Friday, October 19, 2007

My first house

Not all successful traders have huge houses. This is mine. It's my first house ever.

OK, it's not quite built yet. But it will be by next March. I've tried to figure out the best way to buy it. Do I pay cash for it? Do I put as little down as possible and use the money to make more money (I'm leaning in this direction)? Do I put 20% down (most people think I'm crazy if I don't)?

I know that the stock market is unpredictable, but If I can average over 20% a year, wouldn't it be better to let my money grow than to put it all in the house? There sure are a lot of opinions out there dagnabbit.

2 comments:

Matt said...

I am a big advocate of 5-10% down and lock in a fixed rate 30 yr loan. Definately think about ways to save energy while building you house. That will be money well spent. Think heat pumps, on demand water heaters, lots of insulation, passive solar design. Efficiency is where you'll get the most bang for your buck, since your payment will stay the same but energy keeps going up and up.

Anonymous said...

Be careful assuming such an outrageously high annual rate. We have had a long bull market and people forget about 2000-2002. I put down 5% and took out a second mortgage for 15% with a fixed 30 yr on the loan. Best route to take in my opinion.