Congratulations... Hope to be joining the efforts down there in about a year, when I can afford it.
Congrstd Griff, we hope to join you in the couple of years!
Mazel tov!
I wonder how long before Nate calls you a rasist.
Good on ya. Hope you enjoy home ownership.
WF
Great news! I love that area!
Congrats on the new place. But be realistic. A family with small children wouldn't want to live there. I like being able to send my kids outside to play in the yard, and not worry about them getting hit by a car. Different families have different needs. It doesn't make one lifestyle better than the other.
Congrats!
"Hit by a car"??? What about your kid getting hit by a stray bullet? Hope those windows are bullet proof for when your 15 yeasr old neighbor shoots his dope dealer...
Congrats, Brian.
Look forward to seeing your kids down at the park. We're playing hopscotch and four square!
Signed,
Washie
I think you are a lot braver for telling the nutjobs on this site where you live more than for living where you live !
welcome to the neighborhood
Agree with Kevin, congrats Brian.
Good for you for walkin' the walk. God knows you've been talkin' the talk long enough.
Congrats - don't forget to be smart about your possessions and personal safety!
Welcome to the hood. Glad you're putting your money where your mouth is.
Statistically, as a white male of your age, the odds of you being murdered in the city are probably lower than the odds of you committing suicide in the suburbs.
People are afraid of wierd things. I remember when I was in Kenwood and I was talking to someone who was smoking that said they were afraid to go downtown. Cigarettes kill about 300k Americans a year, murders kill about 12k.
Congrats Brian. I would imagine the odds of your being a victim of violent crime in Over-the-Rhine are far lower than the odds of you getting injured in a car accident on 75/71 if you were a suburbanite who commuted on a daily basis.
And enjoy all the free time you gain from not having to commute, and the pleasure of being able to WALK to great shopping (Findlay Market) and great arts, entertainment, sporting events, etc.
"I think you are a lot braver for telling the nutjobs on this site where you live more than for living where you live"
I couldn't agree more.
I felt pretty good about my downtown life about 14 years ago, long before Griff got religion, until the first brick came through my window from the neighborhood kids who didn't like white folks taking over the neighborhood. After the 3rd or 4th time replacing the same window, I just decided life was too short to waste my time trying to see change and hope among the hopeless and angry. I understand it -- if I were poor, I'd be pissed off too, but I am not, so I moved on.
J. Rosen - great comment. It's amazing the extent to which people misunderstand true risk, and the statistical odds various things actually happening. But it's the American way. Without it we wouldn't have Las Vegas.
But more importantly ... congrats, Brian. You bought not only a great place to live (I hope) but an insurance policy against anyone claiming you don't walk the walk.
Griff,
One needn't own real estate to enjoy an "urban experience". In fact, ownership, esp. in hotter areas, is a bit overrated. Renting is far cheaper.
Maybe not in the 'nati but in other urban areas it is far cheaper to rent these days. Too many aspiring urbanites have bid up property prices to unsustainable levels and you can hear the bottom about to fall out. The midwest will fare better.
But consider this: now you are on the hook for repairs and property taxes for your new place. So if you haven't paid all cash for your place, you're being overtaxed as you're paying tax on the entire balance of your property. Meanwhile the bank owns most of it. If you don't have children in the CPS you're basically subsidizing them.
Bob, do you rent? I have a feeling you don't, because pretty much any jackass knows it's much smarter to buy a place as long as you can afford it. You just feel the need to argue. Obviously there are more expenses when you own, but property taxes in Cincinnati aren't very high and you aren't throwing money away on rent each month!
But please enlighten us on where these urban areas are that have "far cheaper" rent than Cincinnati. I've lived in a lot of urban areas other than Cincinnati, and I can tell you that they don't get much cheaper. In fact, I would say the low cost of real estate is one of the best things to attract people to move to Cincinnati right now.
When you look at the costs of a nursing home - the value of buying instead of renting makes perfect sense.
Bob, unless I'm very much mistaken, and I'm not, this property comes with a 10 year tax abatement.
Congratulations, Brian. Welcome to the neighborhood. I've been living around the corner from your place since the beginning of June, and I love it.
And, we all have a responsibility to make sure all our children are educated. I may have problems with the CPS, but paying taxes to support our public schools is not one of them. A good school system helps to maintain the value of property.
my family hopped on the bandwagon to be a part of the OTR comeback. and then a couple people were shot on our doorstep.
"No matter how many people have huge anti-city bricks on their shoulders, we shall succeed in improving the urban core of Cincinnati" I am not sure how people think this way, but there is a difference visiting and or living in the CBD or OTR. Clearly with all of the resedential conversions and new resedential construction in and around downtown many do not think badly about Downtown. For me, still way too many thugs in OTR. Downtown is good to go.
"People are afraid of wierd things. I remember when I was in Kenwood and I was talking to someone who was smoking that said they were afraid to go downtown. Cigarettes kill about 300k Americans a year, murders kill about 12k."
... that's hilarious.
I was also thinking about the probability of having a car wreck on I71/I75/275 VS. an incident in OTR as well. You are much safer in OTR.
I felt pretty good about my downtown life about 14 years ago, long before Griff got religion, until the first brick came through my window from the neighborhood kids who didn't like white folks taking over the neighborhood. After the 3rd or 4th time replacing the same window, I just decided life was too short to waste my time trying to see change and hope among the hopeless and angry. I understand it -- if I were poor, I'd be pissed off too, but I am not, so I moved on.
Very well said. Lots of posters are talking about murder! Forget about that, he's not going to get killed. Shot maybe, but not killed (I'm joking!).
For those of use who have spent many years (for me, 32) in the inner city, it is the daily hassle of screaming kids, loud music, graffiti, car break ins, possible muggings, house break ins, and if you are female perhaps sexual assaults. THOSE are the issues you deal with if you are white in da hood.
But I wouldn't trade it. The suburbs have different hassles, and plenty of them.
Love it here, but I take extra precautions to make sure things go smoothly for me.
BTW, I am a white female.
J.C., Norm:
I do indeed rent, it makes more sense in my geographic area for the time being. When comparing renting with owning, it is best to consider all cash flows. Sure you get an income tax break on mortgages that go beyond 200k, but for properties below this the standard deduction is larger. Also if you've ever looked at the equity/debt breakdown of a 30yr mortgage early in the mortgage and you will realize that >85% of your payment is just in interest for the bank. Lets not forget household repairs which you are on the hook for.
Really you need to compare interest expense, property taxes, building upkeep/repairs and homeowner's insurance when looking at renting vs. buying. Lets not forget PMI if your downpayment is less than 20%. For larger mortgages the tax break can be a factor, too. One of the few benefits of ownership is you are guaranteed a fixed mortgage payment if you opt for that route, but remember property taxes are never fixed.
When you compare all costs you will find that for many areas renting makes far more sense than buying. In fact only a few years ago I was renting a 2br/2ba apt in West Chester for $700/month. I don't think I am going to get a house payment less the equity contribution for that amount.
Bob, this last post of yours is silly. PMI is not required anymore if you have sufficient credit. Everyone pays for taxes, up keep, etc. If you are renting, you pay for it indirectly and you pay a premium for the landlord to budget for it instead of you. One will pay significant mortgage interest in a 30 year mortgage, but not a 15 year mortgage. MAYBE your description applies to you in a specific situation, but it's hardly a general rule. You could easily get a $120-130 130k house with no down payment and a 15 year mortgage for $1300 a month or so after property taxes. It's a much better deal in the LONG TERM than renting. I'll give you your view for any period less than 5 years.
* Assuming you have good credit that is.
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