Clarence

Thanks for all the input. Turns out we are staying in Denver. Company though it was a better financial move to relocate people to this market and not in CA. - Sat May 3 2008, 07:09

Presently we have a house to sell in Denver. Very nice area, still rising prices, however the sale times are higher than we would like. We are not buying until we have a contract here, at which point we have an equity pay-out.

The relo company will pay a point on the loan, all costs associated with mortgage insurance, taxes, fees etc. They pay all the selling costs here.

Our loan philosophy is take the lowest interest rate (on any type of loan, so far that has been 5 year arms), pay it down at a 15 year rate. Our next move will most likely be to a lower cost of living area and we have the best chance of owning the home outright then.

It looks like Marin may be too far commuting for the job in Concord or Oakland Airport. We have gotten used to being relatively close to work. Hour commutes are not very attractive. What would that be like from Marin? - Thu Sep 6 2007, 07:03

We have gone over the numbers for buying and renting (tax credits, etc). In a 0 gain market it looks like a $14k advantage to buy- over a 2 year period. Our main concern is with the market turmoil, what is our risk? It seems in the current market a $14k (or more) loss on a home is very possible, if we have to sell because of another relocation. We wouldn't have the option to wait until the market turned better. Our goal is to minimize the risk of a loss (after tax advantages etc).

Also, we will not buy unless we have a 15 year mortgage. We have a life goal that won't be changed due to a relocation. We would buy less house, of superior quality to meet this goal.

I appreciate the input on buying in the right areas. We have both benefited and been burned on this approach. What areas are suggested as "good" areas? I have researched the months of inventory and judge that lower inventory areas are safer areas for a purchase. We are looking at Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hills, Clayton, Lafayette, Alamo, Danville and Martinez. Job is in northern Concord near Hwy 4. Which areas are best? Which areas are we missing? We do have 3 children and always buy in the best school districts for resale value.

Again, the input has been very helpful so far! Keep it coming!

C - Wed Sep 5 2007, 18:27

A little more info I can give is yes, we are looking at SFR. Yes, we will have 20%+ down payment, the relo company will pay 1 point, though they have 3 nationally know major lenders we work through. We can negotiate a loss make up- although in our last situation, the total dollar amount they contributed was limited.

I have found a number of rentals that are over 3000sf, in the 3k-4k/month that would meet our needs.

Our history of relocations (this would be #6) has put us in place for about 2 years. I really think 3 would be a stretch.

Thanks for the input so far! - Wed Sep 5 2007, 15:15