Buy a house in the US

[paula]

My husband and I are looking for house in Fort Worth TX now. I am suprised to find some many houses there, but most of them are old houses. In China people love to buy new appartments as used-appartments will involved a lot problems. I know guys in CFL are very nice and helpful. Can anyone tell me how to chose a house? or someone has house in fort worth to sell??

 

Thanks very much

[jemmyell]

Hello,

 

Just because a house is new in the USA is no guarantee it will not have problems. What you should do is decide how much you can reasonably afford to pay. Then make a satisfactory full inspection by a licensed home inspector a condition of any escrow you enter into. If you can afford a new home, go for it. If not, most first-time buyers that have not inherited a LARGE sum of money will buy an existing home.

 

-James

[Guest ShaQuaNew]

James makes a very good recommendation for using a licensed home inspector. After finding a home that you're interested, you can then hire an inspector for a fee, which is dependent upon the value of the home, but usually runs between $400.00 - $800.00. A good inspector will check everything in the home to ensure it is working properly, and complies with local codes. Anything that is lacking or needing repair, will be cited in their report.

 

After you receive the report, you can then have the most important tool for negotiating price. Buying a home is a very complicated process. Many times buying a new home can present more problems than an older one.

[frank1538]

Jingwen had a real preference for a new house, but often location is more important and the location may have already been developed. We ended up buying a 15 year old house, although Jingwen thought it was much newer.

 

The old vs. new appears to be a cultural bias, but even an older home can be like new with just a little effort.

 

jemmyell's advice about inspecting is very good. Also, there are home warranties out there that might cover repairs to existing mechanicals, etc. Just ask the owner or the real estate agent to provide it.

[jemmyell]

BTW, I have already agreed that when Loving Candle and I buy our China home in the town where her family is, that it will be new...

 

-James

[warpedbored]

The quality of the craftsmenship is very different now than many old houses. Go around and look at some old victorian houses and notice the attention to detail that went into houses then. Most of today's carpenters are pretty much production workers. On the flip side there are a lot of new engineered building materials available today that are superior to what they had to work with then. Even a new house should be inspected and it is somtimes difficult to get builders to stand behind their product. Only buy a new home that was built by a reputable contractor.

[jim_julian]

Paula, let's make it simple ... buying a house that is not new is quite normal in America.

 

If you are worried get the inspection that the guys have talked about. I have owned many houses in America, never had a problem, and never bought a new house.

[Guest ShaQuaNew]

Here's a creative way to buy a house....

 

http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/04/1...e.ap/index.html

[skibum]

As Frank said - location is important. It is wise to buy a house here as it usually increases in value and is a hedge agains inflation.

[tonado]

http://www.ourfamilyplace.com/homebuyer/checklist.html

[tonado]

http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/Weber5.html

 

How to Buy a House with Good Feng Shui - By Kathryn Weber

 

How to Buy a House with Good Feng Shui

Your surroundings can have a huge impact on your life – to the point of affecting your personal happiness, your prosperity, even the opportunities that come to you in your life — thus making your choice of home a very important one. Because most of the important moments in our lives occur in our houses, the house itself becomes more than just four walls where we eat and sleep. That’s why careful consideration is called for if you are thinking about purchasing another home.

 

So what do you look for when you are considering purchasing a new home? It comes down to two things: the tangible and the intangible. The tangible items include price, location, size, and condition. The intangible includes considerations such as location on a street, how the home is situated on the lot, its relationship to other buildings or homes, how the home flows inside, and situations such as whether the former occupants were ill, in financial trouble, etc.

 

These are the types of considerations that are taken into account when you want to assess the feng shui of a home. Of course, these are not all of the elements that make up a home with good feng shui, but these are some of the important considerations. Hopefully, this will serve as a guide for helping you select a home that is right for you and your family.

 

1. Buy a new house or “successful” house. A new home does not have a history, making these the optimal choice. However, if you are looking at a preowned home, buy one from someone who is moving into a bigger house, got a huge promotion and is moving, or has won the lottery and is buying a villa in Tuscany. Then, you are buying into good feng shui and positive energy.

 

Houses that are for sale from a divorce, a foreclosure, or where there is a serious illness, or other affliction are not the best choice. To purchase a home such as this can mean that you are buying those problems too. How so? The house might be the problem. Or, there might be a landscape or topographical element causing the difficulty. It’s best to avoid these kinds of homes.

 

2. Buy high or level ground. Houses that are situated on the side of a hill or where the back slopes away from the house are “losing ground.” Better also to buy a house where the lot is wider at the back than the front. Also, try to buy a regular-shaped lot. Square or rectangle shaped lots are especially good.

 

3. The inside story. Make sure bedrooms are not over a garage, kitchen, laundry room, or open space below. Also be sure there are no bathrooms over a dining area or kitchen. This can cause illness in the house. Look at the arrangement of bedrooms to bathrooms so that beds won’t share a common wall with a toilet.

 

4. Get support. It's best for land to either be level or have a rise at the back of the house. Land that falls away at the back of the house creates loss and difficulties getting recognition and promotion. If the house has a building or a hill at its back, then it is supported.

 

5. Open up. If the house faces open land or has a wide, open area in front of it, then it has the “bright hall effect.” This is extremely auspicious. Think of the White House in Washington with the large expanse of lawn in the front or the front of the grand Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina.

 

Make sure the house is not overwhelmed by landscaping. If there is a tree too close to the house, especially if it is in line with the front door, this is not good and will prevent opportunities for the homeowner. Consider removing the tree. Likewise, if plants and shrubs look like they’re taking over the house (either planted too closely or growing on the walls), consider removing these as well and replanting elsewhere. A house should not be smothered by the landscaping.

 

6. Look both ways before buying. What’s to the right and left of the house? Is there a house or building that seems to impose itself on this house? If the house or the land on your left is higher, this is good, as it is tapping the dragon energy. It is even more fortunate if the house to your left (as you look out of the house) is in the East. Is there a house with a pointed roof, a corner of the home pointed at your front door, etc., or aimed at the house?

 

Be sure to look at the approach to the house. Is it in a cul-de-sac? If the road ends at a straight line to the house, this is not good. Also, houses with a road behind and in front of the house suffer, and corrections can’t be made for these. Long straight driveways that end at the house, or roads that stop at the house, are another problem, but can be corrected with plants or mirrors.

 

7. What’s the situation? The house should be situated on the lot correctly, which means it should not be set back behind the half-way line of the lot. It is better to sit a little forward in the lot than too far back.

 

8. What is in the Southwest and Northwest? These are the two most important directions in a home. The Northwest should never have an open flame, such as from a gas stove or fireplace. If there is one there, move on to another house. This is feng shui taboo. To have a home such as this is to invite severe difficulties for the man of the house.

 

Also, look at the SW; this is the position of the woman or mother of the house. If there is a storeroom or bathroom located here, there could be marital difficulties and unhappiness. Consult with a feng shui practitioner about this if you just love the house, but it has trouble in the SW corner.

 

Good luck with the purchase of your new home!

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

My advice:

 

Check your neighborhood - How are their yard? Nice grass or dirty yard.

Don't buy near schools or churches? Can get heavy traffic on certain time.

Don't buy on busy streets.

Don't buy near factory plants - hazard material and chemicals.

Don't buy near rivers - flood zone

[Randy W]

To find out what is available, and asking prices, check out a site such as www.dfwhomes.com. The site here in Houston, www.har.com, shows every listing on the MLS (the same ones that your real estate agent would see). I'll bet there's an equivalent site for Fort Worth.

Edited April 17, 2006 by Randy W (see edit history)

[paula]

Thanks guys here for all responses. I am still in China now and will move to the US in july, so now I am just looking for houses on realtors.com.my husband has been seen few houses which I chosed from this website. Very funny, the houses I like most are old houses with big beautiful trees, bushes, flowers. One house even was built in 1921 I know manual work is very expensive in the US, such as fixing roofs, water pipes, so I am worried if something wrong with the old house, we would have to pay a lot for fixing. I think inspection is good idea.

 

There are two houses options. One is my husband living now. The house is second floors and my husband rent the second floor. It is a big house, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, more than 2,400 sq fts, built in 2003. no big trees. Of course the price is higher too. The owner of house want to sell it and said we can have lease with him.

 

the other one is one floor house, 3 bedrooms, 2baths, swimming pool, about 1,600 sq fts, built in 1983 with big trees. This price is $40,000 lower than another one. For money reason this one is better choice, but we both dont like the color of carpets, might change it someday later.

 

In china, we also think neibor is very important, as well as schools.

 

Thanks again I learnt a lot from your answers.

[A Mafan]

Go ahead and start working with a realtor. You don't pay their commission (the seller does), and they can help you figure out what you want/need as well as helping guide you through the proper steps to protect yourself, like having an inspection done.

 

All that being said, buying a house is a big deal. Most of the money you send in payments for the first 3 years is to interest alone. Thus, it is in your best interest if you buy a house where the monthly payment is less than you can afford. Paying an extra $100 each month can save you tens of thousands of dollars in interest over the life of the loan.

 

If you are planning on selling (and moving to a newer/bigger house) within 5 years, don't pay points...you won't get your money back in interest saved.

 

Sometimes an older house has more things that need to be done, and yes, some big problems can be very expensive to fix. But most of that can be avoided with the pre-purchase inspection.

 

Since you have not lived in the U.S. before, I'd recommend buying someplace smaller than you might want and just live there for a few years to get a better idea of what you really do want, and then make your second home purchase be the one you want to stay in long-term (perhaps the rest of your life).

 

I'm not sure about the house your SO is living in now, because if you just lease from them, or if they finance the mortgage, many of the laws that are built-in to protect buyers won't shield. So, again, work with a realtor, and you won't have to worry that much.

 

The more research you do, the better.