You would be crazy to pass on getting a house...

Go with something smaller thats NEW in order to limit the maintenance..


the value of the house will appreciate due to the market slump we're in...the value of the car will depreciate...

Well it's hard to find a 650sq ft 1 bedroom house.... but you're right my house now is about 2000sq ft. But most of the costs out here came from the lot and all the extra crap I had to put in to meet code... My lot was 1/3 of my home price, and I spent 1/6 of my home cost on code related upgrades that are not required in Iowa (where I'm from)... Another sixth or so was for neighborhood HOA rules, Upgraded driveway, siding (really really expensive siding), required landscaping. My house would've been cheap as crap if I had built it in rural Iowa, that's for sure!

I would say get the Camaro now for only one reason. After you buy a house you won't have the money to buy a brand new car for A WHILE. As long as your living in an apartment it won't be hard for you to save up more money to put as a down payment for a house.

Simple: Buy house first, make decent down payment and save a couple ground for Camaro. After you close on the house, amend last years tax return to get the $8,000 tax credit early. Use that money and whatever else you have saved as a down payment on the Camaro and voila! :D This is somewhat of what I did, except I didn't realize I could get the tax credit early, so I'll just drop the 8 grand into the principal of the loan and then refinance.

And stay away from HOAs, they are evil!:thumbdown:

In most cases, a home is a good investment (gains value over time) whereas in most cases, vehicles are bad investments (lose value over time). Get the home first...the market is ripe for the picking right now...and with the low prices and huge tax breaks you'll be in good shape in the long run.

Put the car on hold, they will always be available and take advantage of the current housing market. If at all posssible get out of the renting situation. The only thing you're accumulating is rent receipts. It may not be the most popular thing to do but it may be the most practical.

Now is a great time to be a first time buyer, I wish I could jump to a bit better place now.... then again I wish I could just keep a car a long time too, before it turns to a rustcicle.

Had this dellemma in '97, so I was actually needing a car at the time too (too rusty to put $$ into it :() , I picked up a 3 year old Camaro that was looked like it wasn't abused, & bought a small condo... + a cheap 10 year old minivan for winter.

But again I had a pretty decent job at the time, & this was just before the economy soured here in late 2000 (we are used to near 10% unemployment here & has been for a while, so this is nothing new to us).... but I looked lower than my means at the time, glad I did!! :)

I also found that neighbors tend to be abusive to cars in common parking lots too, something to consider.


Yes, a bit of a insurance break, a bit better on gas, & lil easier to work on, I'm glad Chevy went with an entry level option...

Why not consider purchasing one from Avis at a later date.. after the house?

Get the house first. Up to an $8,000 tax credit this year.

If you get the car first, you'll have a harder time getting financing for a house because the auto loan will count against you.

So, I'll throw out a few things for you to consider...

1. Property taxes in Texas suck! Depending on where you buy, expect to pay between 2% and 4% of the value of the house every year in taxes. Buying new? Expect to be closer to the middle to upper end of that spectrum. I live near Houston but in a rural area outside of a subdivision. My tax rate is 2.14% or just over $2400 a year ($200/mo) and I live in a modest $115k house on 1.25 acres.

2. Depending on your income level and the amount you finance to buy a house, the income tax advantages of being able to write off mortgage interest are questionable, at best. I'm married and for the last 2 years, I've barely cleared (less than $500 difference) the standard income tax deduction by itemizing my tax return to be able to count the amount of money I spent on mortgage interest and property taxes. I could rent and pay no mortgage interest and come out about the same when paying income taxes.

3. Housing prices in Texas will never reach the levels seen in the rest of the country. San Antonio and Houston are prime examples of urban sprawl. Rather the containing growth, they'll just build more roads that go farther out from the center of town and then fill in the empty space with more subdivisions filled with affordable new homes (built by inexpensive sub-contractors). All those new homes keep existing home prices down. Don't let people try to scare you into buying now because prices are down. Hell, in Texas, they're always down...It's part of why I left the housing bubble in Seattle a little over 4 years ago. I bought nearly the same thing (age, size, land, build quality) my sister did up there but down here in Texas, I paid less than half of what she did.

4. It's a lot easier to sell your car and break an apartment lease if you get into financial trouble (i.e., lose your job) than it is to sell your house. Sure, your car is a depreciating monster but there is always someone (Carmax) that will buy it from you on short notice. Try that with a house and you'll find it difficult to do. To be able to sell your house, you either have to have enough cash or equity to pay off the mortgage plus pay all the closing costs and realtor fees. If you only pay the scheduled mortgage payment, it takes years to build up enough equity to do that. For example, my affordable $115k house that I bought over 3 and 1/2 years ago has only been paid down $4k on the original loan balance despite monthly payments in the range of $1100-$1200.


Just thought I'd throw that out there for something to think about. If you can get an apartment with a garage, you've got 80% of what you'd have in a house. The only thing missing is long term equity building but you could also do that with a savings or investment account instead.

Lots of good advice above...difficult decision to make responsibly. I lean toward buying the house now in a buyer's market before rates go back up as the economy levels out and (hopefully) improves. I believe that the $8000 tax credit for the first time buyer is good until CLOSING on or before 11/30/09...that might be tuff to do if your starting a house search just now, but not impossible with good rating and capital in the bank. Good luck!!:thumbup:

The #1 priority for anyone should be owning the roof over your head. Sorry but I think anyone who buys a car before a house is a fool. Cars are not investments except for maybe just a few exotic exceptions which if you could afford one of those you would not be asking this question because you would already have a house.

When you rent you pay someone else mortgage. When you buy your paying into your own equity.

Not necessrily true. Condos are easier to sell than co-ops, especially if they are in a desirable complex. Co-ops are cheaper to buy, but you don't own anything but shares and the monthly maintenance charges are usually very high. In a condo, you own the inside of the unit.

A condo in a well maintained complex is a great starter home, especially for a single person. The mowing and landscaping is all taken care of, as well as the building maintenance and any plumbing and electrical inside the walls.

well around here for $50k you can buy a decent starter home(2-3 bedroom/1-2bath)

look around your area at home prices.


however, i still live with my mom because she would not be able to pay all bills herself after my father dieing. i've also started putting money into the house and garage, so i dont know if i'll want to leave. plus the garage is really nice.


i thought about it this way, buy camaro while still living with my mom, get it paid off along with a few of her bills and then move out. that way i'll have my camaro and plenty of time to find a house (if i decide to move out)