Another first-time home buyers question regarding commute to work

[Injury]

I grew up living about 45 minutes away from my nearest relatives. It sucked to only see some family members once or twice a year and we would always have to leave parties early to compensate for driving time.

If you care about your family, stay close to them.

If you are determined enough to find a cheaper house then with a little extra time and patience you might be able to find one. Maybe compromise a bit and move 10-15 minutes away from all the shopping centers and such.

The reason home are so much cheaper when you move further away is that you are sacrificing all the benefits you already listed in your post. When you find the middle ground you'll find the house that both of you want.


Long commutes are hell. It slowly steals your soul and gives you way too much time to dwell on the bad things that may have happened at work or the fact that you could have slept for another half hour if you lived closer.

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: Common Courtesy
Do not count on Grandparents as a permanent babysitter.

We raised you, we do not want/need to raise your children.

We want to spoil them and return them.

Heh.

They may say it now that they want to watch, but they have been so far removed from babies that the novelty of having one clouds their vision of the work invovled caring for one. If you get a day or two of care from grandparents, then you are doing good. But don't count on them bailing you out once that baby is born.

Most daycares don't offer much of a break on 4 day a week care. For us, 5 days a week is $260. 4 days a week was like $235. 3 days dropped to around $200. That's still $800 a month.

 

[preslove]

You do realize that there is a very good reason why the McMansions out there are so cheap, don't you?

 

[Svnla]

60 x 2 = 120 miles per day

120 x 5 = 600 miles per week

600 x 50 <say you take 2 weeks vacation per year> = 30,000 per year and double that because both of you commute to work.

Gas price won't be any cheaper plus the commute time. You will be on the road at LEAST 2+ hours per day. I don't know about you but I can't do that for years.

Not only the gas price but the wear and tear on your vehicles and body/mind.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: preslove
You do realize that there is a very good reason why the McMansions out there are so cheap, don't you?

Yes, because they're not located in Howard County. The same McMansion's in this area are priced at $700K+

 

[skrilla]

Listen to the wife on this one.

I just sold my townhome with a 45min-hour one way commute. I felt drained every day from sitting in traffic and that took up a ton of time when I could have been doing something else. It was fine for the first few months, but it really gets to you after a while.

 

[preslove]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: preslove
You do realize that there is a very good reason why the McMansions out there are so cheap, don't you?

Yes, because they're not located in Howard County. The same McMansion's in this area are priced at $700K+

No, because they were built during the housing boom and can't be sold.

srsly, read this article. Buying a huge house in the country is just about the worst decision you could make, both financially (read the article) and emotionally(read the replies in this thread).

Listen to your wife, ya moran.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: preslove

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: preslove
You do realize that there is a very good reason why the McMansions out there are so cheap, don't you?

Yes, because they're not located in Howard County. The same McMansion's in this area are priced at $700K+

No, because they were built during the housing boom and can't be sold.

srsly, read this article. Buying a huge house in the country is just about the worst decision you could make, both financially (read the article) and emotionally(read the replies in this thread).

Listen to your wife, ya moran.

I'll read the article.

I'm not sure I'll let the fiancee see this thread. She might never listen to anything I say ever again

 

[rivan]

As others have mentioned, 2 hours in the car is a burden, and so is gas. If you're going to have kids, don't underestimate the savings on cost of daycare family nearby can provide (I'll shelling out $24k for daycare this year, May '08-May'09) and the huge boon good schools are.

I faced the same questions a couple years ago when we bought our new place; we bought the more-expensive, smaller house and couldn't be happier not for it. Excellent schools for my daughter starting next year, easy commute, great neighbors.

 

[timswim78]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
I can't come to terms with spending $360K+ on a small 1700 sq-ft house just to live in this area when we could buy a 2700sq-ft house an hour away for $50k-$100k less.

A McMansion for $260K - $310K? Where are you looking, and where in Maryland do you currently live?

 

[mugs]

Wife wins this one. I went from a 75 mile commute to a 4 mile commute, and I would never go back. Plus having family nearby is great.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: timswim78

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
I can't come to terms with spending $360K+ on a small 1700 sq-ft house just to live in this area when we could buy a 2700sq-ft house an hour away for $50k-$100k less.

A McMansion for $260K - $310K? Where are you looking, and where in Maryland do you currently live?

We live in Howard County. Specifically, we are looking to buy a house in Columbia or Ellicott City. The area I am referring to is York, PA and the surrounding cities.

 

[timswim78]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: timswim78

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
I can't come to terms with spending $360K+ on a small 1700 sq-ft house just to live in this area when we could buy a 2700sq-ft house an hour away for $50k-$100k less.

A McMansion for $260K - $310K? Where are you looking, and where in Maryland do you currently live?

We live in Howard County. Specifically, we are looking to buy a house in Columbia or Ellicott City. The area I am referring to is York, PA and the surrounding cities.

Wow, you are right down the road from me.
You may want to take a detailed look into the tax rates in PA as you make your home-purchasing decision.

 

[BassBomb]

Originally posted by: Injury
I grew up living about 45 minutes away from my nearest relatives. It sucked to only see some family members once or twice a year and we would always have to leave parties early to compensate for driving time.

If you care about your family, stay close to them.

45 minutes and you only saw people once a year? My cousins all live within 45 minutes of me and I see them probably twice a month.

 

[Aharami]

get the closer place. trust me, long commutes suck. My commute is 35 mile each way which takes me around 1 hr each way. I only go into work 3 days a week, so that's a bit of relief, but it still sucks hairy donkey balls driving for such a long time.

 

[LeadMagnet]

Originally posted by: BassBomb

Originally posted by: Injury
I grew up living about 45 minutes away from my nearest relatives. It sucked to only see some family members once or twice a year and we would always have to leave parties early to compensate for driving time.

If you care about your family, stay close to them.

45 minutes and you only saw people once a year? My cousins all live within 45 minutes of me and I see them probably twice a month.

In Rhode Island a 45min drive means staying overnight!

 

[Dirigible]

I'll pile on and agree with your wife too.

Long commutes suck.

Having family and friends nearby is really really nice and makes life easier and more pleasant.

1700 square feet is not small. I live in a 1200 square foot house with my wife and son and it's plenty big. We'll live here when kid #2 arrives too. People's perception of what is "small" has gotten out of whack over the years.

 

[Injury]

Originally posted by: BassBomb

Originally posted by: Injury
I grew up living about 45 minutes away from my nearest relatives. It sucked to only see some family members once or twice a year and we would always have to leave parties early to compensate for driving time.

If you care about your family, stay close to them.

45 minutes and you only saw people once a year? My cousins all live within 45 minutes of me and I see them probably twice a month.

Then consider yourself luckier than me.

Both of my parents have full-time jobs. My mom worked somewhat odd hours - She's a veterinary assistant, she has some days off, but then she works 8a-8p other days and every other Saturday. My dad had a 45 minute each way commute to begin with, so the last thing he wanted to do on the weekends was hop in the car and drive. My family got together for most holidays, but you have to consider that sometimes we'd be going to an event with my mom's side of the family, sometimes with my dad's side... and all of my cousins were the same way.

Now I live close enough that when they decide to go to a bar or get pizza and watch a movie, I'm right there with them.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Originally posted by: LeadMagnet
In Rhode Island a 45min drive means staying overnight!

That's because people in Rhode Island want of feel like a big state. Because there, a 45 minute drive can take you across the state, a 46 minute drive requires crossing a border.

<-- still is clueless how Massachusetts hasn't absorbed Connecticut and Rhode Island.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth

Originally posted by: LeadMagnet
In Rhode Island a 45min drive means staying overnight!

That's because people in Rhode Island want of feel like a big state. Because there, a 45 minute drive can take you across the state, a 46 minute drive requires crossing a border.

<-- still is clueless how Massachusetts hasn't absorbed Connecticut and Rhode Island.

We do not want those states...infact, we would rather take NH....then again...that would mean no more tax free shopping.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Originally posted by: Gibson486

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth

Originally posted by: LeadMagnet
In Rhode Island a 45min drive means staying overnight!

That's because people in Rhode Island want of feel like a big state. Because there, a 45 minute drive can take you across the state, a 46 minute drive requires crossing a border.

<-- still is clueless how Massachusetts hasn't absorbed Connecticut and Rhode Island.

We do not want those states...infact, we would rather take NH....then again...that would mean no more tax free shopping.

New Hampshire is like the Oregon of the east and New Jersey is like the Nevada of the east.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: preslove

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: preslove
You do realize that there is a very good reason why the McMansions out there are so cheap, don't you?

Yes, because they're not located in Howard County. The same McMansion's in this area are priced at $700K+

No, because they were built during the housing boom and can't be sold.

srsly, read this article. Buying a huge house in the country is just about the worst decision you could make, both financially (read the article) and emotionally(read the replies in this thread).

Listen to your wife, ya moran.

I'll read the article.

I'm not sure I'll let the fiancee see this thread. She might never listen to anything I say ever again

You act like you had a vote in the first place. You don't.

 

[ShockwaveVT]

Where the only strike against long commutes used to be time, now there are 2 strikes: time & money.

I've had commutes ranging from 80min to 5 min and I've found that anything over ~30min pretty much sucks. 30min to work, 8 hoursof work + 30min for lunch, 30min drive home and bam you're pushing 10 hours away from the house. Factor 7-8 hours for sleep, and an hour in the morning to get ready for the day and you're left with a whopping 5 hours to do something fun in the evening. Increase your commute by an hour on each end and that 5 hours is cut to 3 hours, either because you go to bed earlier or get home later.

What good is more space when you've got no time to enjoy it?

And with gas prices at $4+ you're looking at $32 a day minimum just for you & your wife to get to and from work.

 

[MadPeriot]

I haven't read other people's respond to your question. But I was in the same situation as you are now. Trust me, location is everything when you purchase a home. I moved an hour away from literally everything (friends, family, work, regular hangouts) to have a bigger place for cheaper price. The place is nice if my lifestyle is around the area, but because of the drive I sacrificed a lot of my daily routines and more time on the road. I avoid going to places just because its too far for me. 1700sqft for 360k-400k is cheap compare to where I live. 1700sqft will cost us SoCal 600k. Again, location, location, location (if you can afford it that is).

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I agree wtih shockwave. My toelrance is about 30 minutes one way. From driveway to parking lot. I am willing to move slightly farther away though. The reason being I had a wonderful childhood and in part because I had a nice yard and area to play in. This =time is for my children, not me so if it takes 5 more minutes, so be it. Besides, that extra 5-10 minutes would double my acreage and drop the cost of home ownership by about 20%.