a family member of mine actually had to sell his house for less than what he paid for in NC recently ... the only way you are going to make money in the future its if the neighborhood you are moving into has had a considerable population increase in the last few years... G'luk!

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"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."Herman Cain

there is pretty much no time in history when being a renter was better than owning.

so he paid too much in the first place. chances are he also sold his last place for more than it was worth.

still better to own than rent

it can be better to rent if youre doing a short stay (ie a couple of years residency in bad market). The costs of buying/selling a house may wind up losing you money in such a situation. in a very good market that's less likely.

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Steph
If you get a warning, put on yer manpants and stop whining about it.

any reason you advise against buying in the south??

YODA

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As a general rule, the better it felt when you said it, the more trouble it's going to get you into.

actually no he got it for a very decent price.

If you are going to buy just make sure you buy a two family house... basically a house that pays for itself...

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"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful."Herman Cain

There was an article in Cnnmoney that I read at the end of 2006 that Wilmington was ranked in the top 10 places to buy now(2006). They projected that the city is prime for a population expansion of 10% and it's location as a vacation/2nd home hot spot. The article did mention that nearly 40% of the houses are held by speculators or partial year residents. Speaking nationally, every article I have read projects home values and prices to fall more in 2009 as the subprime mess is not fuly over, most projections even predict fall through 2010. It is a buyers market so if you have the ability to buy and hold for 5yrs or more years a nice profit can be made. Personally, I'm a stock market guy...even when the broader market it down money can always be made...love the stock market..been riding the 4 horsemen of technology for the last 5 years.

From what I was always told anything less than a 3 year commitment in a really booming market or 5+ is a ok market then rent more than that then buy. Always be prepared to have to sit on the property or rent it out if the market is rough when you need to move. My husband and I have gotten lucky with the last couple places we had. We bought the worst house in an improving neighborhood and the remodeled as we lived there. We have more than doubled our investment each time. However the market across the country is **** right now and predicted to continue on a downward slope for at least another 18 months so be careful and do your research.

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