4 ways to buy a home in the most brutal housing market in decades
A three-bedroom, two-bath house in Kyle, Texas, for $319,000With little in savings, they used an online home seller to turn their FHA loan offer into an all-cash one. “We thought it was completely out of reach before we dug deeper,” Sarah says.On Dec. 27, 2021, John LeNoir was celebrating his 31st birthday at home in Austin with his wife Sarah LeNoir. Over a couple of beers and chicken korma, the subject of buying a house came up.
In late February, a house came on the market in Kyle, about 30 minutes south of Austin. Listed for $280,000, with three bedrooms and two baths, it seemed within reach. But in less than 24 hours on the market, it had multiple offers. They called their credit union and got the green light to raise their borrowing limit.
Cash for the 3.5% down payment required for FHA loans would be coming. John, a supervisor at an insurance call center, was expecting a bonus, and they planned to supplement that with a loan against his 401. Home buyers can borrow up to $50,000 or 50% of the balance of their 401, whichever is lower, but must pay back the money with interest and cannot contribute to their 401 until the debt has been repaid.
“We thought we had a great chance at this home,” says Alvarez, 32, an emergency physician. “We were really excited.” Sangara dug up the letter she had written months ago. “We can picture our French bulldog, Jackson, running around the back yard and our first child sitting in the front yard saying hi to the neighbors,” it read.The three-bedroom house, set on a quiet street, with views of the San Gabriel Mountains in the distance, needed work. The kitchen was small and outdated with narrow cabinets and no dishwasher. The bathrooms were dated.
For four months, their weekends were filled with open houses, and their days were spent trolling Redfin. And then, they caught a break. One week in March four houses in their price range hit the market. Usually, there would be only one or two. More houses meant less competition. One house, a four-bedroom listed for $749,000, had no offers. “I walked into the house thinking why are there no offers?” Horn recalls.
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