[nyalpine90]

Originally Posted by mantis

entertaining the thought of possibly acquiring first house. but things are really confusing

first figure out how much you can afford, your budget.
you need to search the area your looking to buy the house at.
Sometimes nice house in not so good neighborhood , numbers look nice lol
when you figure out what neighborhoods you want to live, contact real estate agency and explain in details your what you want, and needs..
ask all of the questions you need answers to, there is no dumb question when your purchasing a property. you want to know every detail.

[chassis]

Only three things matter in real estate: location, location, location.

Open your search parameters to smaller and less expensive homes in desirable locations. Open up your thinking to building an addition on a home that might be “too small”. Open up your thinking to buying a house in poor condition in a good location, with the intent on renovating it.

[pikkagtr]

Originally Posted by chassis

Only three things matter in real estate: location, location, location.

Open your search parameters to smaller and less expensive homes in desirable locations. Open up your thinking to building an addition on a home that might be “too small”. Open up your thinking to buying a house in poor condition in a good location, with the intent on renovating it.

You forgot things 4-6
4: location
5:location
6: location

[9M71]

Got a question for the tri-state folks on suggestions for towns w/ decent (and hopefully reliable, for the most part) commute times to Manhattan.

We're 0-2 on 2 homes we made offers on in Staten Island. Both times we were beaten by the same offer but in all cash. Thinking about expanding our search to other areas. First priority would be a good school district, and second priority is decent commute to midtown & brooklyn. We had only considered SI because we would have 2 sets of free babysitters within arms reach :-) but now im starting to second guess.

[cmyx6go]

Originally Posted by 9M71

Got a question for the tri-state folks on suggestions for towns w/ decent (and hopefully reliable, for the most part) commute times to Manhattan.

We're 0-2 on 2 homes we made offers on in Staten Island. Both times we were beaten by the same offer but in all cash. Thinking about expanding our search to other areas. First priority would be a good school district, and second priority is decent commute to midtown & brooklyn. We had only considered SI because we would have 2 sets of free babysitters within arms reach :-) but now im starting to second guess.

I had a similar issue a few years ago when I was looking for my current house. At that time, people in Brooklyn were getting ridiculous prices for their homes and coming to Staten Island with a chunk of change. They were offering way over asking price because they didn't care about comps and had cash in hand. They drove up the prices.

You can go to central NJ and get more house for your money but depending on the town, the taxes can be a killer. There are express buses and trains.

Don't let the 0-2 bum you out. I think Staten Island is still your best bet if you need to commute to NYC. Watch Realtor and Zillow daily, get alerts for new listings. Move quick. I sold my house in 4 days. Although I'm getting ready to close on my sale and purchase, I'm still watching what is coming up for sale and there are a lot depending on the zip code. I know you want a two car garage though and those are pricey on Staten Island.

Good luck.