Why Buying A Starter Home Can Be A Non-Starter

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As a new generation begins to rise through the workforce, many of them are also considering when might be the best time to emerge as homeowners. One popular strategy has been to invest in a modest, low-cost residence - a starter home.

Those who go this route are typically in their mid twenties, have a relatively stable outlook on what the next couple of years will hold, and purchase the property with help of a mortgage loan. The ultimate ambition in this approach is to acquire a quick-and-easy asset that will appreciate in time for the homeowner to eventually sell and move up to something more substantial. However, the supposed benefits to an investment in a starter home carries a lot of variables.

Ben Carlson, author of the wealth management blog A Wealth of Common Sense, appeared on Benzinga's PreMarket Prep morning show where he discussed some of the pitfalls of investing in a starter home. Carlson highlighted one major factor that goes unconsidered as: how long a home buyer plans on staying in their starter. "The reason I say that buying a starter home is a bad purchase is that a lot of people will buy something only to move within a couple years."

Mortgage rates also bear deeper consideration when thinking of investing in your first home. Carlson emphasized the interest rate on the mortgage will generally outweigh the time you end up staying in the house. "The breakeven on a house is typically in the three to five year range. In the first five years of a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, roughly two-thirds of your payment is going to interest rates alone"

Carlson said the added costs of home buying should make those considering a starter home take pause. "If you buy a starter home and want to move in a couple of years, it's generally a money-losing proposition because you're paying realtor fess, closing costs, and interest costs."

PreMarket Prep is a daily trading ideas show that focuses on technical analysis and actionable short term trades. You can listen to the show live every morning from 8-9 ET here, or catch the podcast here.

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Posted In: MediaPersonal FinanceInterviewReal Estate
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