. They are building new apartments/condos right next to the anesthesia building on campus. What are those? I know that TWU is in the hood, and I would understand why you would NOT want to move there, but those apartments might have some good points to consider: close to class (I am thinking about hitting the :sleep: snooze button rather than sitting in traffic :yeah: ), no commute, no parking issues, relatively inexpensive, no maintance, and they are NEW... Also, if your house needs repairs, it is somone else's headache if you are renting and this stress is something you don't need in NA school (whether you fix it, your spouse fixes it, or you pay to have someone come fix it, IT is still stress on you and your family).

Good luck with whatever you decide,

lifeLONGstudent

-- and for whoever asked about interest rates on school loans: all of the low interest loans are around 5% (stafford, perkins, etc). When you talk to banks about alternative school loans, they are quotting anywhere from "prime -0.5%" to "prime +5.0%"..meaning it could be as high as about 10%, depending on your credit. When we bought our house, our interest rate was right under 6%, but I think they have gone up a little since then.

If you already own a home and have equity, you can get a home equity loan sent to you (banks send school loans to your school and you draft out of your account for living expenses). Personally, this is my last resort. I would borrow against my 401K and pay back the interest to myself before I put my home on the line.

:idea: We are going to see a financial planner this week and have him double check our plans.... this issue is weighing heavy on me right now :bugeyes: . The above 'opinions' may be enlightened after our meeting, so read them with a grain of salt. Again, good luck to you.