Look at how much wages have gone up vs house prices. My engineering starting salary was 30k. Starting salary in silicon valley is now about 120k which is 4x my 1984 starting salary. The townhouse I bought for 125k is now worth about 1.5M or 12x as much. You cant sugar coat it, housing is less affordable every year. You have two choices, either rent your whole life and deal with landlords or make the sacrifices required to buy a house.
It's true. I'm very lucky as an only child, and my mother being an only child aswell, my grandfather helped out financially. But still we bought an 50 year old house which me and my grandfather are largely renovating ourselves. And i'm getting a second job when the renovations are done to replenish my savings. By age 42, the house will be paid off. I know many others here in belgium that rent and never make an effort.
I live in Fl and home prices have skyrocketed, but you can still find land for low prices in a lot of areas. My advice is to save up for land then build you're own home over time. Even if its a tiny house to start with it beats paying rent.
Property taxes, whatever-else taxes and home-owner fees, Repairs... It's pictured a little bit too gloomy here and renting with the "evil landlords" is demonized a bit too silly. Like scooby correctly pointed out in a different video, it completely depends on the situation, renting, even in the long run can be MUCH less of a financial burden than owning a house, which makes you Way less flexible.
Nope, I’ll live in a tent before I dive into a situation where I’m living paycheck to paycheck. The American dream is dead. Time to be creative Overall I like your message though. Currently renting at a friends house and stayed at relatives house post divorce and home sale last year. I work in the medical field and a travel job with an RV is enticing to dodge the this expensive housing market
Hey scooby, I was just wondering - for the numbers you gave was it adjusted for inflation? And also, I found a house for around 50k but it's 100km from where I live in a somewhat rural area - it's a bit less than 2 hours by car. The house is also old and needs renovation, but I'd be able to live with how it is. If I'm lucky I'll be able to buy somewhere around next year. What do you think about the house?
In your example, you could hardly afford your own condo when it was 4x your income without making sacrifices for a decade. Now that it's 12x, imagine what equivalent sacrifices someone of today would have to make. Three jobs, six roommates, or no vacations for 30 years? Wages and incomes are so far diverged it's just a financial impossibility for a growing number of people to own a home. It should be no wonder people have no option left but to rent and complain.
How about less time on UA-cam complaining and more time working? Oh, and I am a millennial, an immigrant, and had way less opportunity than most of you.
Don't forget that despite the challenges back then, America was a manufacturing powerhouse and had millions of high paying jobs readily available for normal people. Now America is a service industry purgatory of Uber drivers and Coffee baristas. None of these jobs pay well or offer any sort of benefits to their employees.
"If you didn't buy a house yet it's kind of your fault for not thinking outside of the box. Try harder." Look, I like Scooby but this is a ridiculous take. This is a systemic problem that won't be solved by blaming people for not being resourceful enough. At least he admits that it's getting harder and harder to buy a house, that's a start.
@@johnnykiotis5996 I feel like it's both, systemic issues are the foundation (wages v housing costs, inflation, taxes, etc.), but individually stuff like advertising and consumption of social media has many believing that a "good life" means having the most stuff, mostly stuff we don't need or cannot afford.
@johnny If you think complaining will help you get your first house, I will eagerly await the results of your experiemnent. Please get back in touch in 10 years.
Right but unfortunately many who live with their parents with the "I need to save a down payment excuse" ... end up blowing it all on the things they "need" like a new Ford Mustang, a new computer, and expensive vacations.
Look at how much wages have gone up vs house prices. My engineering starting salary was 30k. Starting salary in silicon valley is now about 120k which is 4x my 1984 starting salary. The townhouse I bought for 125k is now worth about 1.5M or 12x as much. You cant sugar coat it, housing is less affordable every year.
But that starting salary is still fine considering stark contrast of avg. Salary that can be around 50k annualy. What about people who don't earn more than 70k a year
I had roommates for 10 years from age 31 to 41 when I bought my place, it sucked! But got the place paid off and live mortgage free now. Also drove a shitty car that whole time. That helped a lot w saving money.
You got it right, too many people waste a shit ton of money on a car and then change them out WAY too soon for a new one. My youngest car is 26 years old (Toyota Camry). If you do proper maintenance and do whatever you can on your own, a car can last you decades.
@@scooby1961 if you go to school for like 16 years, and get a decent job you should be able to afford a house. Sadly it is no longer so. Unless you're a doctor, lawyer or a software developer it is very hard.
"Few people today have the skill necessary to build a house with an axe." Sounded like a Norm Macdonald joke 😂😂 Great topic, great points. I hope people listen. 👍👍
Having your finances so closely tied to another couple seems like a real headache down the road when it comes time to sell, or even before then if either of the relationships fail.
A lot of people complaining in the comments. I managed to buy my house at 22, on a low wage. Others my age finance their cars and even buy clothes with Klarna. They take no responsibility.
@@scooby1961 People should watch more of your content - I’ve faded and cut my own hair/beard for years now, automated savings and lived below my means. All things you preach 🌟
Still building that down payment for my area. Basic suburban style homes range from $550k-$700k and my salary is stable but average so it takes some time. Thanks for the ongoing "tough love" from Uncle Scooby.
@@scooby1961 100%. Currently driving a 20 yo CR-V, housemate, squirreling away 30% after-tax income to savings and retirement. Not living at or beyond my means, for sure 😅
I believe this video makes some very valid points! I also believe many of the difficulties associated with home ownership come from our country's class disparities. At one time, the working class in America fought hard for fair pay and equal opportunity. It's been a pretty steady down-hill since the 60's on. Remember, It's not us vs them (younger generations and older generations).
Your point about needing to get creative to buy a house is well taken. And you're definitely right to point out that you did not have it easy based on your income and expenses. It's not fair for people to say you had it easy Scooby. The issue I'm having is the extremity of lengths people need to go to afford a home it does not need to be easy, but it also shouldn't cause such massive disruption to relationships and family structures in ways that are destabilizing our society. I hope interest rates get back to 20% (not gonna happen), recent home buyers are punished for buying a market top, and prices can begin a much need reset process. Whatever happens though, we don't get out of this situation without massive pain for an extended period of time. But it's pain endured to quite literally save our civilization from a regression into feudalism.
im the the UK. I bought my house on my own about 6 years ago. I live in the south-east of england, about 1 hour away from London by train. My house is a 3 bed house, mid terrace built in the 1960s. Back then land was much cheaper so the house is bigger. I would not buy an apartment in the UK as its leasehold and you have to pay service changes for the communal areas to be maintained by the freeholder. I got on the housing ladder by bulk meal prepping, I got rid of my car, and saved hard. I got a degree in computer networks and web design and the salaries are good in my industry for full stak developers, but always was frugal and didnt take on any debt. I used to rent, but only in house shares, I would never rent on my own.
@@m0o0n0i0r I'm in the U.k mate and I don't drive. But it is difficult to get around. And I cycle, walk and use public transport. I think the most efficient option is probably a scooter or low engine motorbike. Cheap to fuel, cheap tax and insurance.
@@KrisVic91I work from home [after covid lockdowns], but I bought my house about 10 minutes walk from where I work. This was a good decision I think, because I could rent 2 of my rooms out to working professionals in the business park if I wanted to. Although my mortgage is cheap. I hate driving where I am TBH (too many traffic lights, and hardly any parking spots), and the government is hell bent on making it even more difficult. I enjoy driving on track days though lol. The only times I have missed a car was when I need to get rid of waste when renovating my house. But I have started to use waste management companies.
Hope you are doing better Scooby! Bought my house 2 years ago. Lived at home for 2 years after grad school to pay down loans and save. Lived with GF (now wife) and a friend for 2 years to save more and slowly build up house stuff, I.E utensils, spices, soaps, plates, (I had never lived on my own before and these add up before factoring in the price of a house). I would strongly consider people moving to places with low cost of living if they can/ their job permits it. I live in Michigan and houses around me still go from 155k-215k$, which is like $1450 a month after 5% down on a 30 year fixed at 7.5%. And these are not in places like Flint or Detroit. This is attainable for dual income and even single income people. House is small, but the affordability allowed us to put a new roof, solar panels, renovate bathroom, and handle the increase in property taxes (the amount it goes us is uncapped the first year a home is bought). House has appreciated and I know it's worth more with the upgrades we made. Furthermore my buddy just got out of the Navy after doing 6 years. He unintentionally followed your advice about the military. Has a wife and first child and just bought a house in the middle of last year. He scrimped and saved for years on his meager salary, and learned a lot of really great skills that allowed him to land a great job doing nuclear engineering right out of service. Now he can afford to have his wife stay at home and raise the kid. This is all in 2023/2024. It's still possible, but it takes sacrifice and hard work. A lot of people only see the result (Oh you are so lucky to have a house) but ignore or don't know what it took to get to that point.
80% of your income??? Sheeesh!!! All of that stress went to your muscles . That's why you're massive. I thought about ironically purchasing a mini van and living in it at one point because rent alone is expensive.
Yeah. I know I'm not gettin married at this point (too big of a nerd lol, they run for the hills when I talk to them) so I'm considering the van option. I don't see the purpose behind getting a house if I'm single and going to be that way for the long haul
@Colehike I honestly don't see a point in getting married as a man when 80 percent of divorces are initiated by women and 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. Like what am I even winning at this point? The possibility of treading water with a woman who may destroy my life because she has the legislative backing of the government to do so? Like no thanks. I'm good.
I’ve just had a look and in the early 80s you had the equivalent of a 94k a year job straight out of university and you bought a house that in todays money is around 375k I really don’t think your situation is comparable to anyone today.
I agree with your main message that you have to deal with the situation now. But you can't deny that things are way tougher than say 10 few years back let alone when you bought your first house. Here in The Netherlands for example there aren't enough houses for people to live in. Therefore the prices of houses are outrageous. I can imagine that this problem is going on in other countries as wel. Your solution isn't a very good one to buy a home as a couple of two families for example. Because there are laws and rules that bother to live with 2 families in one home for taxes for example. Plus a bank won't like this risk either to help finance this. And in the end (when you can overcome all these problems) you'd still have a shared investment plus shared revenue with the limitations that you can't just do with this investment what you want or when you need it. It's not like your situation when you only had others only paying rent to contribute to your investment. It's just not as easy as it was back in the day. I really understand that you have worked hard and had less to spend on other things back then, but there was much more opportunity and houses. You can't play this down.
Only going to get a house in northern Ireland at age of 46 as the landlord wanted to sale the house because of interest rate. Im buying from him as it is cheaper to buy it then move out and rent it. As to nowadays Young people and buying a house my daughter is planning to stay with me so She can save for deposit or to save and buy a house for full price. You do what You have to do to put Your foot in the door
I saved for 15 years living frugally and never having holidays. This enabled me to buy my first house near the sea. I’m now able to surf after work and get to go on holidays regularly.
@@scooby1961 how do you not understand that lol. A major reason homes are out of reach for the majority of young people is not necessarily the interest rate alone. Who cares of the interest rate is 7% or 15%, its about the relationship of interest rate and price of an asset. In today’s case the mortgage rates are high relative to the home prices (which are very high). This is causing home ownership to be very difficult to obtain. One of those variables are going to have to give at some point. Probably home price
That's typical boomer thinking... The interest rates were high so it was tough. His example is exactly what people have to pay today for if they are very lucky. Just annoyed that interest rates are low so investments aren't growing now.
I was very doom and gloom about buying a house until I decided to just look into different programs, different types of loans.. etc. we ended up getting an FHA loan and bought a house and it's the best financial decision I've made. Rent will keep going up, your mortgage will not, assuming you got a fixed rate lol. I agree that it's very hard, but I don't like people completely setting themselves up for failure by not trying at all. It's definitely possible.
Great advice, Scooby! Your story reminds me of when I was in college. A good friend of mine had the courage to buy a three bedroom house in the small college town where we attended the university. He then had two roommates. As his mortgage went up, he converted the garage into a second master bedroom. So then he had three roommates!it was a win for everyone. He literally had his mortgage paid as long as he had three roommates, and the three roommates were actually paying less than they would have paid had they stayed in the dorms at the college. And as a small byproduct, the parties at his house were the absolute best! L O L.
I knew these twin brothers in college and instead of having them live in the dorms, their dad bought a mobile home in a trailer park about a mile or two from the university. After they graduated, the father just sold it and saved a ton of money.
The old rule of thumb was that a bank assumed that 25% of your income would go towards buying a home. Then when things got worse it became 33% or your income. Then it went to 50% of your income. Today it's nearing the tipping point. When I grew up homelessness was such a small problem. Now we have a pandemic of homelessness. And 30-40% of the homeless have a job. Some people are so out of touch. Much be nice.
That is an awesome hat. It looks warm, thick, and soft. Probably water resistant. That has got to be merino wool. Great advice on the home hack. I've not heard of the couple thing. It sounds like much less of a potential headache than roommates.
First house I bought was a real headache to finance, took me over a year after getting several knock backs from Banks. I have 6 houses now, always difficult to finance, you have to sacrifice, no holidays, no fancy cars. Half of my friends still rent, they say I'm lucky, I usually reply, yes the harder I worked and went without, the luckier I got. Listen to Scoob!
This is great advice. Splitting the amount of equity I just got on my house I bought three years ago and just sold last week would be about $75,000 each! And that’s just three years of equity! That’s enough to at least put down on an FHA loan with enough to cover closing costs and then some. Then you refi out of the PMI to when you’re about 20% paid off and when rates seem good.
Scoob, thanks for the sympathetic, and pragmatic advice. So many of my older coworkers really have no idea how difficult it is to buy a house on my salary, even with roommates. I've been saving for almost 10 years now (with roommats), and it feels like covid pushed me out of the market for another 6. I try to explain to the senior guys how $70k isn't what it used to be, but they always give me the same tired advice: "Buy a fixer" "Buy a condo" "Move further away from work" The market is just nonsensical now. I could probably secure a 30 year mortage on some $700k house, but that just seems insane to me because that house was $350k just a few years ago. Anyways, thanks for the adice scoob. Sorry for the rant.
If your interested, talk about location and how it is the most important to determine pricing, with more crime and homelessness making a house/condo/property cheaper.
The honest truth is people would rather rent in a large expensive city that move to a modest size cities that may pay 15% less by the home prices are around half the price or less. The bottom line is, if you want to live in LA, NYC, Seattle, Miami, you are going to struggle like hell. I’d rather move to a city like Chicago, Pittsburgh, or Dallas and not need to be a slave. There are dozens of cities like the one I mentioned that have city amenities and fairly affordable housing. I really wish cities like Seattle, NYC, SF, and Miami didn’t have such a history of exclusionary zoning and urban growth boundaries that drove up the price of real estate but that’s just not the reality.
I started watching your video around 10 years ago. Every now and then I still keep watching your videos, but now your videos are more on life skills and very practical advices and not just sleep through lectures. Love from India "Uncle" scooby.
Hey Scooby great point. No point in bragging about how easy it was back then. But I was wondering, could you maybe make a video about what is the true experience of ownership compared to renting. Like the fact that you constantly have to renovate, mow the lawn, land transfer tax, etc. So yeah the pros and cons.
home ownership is a pain in the butt, its like a second full time job if you get an older home. If you want easy, rent. If you want financial security then roll up your sleeves and get to work.
just do what I do , I take care of my grandparents, I live with them, I do whatever they want, do anything for them since they let me live in their house. Save a ton of money while working.
way to go! That is a great example of how multigenerational homes work so well. Grandparents can afford care in an assisted living that charges $10,000/mo per person and you cant afford to save a down payment. You take care of them, get "free" rent. Its an economic win-win that more people should use.
Scooby's numbers all make sense. I started work in the same field about 2 years before him. My car loan in 1984 was 11%. It was very wise to get into a house at that time, especially in the Bay area.
I don't really care about buying a house. Why do people want to live in one place for like 50 years. I've saw house in Italy for £50k, Bulgaria for £38k. Was one in my country for £15k, a fixer upper. If you want to buy a house, buy a cheap one, rent it out. Use the rent to pay off a mortgage on another one. I know a guy who works min wage job. Has I think 5 or 6 houses now. He's going to be a millionaire soon. In about 7 years, working a min wage job (taxi driver). Work smarter, not harder.
Started working full time at 19, didn’t go to university, lived with parents, saved everything, bought in lunches to work. I moved out of London and moved to NW England and bought my house at 27 a few years back. I now rent a bedroom out which almost covers the mortgage. These are the sacrifices I made to get me on the ladder Scooby!
Housing in California is screwed by NIMBYs. There is no way a middle class person can afford a 800k starter home in California. The good news is only 3% of homes in the USA are worth 1 million. Most areas you will have to spend about 250k for your home which isnt bad
The real answer I find is buy property in towns, states, or even countries If youre really adventurous that ARE cheap. It’s always out there if you’re willing. Then you can either live in it with a roommate, rent multiple of them out, etc. and eventually, they will help pay for where you WANT to live. Probably 5% of Americans will ever afford to live in a 6000+ a month apartment with HOA fees on the beach in south Florida off their career alone, but if you have a decent career, budget for it & have 3-4 properties either now making money for you, or that you’ve held for a decade and are ready to sell, you can get something much nicer than would normally be allowed.
you understand. What you propose is a LOT of work, more than a full time job, but its one of the only ways available to a lot of us to retire in comfort.
I'm fucking scarred from all the shit room mates we had back in our old shared space (we were in an old 4 bedroom house) and the 4th room was always cursed lmao I'm never doing that again.
I've seriously reconsidered owning a home and it isn't because I think it isn't possible. I just don't think it is worth it. The only reason houses are expensive is because there aren't enough built and the rules surrounding what houses are allowed are absurd. I would be perfectly fine with living in a 100k modular home with a roommate in a small and beautiful town. The problem is I'm not allowed to! I either have to live in some 400k stick built home or live in some shoebox apartment in a city.
yeah, me so poor, can't afford anything, parents were lucky blah blah blah... same people: new iphone, new ipad every 2 years, netflix, youtube premium, hbo, whatever, 60-80k car loan, eating at restaurants/takeway, designer clothes etc etc...
Let's be honest, people would rather complain than do anything about their situation. That goes for fitness, finances and relationships. it all comes down to; "If there's a will, there's a way". I like to live by "How bad do you want it?". If you want it bad enough, you'll do anything in your power to achieve it and won't be wasting precious time complaining.
In Germany it still is ieasy. I startedsaving at age 22. At age 28 i bought my first 4apt property in 2020 (380k at 1.18% interest). In 2022 I bought my second 3apt property (425k at 4.22% interest). Yes they are ages old but well maintained and electricity and plumbing wise somewehere 2015 Standard. In 2023 I finally bought my own house to live in (227k at 4.4% interest). It's actually the only one I pay Out of my pocket. The other ones pay themselves with a small surplus. Btw since I moved out I live like a starving student, I drive used cars that I buy for around 2000€ and resell with surplus. I basically havent paid a single penny on cars. While my peers go party every week, lease the latest model cars, lunch at MC Donalds and Starbucks, subscription Here and there etc. My financial footprint is the one of a dead man. Almostl.
I've started seeing a lot of young people buying multifamily homes and renting out one half. I'm just glad I didnt have to do that. I would hate to be a young adult today. It just isnt sustainable.
Having/not having the $$ to buy a house shouldn't be the issue... Having the E.Q. and gratitude of making a HOME should be the priority.... I know folks who own a house that don't have a home and I know folks that rent that turned those rooms into a fortress of love n laughter.....STOP CHASING THINGS N BE THAT THING....PEACE
I was fortunate enough to have cool parents who allowed me to move back in whilst I saved for a deposit. A lot of people told me "oh no there's no way I could live back with my parents", to which I always said "how much do you want it?" You gotta do what you gotta do, and like you said "make it work". Solid advice, and nice hat 🤠
Unfortunately, many live with their parents with the "I need to save a down payment excuse" ... then they buy a new Ford Mustang, a new computer, and go on a vacation to Paris.
@@convolutedmind That’s why I prefaced my comment with “I was fortunate enough…” I did my stint living with roommates in sub-poverty, and still managed to save a considerable amount by cutting back on non-essentials. It comes down to the question “how much do you want it?”. If you want money for a deposit, you’ll make sacrifices and SAVE. Granted, this was a decade ago, and I do sympathise for the youth today with the cost of living.
“Each successive generation has had to get more creative when it comes to buying a house.” I don’t know how your parents had it Scooby, but I’d be very interested to see how most silent gen people would have reacted to a statement that implies their kids had a harder time affording a house than they did. My grandparents on my father’s side never owned their house, and this was pretty common in the dirt poor part of Derry, Northern Ireland where my dad and his 8 siblings grew up. My maternal grandparents did own their house, but their day to day living situation was actually poorer than my Dad’s.
Hi Scooby, I agree fully on telling people to get their foot in the door now rather than later. I would like to add on thing about interest rates. High interest rates are not necessarily bad, as they say in finance "there is no free meal". Low interest means that people can afford larger mortgages and people do tend to compete with each other when the supply of properties is less than the demand, which is totally the case in the last few decades. Hence, low interest rates will mean higher principal amounts probably, hence, no free meal... people will either pay because rates are more expensive or the house prices are higher. However, even if I agree with your point, it's still an argument that for my generations (90s born personally) we face much higher prices relative to our incomes compered to our parents. Higher deposits, higher rent. I understand your viewpoints on personal responsibility but there are also political solutions to this, such as taxes on assets (happened in greece for instance). One measure could be for instance taxes on ultra wealthy asset holders to force redistribution of assets in the economy at least to some extent. I KNOW, this sounds communist and super anti-american and you will pillow scream, I know. But I will argue, what you have currently is heading (or already is) closer to feudalism for young people rather than a capitalist economy. Work should be the main earner for people, not passive incomes and rents. Work should be more rewarding, not owning land, otherwise we are in feudal times again. Multiple edits: typos and to add some more stuff
After the Covid hysteria, I bought me a house in a Eastern EU country for 50k - 4 rooms, a vineyard, in beautiful little town near the sea. An International airport 30 miles away, many resorts nearby too... Am I going back to the rat wheel called office job, the mortgage, the crazy taxes & bills? Heeeeellll no.
To be fair, I could absolutely live like the Unabomber in a shack I'd built myself, but I have the misfortune of living in Eastern Europe currently, where the price of land is ridiculous and you need a billion permits to build anything. Not to mention it's possible the municipal authorities may not even ALLOW me to live in a house like that, because it could be considered dangerous to my wellbeing, but they wouldn't necessarily have to know about it (wink wink). All the same, I'm saving and investing to escape this shithole and move to a country where I could actually make a house for myself with my own two hands, as that has been my dream since I was a kid.
I don’t want to live in a condo 😢 That’s the same as renting an apartment. I want a freaking house! Privacy! 2 couple buying a house together? What could go wrong? Divorce rate over 50%…. Sounds risky.
When I bought my house in 1997 there used to be these things called 'starter homes'. After volunteering now for 4 years with Habitat for Humanity, I look around now and realized that starter homes are extinct. They just aren't building them anymore. In my area it seems the majority of housing construction is building $300K-$400K townhomes.
I remember my grandparents telling me that the house that they currently own, they started out renting it around 1965, so they’ve been living in the same house for almost 60 years. They said their first rent payment was $63.00 and I was just amazed. Then I got to thinking, minimum wage in 1965 was $1.25, and an average yearly salary was $6900. You obviously still had other bills such as utilities, insurance, car, etc etc. A few big things that people don’t realize is 1) if you didn’t know how to work on stuff on your own, then you had to obviously pay someone to do it… well things such as cars back then required A LOT of maintenance and tweaking. If you didn’t know how to work on a carburetor you were screwed lol. Another big thing that people don’t want to admit is, people are too worried about trying to impress others by buying a $65,000 truck, and a $50,000 Camaro to go with it, along with their 3-story $600,000 house. It seems like most families now have 3-4 cars, whereas most families 40-50 years ago had 1 family car, MAYBE 2 cars.. and those cars most of the time weren’t exotics, they were 10-20 year old out of style cars such as station wagons and Monte Carlos lol. People just don’t want to admit they have an unnecessary spending problem.
I used to think this way, but then I changed my mindset, worked my ass off & inherited 25% of my Nan's considerable estate, with which I bought a house. It's a grindset fellas, if I can do it, you can too! 👊
Refinance is only possible if prices keep rising. If prices go down along with interest rates, you may end up stuck with the high interest rate. To be fair, it's an unlikely combination though. But still, don't assume that you can always refinance - ensure that whatever payments you sign up for is something you can continue to do. If you get lucky, you may be able to refinance later. But don't buy a home you cannot afford at current interest rates with the assumption that you can refinance.
Hey Scooby, why do you think that renting is so undesirable? We've been saving and investing since we started working. We've built up a portfolio that is hard to give up for a house. The rent that we're currently paying is payed for by the dividends of 300k. Why should I pay 500k for basically the same apartment that I live in? Yes it might appreciate over time, but that would be a lot of eggs in one basket.
I make $135k as a lead electronics engineer, and I could barely afford our average house ($420k) in rural NH. Our house payment is about $3200. Most people around here make about $50k. Hoping for a refinance at some point so we can actually save! We also adopted our son and it was $35k and we want to adopt another. Luckily, we busted our asses and I paid off my $55k student loans and paid off our cars. We have no debt.
@@RandyLott I hear that. I make well over 100k a year, with 100k cash right now and what my monthly is going to be is kinda ridiculous. Borderline comfortable zone for me. Unfortunately I don't have a house equity to fight with... It's pretty rough going here not to be house poor. I also have had zero debt for awhile.
Not sure I understand what you mean scooby, could you elaborate? I am currently renting but aggressively saving and investing. Will eventually buy a house, but wondering what your thoughts are on waiting until early-mid thirties (while saving and investing all the while)@@scooby1961
the surprizingly part of the video for me was where you said you're not physically able to maintain the condo when you're built like an ox and we saw you install the dishwasher very proficiently
Build your own home is the best way. Alot has changed with the 401k boom that we are now seeing power stuggles over. AGI will cut human populations in half because no jobs will be available. Humans need to evolve our monitary system.
You have to go without - make sacrifices, experience several months of low sleep as you lie there thinking about the big ass loan weighing down on you. It is really unpleasant but after several years you slowly start feeling the water receding from your head to your neck and maybe make it to your upper chest. I felt like crap for years when I had a $350k loan on me, I cannot imagine what it would feel like it if was close to or over a million. Poor buggers these days but you have to start somewhere :(
You know why it's hard? first time home buyers are competing against foreign investors and the ilk like blackrock and other wallstreet devils. If you can find a house NOT ON THE MARKET you can get a deal.
Shoot, I was shocked when one of the guys I volunteer with said he had a mortgage in the 80s that was 18%! (haha! I had paused the video, typed this and then hit play and you said 18%! - I feel vindicated!)
Look at how much wages have gone up vs house prices. My engineering starting salary was 30k. Starting salary in silicon valley is now about 120k which is 4x my 1984 starting salary. The townhouse I bought for 125k is now worth about 1.5M or 12x as much. You cant sugar coat it, housing is less affordable every year. You have two choices, either rent your whole life and deal with landlords or make the sacrifices required to buy a house.
It's true. I'm very lucky as an only child, and my mother being an only child aswell, my grandfather helped out financially. But still we bought an 50 year old house which me and my grandfather are largely renovating ourselves. And i'm getting a second job when the renovations are done to replenish my savings. By age 42, the house will be paid off. I know many others here in belgium that rent and never make an effort.
I live in Fl and home prices have skyrocketed, but you can still find land for low prices in a lot of areas. My advice is to save up for land then build you're own home over time. Even if its a tiny house to start with it beats paying rent.
Property taxes, whatever-else taxes and home-owner fees, Repairs...
It's pictured a little bit too gloomy here and renting with the "evil landlords" is demonized a bit too silly.
Like scooby correctly pointed out in a different video, it completely depends on the situation, renting, even in the long run can be MUCH less of a financial burden than owning a house, which makes you Way less flexible.
Nope, I’ll live in a tent before I dive into a situation where I’m living paycheck to paycheck. The American dream is dead. Time to be creative
Overall I like your message though. Currently renting at a friends house and stayed at relatives house post divorce and home sale last year. I work in the medical field and a travel job with an RV is enticing to dodge the this expensive housing market
Hey scooby, I was just wondering - for the numbers you gave was it adjusted for inflation?
And also, I found a house for around 50k but it's 100km from where I live in a somewhat rural area - it's a bit less than 2 hours by car. The house is also old and needs renovation, but I'd be able to live with how it is. If I'm lucky I'll be able to buy somewhere around next year. What do you think about the house?
Interest rates back then were double, yes. But the price of the homes were 10% of what they are now. Let's be realistic, Scoob.
Just say 'ok boomer' and don't bother when boomers say boomer things
In your example, you could hardly afford your own condo when it was 4x your income without making sacrifices for a decade. Now that it's 12x, imagine what equivalent sacrifices someone of today would have to make. Three jobs, six roommates, or no vacations for 30 years? Wages and incomes are so far diverged it's just a financial impossibility for a growing number of people to own a home. It should be no wonder people have no option left but to rent and complain.
Honestly, you speaketh the truth. Hate it or love it, that's exactly what it is.
How about less time on UA-cam complaining and more time working? Oh, and I am a millennial, an immigrant, and had way less opportunity than most of you.
Don't forget that despite the challenges back then, America was a manufacturing powerhouse and had millions of high paying jobs readily available for normal people. Now America is a service industry purgatory of Uber drivers and Coffee baristas. None of these jobs pay well or offer any sort of benefits to their employees.
@@BamMatt19 stop crying
@RandyLibertadF Not crying just stating facts. America is in a decline.
People need to quit complaining and just get that 5th job already!
Lol
For my generation it was avocado toast, Starbucks, "laziness," and "entitlement" that did us in financially 😂
"If you didn't buy a house yet it's kind of your fault for not thinking outside of the box. Try harder." Look, I like Scooby but this is a ridiculous take. This is a systemic problem that won't be solved by blaming people for not being resourceful enough. At least he admits that it's getting harder and harder to buy a house, that's a start.
@@johnnykiotis5996 I feel like it's both, systemic issues are the foundation (wages v housing costs, inflation, taxes, etc.), but individually stuff like advertising and consumption of social media has many believing that a "good life" means having the most stuff, mostly stuff we don't need or cannot afford.
@johnny If you think complaining will help you get your first house, I will eagerly await the results of your experiemnent. Please get back in touch in 10 years.
I think for many people, the best solution is to stay with their parents/grandparents if they have a house. And invest the money that they save.
Right but unfortunately many who live with their parents with the "I need to save a down payment excuse" ... end up blowing it all on the things they "need" like a new Ford Mustang, a new computer, and expensive vacations.
@@scooby1961Is it bad that I feel called out by your comment?
@@scooby1961 hit the nail on the head there lol
@@scooby1961no we don’t
Look at how much wages have gone up vs house prices. My engineering starting salary was 30k. Starting salary in silicon valley is now about 120k which is 4x my 1984 starting salary. The townhouse I bought for 125k is now worth about 1.5M or 12x as much. You cant sugar coat it, housing is less affordable every year.
But that starting salary is still fine considering stark contrast of avg. Salary that can be around 50k annualy. What about people who don't earn more than 70k a year
I had roommates for 10 years from age 31 to 41 when I bought my place, it sucked! But got the place paid off and live mortgage free now. Also drove a shitty car that whole time. That helped a lot w saving money.
You get what it takes, most people think its supposed to be easy.
You got it right, too many people waste a shit ton of money on a car and then change them out WAY too soon for a new one. My youngest car is 26 years old (Toyota Camry). If you do proper maintenance and do whatever you can on your own, a car can last you decades.
@@scooby1961 if you go to school for like 16 years, and get a decent job you should be able to afford a house. Sadly it is no longer so. Unless you're a doctor, lawyer or a software developer it is very hard.
"Few people today have the skill necessary to build a house with an axe." Sounded like a Norm Macdonald joke 😂😂
Great topic, great points. I hope people listen. 👍👍
I just love it when people re-spew ridiciculous stuff they hear without thinking about it.
Having your finances so closely tied to another couple seems like a real headache down the road when it comes time to sell, or even before then if either of the relationships fail.
You could have the other couple as renters. That way you are not as tightly bound. In any case, no pain no gain is what Scooby is saying
@Raze2dust Wrong. It is just pure luck. The lucky talk shit on the unlucky
A lot of people complaining in the comments. I managed to buy my house at 22, on a low wage. Others my age finance their cars and even buy clothes with Klarna. They take no responsibility.
well said
@@scooby1961 People should watch more of your content - I’ve faded and cut my own hair/beard for years now, automated savings and lived below my means. All things you preach 🌟
Some good old fashioned survivorship bias to round out the comment section.
@@convolutedmindon god bro.
Long time fan. I love these types of videos from you. Thanks for sharing wisdom and encouragement for free!
Still building that down payment for my area. Basic suburban style homes range from $550k-$700k and my salary is stable but average so it takes some time. Thanks for the ongoing "tough love" from Uncle Scooby.
Saving the down requires huge sacrifices. I can mean years without vacations, restaurants, or a car.
@@scooby1961 100%. Currently driving a 20 yo CR-V, housemate, squirreling away 30% after-tax income to savings and retirement. Not living at or beyond my means, for sure 😅
I believe this video makes some very valid points! I also believe many of the difficulties associated with home ownership come from our country's class disparities. At one time, the working class in America fought hard for fair pay and equal opportunity. It's been a pretty steady down-hill since the 60's on. Remember, It's not us vs them (younger generations and older generations).
I needed this. Thanks Scooby ❤
Your point about needing to get creative to buy a house is well taken. And you're definitely right to point out that you did not have it easy based on your income and expenses. It's not fair for people to say you had it easy Scooby. The issue I'm having is the extremity of lengths people need to go to afford a home it does not need to be easy, but it also shouldn't cause such massive disruption to relationships and family structures in ways that are destabilizing our society. I hope interest rates get back to 20% (not gonna happen), recent home buyers are punished for buying a market top, and prices can begin a much need reset process. Whatever happens though, we don't get out of this situation without massive pain for an extended period of time. But it's pain endured to quite literally save our civilization from a regression into feudalism.
Great video! You had mentioned in few of your videos that you built one of your house. Can you make video on that?
im the the UK. I bought my house on my own about 6 years ago. I live in the south-east of england, about 1 hour away from London by train. My house is a 3 bed house, mid terrace built in the 1960s. Back then land was much cheaper so the house is bigger. I would not buy an apartment in the UK as its leasehold and you have to pay service changes for the communal areas to be maintained by the freeholder. I got on the housing ladder by bulk meal prepping, I got rid of my car, and saved hard. I got a degree in computer networks and web design and the salaries are good in my industry for full stak developers, but always was frugal and didnt take on any debt. I used to rent, but only in house shares, I would never rent on my own.
Good on you mate. You've made many good/wise choices. Cheers
How did you transport with no car?
@@KrisVic91 cycle, walk or use public transport. In the uk this is normal
@@m0o0n0i0r I'm in the U.k mate and I don't drive. But it is difficult to get around.
And I cycle, walk and use public transport.
I think the most efficient option is probably a scooter or low engine motorbike. Cheap to fuel, cheap tax and insurance.
@@KrisVic91I work from home [after covid lockdowns], but I bought my house about 10 minutes walk from where I work. This was a good decision I think, because I could rent 2 of my rooms out to working professionals in the business park if I wanted to. Although my mortgage is cheap.
I hate driving where I am TBH (too many traffic lights, and hardly any parking spots), and the government is hell bent on making it even more difficult. I enjoy driving on track days though lol. The only times I have missed a car was when I need to get rid of waste when renovating my house. But I have started to use waste management companies.
Hope you are doing better Scooby!
Bought my house 2 years ago. Lived at home for 2 years after grad school to pay down loans and save. Lived with GF (now wife) and a friend for 2 years to save more and slowly build up house stuff, I.E utensils, spices, soaps, plates, (I had never lived on my own before and these add up before factoring in the price of a house). I would strongly consider people moving to places with low cost of living if they can/ their job permits it. I live in Michigan and houses around me still go from 155k-215k$, which is like $1450 a month after 5% down on a 30 year fixed at 7.5%. And these are not in places like Flint or Detroit. This is attainable for dual income and even single income people. House is small, but the affordability allowed us to put a new roof, solar panels, renovate bathroom, and handle the increase in property taxes (the amount it goes us is uncapped the first year a home is bought). House has appreciated and I know it's worth more with the upgrades we made.
Furthermore my buddy just got out of the Navy after doing 6 years. He unintentionally followed your advice about the military. Has a wife and first child and just bought a house in the middle of last year. He scrimped and saved for years on his meager salary, and learned a lot of really great skills that allowed him to land a great job doing nuclear engineering right out of service. Now he can afford to have his wife stay at home and raise the kid. This is all in 2023/2024. It's still possible, but it takes sacrifice and hard work. A lot of people only see the result (Oh you are so lucky to have a house) but ignore or don't know what it took to get to that point.
You and your buddy are proof it can be done!
80% of your income??? Sheeesh!!! All of that stress went to your muscles . That's why you're massive. I thought about ironically purchasing a mini van and living in it at one point because rent alone is expensive.
Yeah. I know I'm not gettin married at this point (too big of a nerd lol, they run for the hills when I talk to them) so I'm considering the van option. I don't see the purpose behind getting a house if I'm single and going to be that way for the long haul
@Colehike I honestly don't see a point in getting married as a man when 80 percent of divorces are initiated by women and 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. Like what am I even winning at this point? The possibility of treading water with a woman who may destroy my life because she has the legislative backing of the government to do so? Like no thanks. I'm good.
Great Video ! Appreciate it. Are you still biking scooby ?
I’ve just had a look and in the early 80s you had the equivalent of a 94k a year job straight out of university and you bought a house that in todays money is around 375k
I really don’t think your situation is comparable to anyone today.
I stand by my numbers. Of course, its not comparable - IT WAS 40 YEARS AGO!!!
I appreciate your advice, Sir. Thank you!
I agree with your main message that you have to deal with the situation now. But you can't deny that things are way tougher than say 10 few years back let alone when you bought your first house. Here in The Netherlands for example there aren't enough houses for people to live in. Therefore the prices of houses are outrageous. I can imagine that this problem is going on in other countries as wel. Your solution isn't a very good one to buy a home as a couple of two families for example. Because there are laws and rules that bother to live with 2 families in one home for taxes for example. Plus a bank won't like this risk either to help finance this. And in the end (when you can overcome all these problems) you'd still have a shared investment plus shared revenue with the limitations that you can't just do with this investment what you want or when you need it. It's not like your situation when you only had others only paying rent to contribute to your investment. It's just not as easy as it was back in the day. I really understand that you have worked hard and had less to spend on other things back then, but there was much more opportunity and houses. You can't play this down.
Only going to get a house in northern Ireland at age of 46 as the landlord wanted to sale the house because of interest rate. Im buying from him as it is cheaper to buy it then move out and rent it. As to nowadays Young people and buying a house my daughter is planning to stay with me so She can save for deposit or to save and buy a house for full price. You do what You have to do to put Your foot in the door
Precisely. Do what it takes but get your toe in the door.
I saved for 15 years living frugally and never having holidays. This enabled me to buy my first house near the sea. I’m now able to surf after work and get to go on holidays regularly.
Interest rate by itself doesn’t matter. It’s interest rate relative to the price of the home….
huh?
@@scooby1961 how do you not understand that lol. A major reason homes are out of reach for the majority of young people is not necessarily the interest rate alone. Who cares of the interest rate is 7% or 15%, its about the relationship of interest rate and price of an asset. In today’s case the mortgage rates are high relative to the home prices (which are very high). This is causing home ownership to be very difficult to obtain. One of those variables are going to have to give at some point. Probably home price
That's typical boomer thinking... The interest rates were high so it was tough. His example is exactly what people have to pay today for if they are very lucky. Just annoyed that interest rates are low so investments aren't growing now.
Yep, he clearly doesn't understand this. His rate was much higher, but the price of the home was probably 10% of today's price. LOL
Would you do a video on transitioning to passive income after selling your house and what are your thoughts on stock market investing strategies?
Great video❤
I was very doom and gloom about buying a house until I decided to just look into different programs, different types of loans.. etc. we ended up getting an FHA loan and bought a house and it's the best financial decision I've made. Rent will keep going up, your mortgage will not, assuming you got a fixed rate lol.
I agree that it's very hard, but I don't like people completely setting themselves up for failure by not trying at all. It's definitely possible.
Possible isn’t reassuring
@@majormarketing6552 hey man I wish it was easier for us too. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't try
Great advice, Scooby! Your story reminds me of when I was in college. A good friend of mine had the courage to buy a three bedroom house in the small college town where we attended the university. He then had two roommates. As his mortgage went up, he converted the garage into a second master bedroom. So then he had three roommates!it was a win for everyone. He literally had his mortgage paid as long as he had three roommates, and the three roommates were actually paying less than they would have paid had they stayed in the dorms at the college. And as a small byproduct, the parties at his house were the absolute best! L O L.
buying a house as a college student is something that most cannot do, pretty amazing
I knew these twin brothers in college and instead of having them live in the dorms, their dad bought a mobile home in a trailer park about a mile or two from the university. After they graduated, the father just sold it and saved a ton of money.
Scooby can afford to buy a house by not spending money on clothing (excluding hats)
Precisely!!
The old rule of thumb was that a bank assumed that 25% of your income would go towards buying a home. Then when things got worse it became 33% or your income. Then it went to 50% of your income. Today it's nearing the tipping point. When I grew up homelessness was such a small problem. Now we have a pandemic of homelessness. And 30-40% of the homeless have a job. Some people are so out of touch. Much be nice.
That is an awesome hat. It looks warm, thick, and soft. Probably water resistant. That has got to be merino wool. Great advice on the home hack. I've not heard of the couple thing. It sounds like much less of a potential headache than roommates.
It is wool. I actually had it custom made in vietnam on one of my biking treks
First house I bought was a real headache to finance, took me over a year after getting several knock backs from Banks. I have 6 houses now, always difficult to finance, you have to sacrifice, no holidays, no fancy cars. Half of my friends still rent, they say I'm lucky, I usually reply, yes the harder I worked and went without, the luckier I got. Listen to Scoob!
This is great advice. Splitting the amount of equity I just got on my house I bought three years ago and just sold last week would be about $75,000 each! And that’s just three years of equity! That’s enough to at least put down on an FHA loan with enough to cover closing costs and then some. Then you refi out of the PMI to when you’re about 20% paid off and when rates seem good.
Scoob, thanks for the sympathetic, and pragmatic advice. So many of my older coworkers really have no idea how difficult it is to buy a house on my salary, even with roommates. I've been saving for almost 10 years now (with roommats), and it feels like covid pushed me out of the market for another 6.
I try to explain to the senior guys how $70k isn't what it used to be, but they always give me the same tired advice:
"Buy a fixer"
"Buy a condo"
"Move further away from work"
The market is just nonsensical now. I could probably secure a 30 year mortage on some $700k house, but that just seems insane to me because that house was $350k just a few years ago.
Anyways, thanks for the adice scoob. Sorry for the rant.
If your interested, talk about location and how it is the most important to determine pricing, with more crime and homelessness making a house/condo/property cheaper.
My biggest complaint about the housing market is that houses are made cheaply and they want atleast 500k for them.
The honest truth is people would rather rent in a large expensive city that move to a modest size cities that may pay 15% less by the home prices are around half the price or less. The bottom line is, if you want to live in LA, NYC, Seattle, Miami, you are going to struggle like hell. I’d rather move to a city like Chicago, Pittsburgh, or Dallas and not need to be a slave. There are dozens of cities like the one I mentioned that have city amenities and fairly affordable housing. I really wish cities like Seattle, NYC, SF, and Miami didn’t have such a history of exclusionary zoning and urban growth boundaries that drove up the price of real estate but that’s just not the reality.
I started watching your video around 10 years ago. Every now and then I still keep watching your videos, but now your videos are more on life skills and very practical advices and not just sleep through lectures. Love from India "Uncle" scooby.
Hey Scooby great point. No point in bragging about how easy it was back then. But I was wondering, could you maybe make a video about what is the true experience of ownership compared to renting. Like the fact that you constantly have to renovate, mow the lawn, land transfer tax, etc. So yeah the pros and cons.
home ownership is a pain in the butt, its like a second full time job if you get an older home. If you want easy, rent. If you want financial security then roll up your sleeves and get to work.
just do what I do , I take care of my grandparents, I live with them, I do whatever they want, do anything for them since they let me live in their house. Save a ton of money while working.
way to go! That is a great example of how multigenerational homes work so well. Grandparents can afford care in an assisted living that charges $10,000/mo per person and you cant afford to save a down payment. You take care of them, get "free" rent. Its an economic win-win that more people should use.
@scooby1961 yep I agree. Some people feel ashamed to live with parents or grandparents, I don't, I think it's smart, makes life easier.
Have you shrunk, or doing bigger hats?
Not just an american problem... its the same in ireland . We have a housing crisis and the prices are astronomical
I hope you have better renter rights than here in USA. Here, an 85 year old can be tossed out of their apartment for no reason.
Scooby's numbers all make sense. I started work in the same field about 2 years before him. My car loan in 1984 was 11%.
It was very wise to get into a house at that time, especially in the Bay area.
Lol, that was tight :D
I think the commenters point still stands. I do think you are right in what you say but the sentiment of the comment holds true.
"Bought a condo at 21, Oh the good ol days" - what part of that holds true?
@@scooby1961well compared to today it was easier to do it and at that young age :D. not saying it was easy but it was considerably easier
I don't really care about buying a house.
Why do people want to live in one place for like 50 years.
I've saw house in Italy for £50k, Bulgaria for £38k.
Was one in my country for £15k, a fixer upper.
If you want to buy a house, buy a cheap one, rent it out. Use the rent to pay off a mortgage on another one.
I know a guy who works min wage job. Has I think 5 or 6 houses now. He's going to be a millionaire soon. In about 7 years, working a min wage job (taxi driver).
Work smarter, not harder.
The “I know a guy” story
Started working full time at 19, didn’t go to university, lived with parents, saved everything, bought in lunches to work. I moved out of London and moved to NW England and bought my house at 27 a few years back. I now rent a bedroom out which almost covers the mortgage. These are the sacrifices I made to get me on the ladder Scooby!
Housing in California is screwed by NIMBYs. There is no way a middle class person can afford a 800k starter home in California.
The good news is only 3% of homes in the USA are worth 1 million.
Most areas you will have to spend about 250k for your home which isnt bad
The real answer I find is buy property in towns, states, or even countries If youre really adventurous that ARE cheap. It’s always out there if you’re willing. Then you can either live in it with a roommate, rent multiple of them out, etc. and eventually, they will help pay for where you WANT to live. Probably 5% of Americans will ever afford to live in a 6000+ a month apartment with HOA fees on the beach in south Florida off their career alone, but if you have a decent career, budget for it & have 3-4 properties either now making money for you, or that you’ve held for a decade and are ready to sell, you can get something much nicer than would normally be allowed.
you understand. What you propose is a LOT of work, more than a full time job, but its one of the only ways available to a lot of us to retire in comfort.
I'm fucking scarred from all the shit room mates we had back in our old shared space (we were in an old 4 bedroom house) and the 4th room was always cursed lmao I'm never doing that again.
Time does not stop; the desert continues to grow; the sweat must continue to flow.
Fair and reasonable observations.
I've seriously reconsidered owning a home and it isn't because I think it isn't possible. I just don't think it is worth it. The only reason houses are expensive is because there aren't enough built and the rules surrounding what houses are allowed are absurd.
I would be perfectly fine with living in a 100k modular home with a roommate in a small and beautiful town. The problem is I'm not allowed to! I either have to live in some 400k stick built home or live in some shoebox apartment in a city.
l can afford to buy many gallons of milk a day who need a house when we can get M.I.L.K?
What if I live in a state temporarily and don’t want to settle down here? But I’ll be here for a couple more years at least
The fact that that shower is SOOOO asymmetrical irks me to no end, nice tile though
appreciate your positivity scoob
yeah, me so poor, can't afford anything, parents were lucky blah blah blah... same people: new iphone, new ipad every 2 years, netflix, youtube premium, hbo, whatever, 60-80k car loan, eating at restaurants/takeway, designer clothes etc etc...
Bingo! You forgot scrolling thru tiktok 8hrs a day and complaining how they cant get a good paying job.
I got lucky buying my first house in early 2021 when rates were 3% and prices were reasonable.
sign a 30yr mortgage so I can live with roommates. bruh.
Let's be honest, people would rather complain than do anything about their situation. That goes for fitness, finances and relationships. it all comes down to; "If there's a will, there's a way". I like to live by "How bad do you want it?". If you want it bad enough, you'll do anything in your power to achieve it and won't be wasting precious time complaining.
Precisely! Its easier to complain and blame than suck it up and DO it.
When we have another gilded age lets see how many complain
In Germany it still is ieasy. I startedsaving at age 22. At age 28 i bought my first 4apt property in 2020 (380k at 1.18% interest). In 2022 I bought my second 3apt property (425k at 4.22% interest). Yes they are ages old but well maintained and electricity and plumbing wise somewehere 2015 Standard. In 2023 I finally bought my own house to live in (227k at 4.4% interest). It's actually the only one I pay Out of my pocket. The other ones pay themselves with a small surplus.
Btw since I moved out I live like a starving student, I drive used cars that I buy for around 2000€ and resell with surplus. I basically havent paid a single penny on cars. While my peers go party every week, lease the latest model cars, lunch at MC Donalds and Starbucks, subscription Here and there etc. My financial footprint is the one of a dead man. Almostl.
Then people tell you ... "Its easy for you!"
Those are definitely not south Germany prices but rather nrw or east. Still good
I've started seeing a lot of young people buying multifamily homes and renting out one half. I'm just glad I didnt have to do that. I would hate to be a young adult today. It just isnt sustainable.
Having/not having the $$ to buy a house shouldn't be the issue... Having the E.Q. and gratitude of making a HOME should be the priority.... I know folks who own a house that don't have a home and I know folks that rent that turned those rooms into a fortress of love n laughter.....STOP CHASING THINGS N BE THAT THING....PEACE
I was fortunate enough to have cool parents who allowed me to move back in whilst I saved for a deposit. A lot of people told me "oh no there's no way I could live back with my parents", to which I always said "how much do you want it?" You gotta do what you gotta do, and like you said "make it work". Solid advice, and nice hat 🤠
Unfortunately, many live with their parents with the "I need to save a down payment excuse" ... then they buy a new Ford Mustang, a new computer, and go on a vacation to Paris.
Moving in with parents is not a privilege many even have the option to do.
It's not a sacrifice compared to roommates which many are already doing.
@@convolutedmind That’s why I prefaced my comment with “I was fortunate enough…” I did my stint living with roommates in sub-poverty, and still managed to save a considerable amount by cutting back on non-essentials. It comes down to the question “how much do you want it?”. If you want money for a deposit, you’ll make sacrifices and SAVE. Granted, this was a decade ago, and I do sympathise for the youth today with the cost of living.
“Each successive generation has had to get more creative when it comes to buying a house.”
I don’t know how your parents had it Scooby, but I’d be very interested to see how most silent gen people would have reacted to a statement that implies their kids had a harder time affording a house than they did. My grandparents on my father’s side never owned their house, and this was pretty common in the dirt poor part of Derry, Northern Ireland where my dad and his 8 siblings grew up. My maternal grandparents did own their house, but their day to day living situation was actually poorer than my Dad’s.
Hi Scooby, I agree fully on telling people to get their foot in the door now rather than later. I would like to add on thing about interest rates. High interest rates are not necessarily bad, as they say in finance "there is no free meal". Low interest means that people can afford larger mortgages and people do tend to compete with each other when the supply of properties is less than the demand, which is totally the case in the last few decades. Hence, low interest rates will mean higher principal amounts probably, hence, no free meal... people will either pay because rates are more expensive or the house prices are higher.
However, even if I agree with your point, it's still an argument that for my generations (90s born personally) we face much higher prices relative to our incomes compered to our parents. Higher deposits, higher rent. I understand your viewpoints on personal responsibility but there are also political solutions to this, such as taxes on assets (happened in greece for instance). One measure could be for instance taxes on ultra wealthy asset holders to force redistribution of assets in the economy at least to some extent. I KNOW, this sounds communist and super anti-american and you will pillow scream, I know. But I will argue, what you have currently is heading (or already is) closer to feudalism for young people rather than a capitalist economy. Work should be the main earner for people, not passive incomes and rents. Work should be more rewarding, not owning land, otherwise we are in feudal times again.
Multiple edits: typos and to add some more stuff
After the Covid hysteria, I bought me a house in a Eastern EU country for 50k - 4 rooms, a vineyard, in beautiful little town near the sea. An International airport 30 miles away, many resorts nearby too...
Am I going back to the rat wheel called office job, the mortgage, the crazy taxes & bills? Heeeeellll no.
How about health insurance? Was that accounted for in your net income?
the answer is to just rent or go back in time
To be fair, I could absolutely live like the Unabomber in a shack I'd built myself, but I have the misfortune of living in Eastern Europe currently, where the price of land is ridiculous and you need a billion permits to build anything. Not to mention it's possible the municipal authorities may not even ALLOW me to live in a house like that, because it could be considered dangerous to my wellbeing, but they wouldn't necessarily have to know about it (wink wink).
All the same, I'm saving and investing to escape this shithole and move to a country where I could actually make a house for myself with my own two hands, as that has been my dream since I was a kid.
I don’t want to live in a condo 😢 That’s the same as renting an apartment. I want a freaking house! Privacy! 2 couple buying a house together? What could go wrong? Divorce rate over 50%…. Sounds risky.
“Roommates”, sorry couldnt resist
I didnt know I was gay back then so it was truly just roomates.
When I bought my house in 1997 there used to be these things called 'starter homes'. After volunteering now for 4 years with Habitat for Humanity, I look around now and realized that starter homes are extinct. They just aren't building them anymore. In my area it seems the majority of housing construction is building $300K-$400K townhomes.
If you’d listened to Scooby in fall and bought BTC you’d be up 4x and could buy a nice house with a firm wall to do skateboard squats
LOL!!! It kinda is time for a BTC video. I will try hard not to scream "I told you so" :)
You were VERY against Bitcoin before. Glad to hear you ditched your boomerism and came around to the revolution. @@scooby1961
I remember my grandparents telling me that the house that they currently own, they started out renting it around 1965, so they’ve been living in the same house for almost 60 years. They said their first rent payment was $63.00 and I was just amazed. Then I got to thinking, minimum wage in 1965 was $1.25, and an average yearly salary was $6900. You obviously still had other bills such as utilities, insurance, car, etc etc. A few big things that people don’t realize is 1) if you didn’t know how to work on stuff on your own, then you had to obviously pay someone to do it… well things such as cars back then required A LOT of maintenance and tweaking. If you didn’t know how to work on a carburetor you were screwed lol. Another big thing that people don’t want to admit is, people are too worried about trying to impress others by buying a $65,000 truck, and a $50,000 Camaro to go with it, along with their 3-story $600,000 house. It seems like most families now have 3-4 cars, whereas most families 40-50 years ago had 1 family car, MAYBE 2 cars.. and those cars most of the time weren’t exotics, they were 10-20 year old out of style cars such as station wagons and Monte Carlos lol. People just don’t want to admit they have an unnecessary spending problem.
Ever been bearish on buying a house ? Maybe for some specific region? But overall I guess your 100% right and are the living proof of it.
Never because a house is a 40+ year investment, the timing of when you get it is not relevant.
1:48 What housing has lower maintenance than a condo?
80%!?! YOW! one of the things when applying for a Habitat home is that you have to be paying more than 30% of your income on housing.
I used to think this way,
but then I changed my mindset,
worked my ass off & inherited 25% of my Nan's considerable estate, with which I bought a house.
It's a grindset fellas, if I can do it, you can too! 👊
damn I want that lamp
Yay! First view and comment 24 seconds after posting. Achievement for the day!
Good advice as always.
scooby i love you dude
Refinance is only possible if prices keep rising. If prices go down along with interest rates, you may end up stuck with the high interest rate. To be fair, it's an unlikely combination though. But still, don't assume that you can always refinance - ensure that whatever payments you sign up for is something you can continue to do. If you get lucky, you may be able to refinance later. But don't buy a home you cannot afford at current interest rates with the assumption that you can refinance.
You should change the title to own property. Not a house. And the best property is ….. BITCOIN!
Lol
I've accepted its impossible here's to renting for the rest of our lives lol
Hey Scooby, why do you think that renting is so undesirable? We've been saving and investing since we started working. We've built up a portfolio that is hard to give up for a house. The rent that we're currently paying is payed for by the dividends of 300k. Why should I pay 500k for basically the same apartment that I live in? Yes it might appreciate over time, but that would be a lot of eggs in one basket.
I make $135k as a lead electronics engineer, and I could barely afford our average house ($420k) in rural NH.
Our house payment is about $3200. Most people around here make about $50k.
Hoping for a refinance at some point so we can actually save! We also adopted our son and it was $35k and we want to adopt another.
Luckily, we busted our asses and I paid off my $55k student loans and paid off our cars. We have no debt.
With that being said, we are not typical. We're very fortunate.
@@RandyLott
I hear that. I make well over 100k a year, with 100k cash right now and what my monthly is going to be is kinda ridiculous. Borderline comfortable zone for me. Unfortunately I don't have a house equity to fight with... It's pretty rough going here not to be house poor. I also have had zero debt for awhile.
Everyone needs to stop complaining and make a plan. Even immigrant like me with poor English, without citizenship and green card can buy a house.
What about renting while saving and investing in SMP500 like VOO, and then buying a house later?
do a spreadsheet
Not sure I understand what you mean scooby, could you elaborate? I am currently renting but aggressively saving and investing. Will eventually buy a house, but wondering what your thoughts are on waiting until early-mid thirties (while saving and investing all the while)@@scooby1961
the surprizingly part of the video for me was where you said you're not physically able to maintain the condo when you're built like an ox
and we saw you install the dishwasher very proficiently
My knees, shoulder, and back can no longer handle working on my hands and knees.
People need to be willing to move location and/or buy with a partner if you want to stand a chance.
Build your own home is the best way. Alot has changed with the 401k boom that we are now seeing power stuggles over. AGI will cut human populations in half because no jobs will be available. Humans need to evolve our monitary system.
You have to go without - make sacrifices, experience several months of low sleep as you lie there thinking about the big ass loan weighing down on you. It is really unpleasant but after several years you slowly start feeling the water receding from your head to your neck and maybe make it to your upper chest. I felt like crap for years when I had a $350k loan on me, I cannot imagine what it would feel like it if was close to or over a million. Poor buggers these days but you have to start somewhere :(
Property taxes are the problem in New Jersey. 20% down is still affordable, but the fat wasteful state wants over $1000 a month!
You know why it's hard? first time home buyers are competing against foreign investors and the ilk like blackrock and other wallstreet devils. If you can find a house NOT ON THE MARKET you can get a deal.
FACTSSSSSSSSSS
Shoot, I was shocked when one of the guys I volunteer with said he had a mortgage in the 80s that was 18%! (haha! I had paused the video, typed this and then hit play and you said 18%! - I feel vindicated!)