Buying a house ins the US

firehawk_2

does anyone here know much about buying a house in the US?
What about taxes? How much typically should one be earning a month to be able to live comfortably, so the mortgage is being paid off, taxes included, bills (electricity, internet, food etc...) and having some savings too?

I am looking to buy a house in Texas Houston due to work but need to know about these things and hope someone here can kindly advise.

thank you

googler

One thing to note is that in the USA, the housing market has Buyer's Agents as well as seller's agents; the buyer agent acts on your behalf and with your interests in mind, finding suitable properties for you, and negotiating for you.

It may be worth some initial e-mail enquiries with buyer's agents in the area for some ballpark figures.

Since you're moving there for work, have you no office colleagues, personnel dept or relocation specialists who can help with this?

firehawk_2

hey googler.

well yes however I dont want to use alot of their time and want to figure it out for the most part by myself and with the aid of your advices. plus they would probably be richer than I!

Richard_Webster

Don't know much about it, but the law about house buying etc will probably differ from state to state so you need only to look at stuff about buying property in Texas - rather than generally in the US.

BitterAndTwisted

Americans don't have the same fetish for home-ownership as we appear to have over here. In the first instance I would negotiate a rental until you understand the lie of the land in Houston. If you're going to settle there and buy a property it seems like you intend to be there for the long-haul, so take your time and avoid potentially making a terrible mistake.

sunshinetours

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Americans don't have the same fetish for home-ownership as we appear to have over here. In the first instance I would negotiate a rental until you understand the lie of the land in Houston. If you're going to settle there and buy a property it seems like you intend to be there for the long-haul, so take your time and avoid potentially making a terrible mistake.

Completely agree with this

For more info I would suggest an expat site like britishexpats which has sections for different countries and you will get far better info on cost of living etc. Medical insurance and vehicle insurance is one of the biggest shocks many find in the US

Good luck

BritAbroad

It varies from state to state. Where I am, the process is fast - generally 30 days or so from making an offer to entry. There's usually a buyer's agent and a seller's agent. Each takes 3% commission on the sale - the seller pays for both. The buyer's agent will actually find you properties to view and take you to them. They negotiate on your behalf and do your legal work.

You would have a home inspection - which you attend, where the inspector tests everything in the house and provides a report to you with all info on what needs doing to the place. If you're getting a mortgage, the bank will also do an appraisal (like a valuation survey). Each of these will set you back around $400-$600.

Mortgages are a little different to the UK but rates are currently pretty low. You can get your rates fixed for 30 years, and still have flexibility to make overpayments, remortgage at any time etc. You lock in when you're happy with that day's rate and provide the bank with all the info they need, including your immigration paperwork and homeowner's insurance (expensive!) Expect to pay 20% deposit, and have another chunk of money to take to the table for property taxes, HOA fees etc.

On closing day, you'll spend several hours signing everything. This may be the only time you'll ever meet the seller.

A few things to think about:

Homeowner's insurance (basically buildings and contents) is expensive - expect a good $2k or more.

Household taxes vary hugely - we're about $3k per annum but in states where there's no income tax it could be 10x that.

HOA fees - again vary hugely. I think ours was $240. A lot of people don't like HOAs but the reality is you get good and bad. The fees will vary depending on what services the HOA actually provide.

Utilities - pretty pricey, especially in the summer when you've got the sprinklers and the aircon running. We pay about $500 a month for utilities (though this is high as we have a very large plot). Don't know about Texas, but here we can't choose our suppliers. TV, internet and phones are also expensive.

Other things to consider:

When you first arrive in the US, you don't exist. Buying a car, getting a mortgage etc is likely to be impossible until you get your Social Security Number (SSN). Should take 2 weeks, can take 3 months.

After that, it'll get marginally easier to get financing, but as you've no US credit history you won't get the best rates. UK credit history counts for absolutely nothing. If you're moving with your job check if they give access to a credit union as that'll be your best bet - they can provide bank accounts, credit cards, car loans, mortgages, insurance etc.

Think about your immigrations status too. If you're coming over on a visa, get your employer to agree green card sponsorship. Consider which green card category you're likely to be in - there are some where the wait is so long that your visa will have expired and you'll have to return to the UK before it comes up for processing.

The cost of living in the US is not cheap. Medical insurance is very expensive and absolutely essential - people go bankrupt without it. Even with good medical insurance, there will be out-of-pocket costs. Dental insurance is rubbish and barely covers anything, so expect to have to shell out for your dental care (though I've found the standard of dental care to be extremely high).

Car insurance is another horror - we were $1k for six months at first for one car. It does drop though.

Decent quality food in the supermarket is pricey. Eating out is cheap though.

We've also found that getting anyone in to do anything to the house is expensive - labour is about twice the cost of materials. If you're fairly handy you can do most things yourself though.

Ask your employer for a visit over with your family and get them to set you up with a relocation agent who can take you around various places. Living in America is very different from a holiday there so you are wise to do your homework. Like someone else said, the BritishExpats website is excellent and there's plenty of folk who live in Houston area on their forum.

firehawk_2

damn! looks like no where in the world (ok, UK and US) I cannot afford a house. i thought they were cheap in the US.

I dont want to rent straight away because I have alot of stuff and cannot keep lugging it around and dont have means to transport them (I dont drive.)
furthermore, that rent money could be put towards a mortgage.

hmm. this sucks. I wish it were Seattle were things are more convenient than in Texas/Houston.

UnitedSum

firehawk wrote: »

damn! looks like no where in the world (ok, UK and US) I cannot afford a house. i thought they were cheap in the US.

I dont want to rent straight away because I have alot of stuff and cannot keep lugging it around and dont have means to transport them (I dont drive.)
furthermore, that rent money could be put towards a mortgage.

hmm. this sucks. I wish it were Seattle were things are more convenient than in Texas/Houston.

Hmm. Houston is definitely not going to be ideal for you if you don't drive because public transport has never been Texas' forte. You'll be best to stay as central and/or close to work as possible, which unfortunately will probably mean prices are even higher. In general property in Texas is cheap compared to other parts of the US, but, as someone as already stated, property taxes are high. If you rent, unlike the UK you don't have to pay it, but you can count on the cost of it being factored into your rent.

Air conditioning from approximately May to September is going to be expensive so be prepared for that. But weather in Texas is also unpredictable so you might get lucky in the winter and have mostly spring-like conditions.

If you have a dog or cat, be aware that heartworm is a big issue in the States and is fatal so you'll need to purchase preventative.

Good luck!

firehawk_2

thanks alot!

yes damn I was there last week for the first time - MAN humidity is 100%! WOOOHAAAAA.

UnitedSum

firehawk wrote: »

yes damn I was there last week for the first time - MAN humidity is 100%! WOOOHAAAAA.

LOL. Yes, the humidity sucks.