patrick.net

In 06 it sold for 1.1M, so at its current price of 675 it appears to be following the market down nicely.

I'd go for it, beautiful home!

It's been on and off the market since Feb 2010, so almost 2 years. They started at about 950K before reality started setting in, I guess.

There IS an additional cost to this house though. It's not connected to gas lines, everything's electric (which is unacceptable to us).

If we do spring for this, we'll have to get it connected, and I suspect it could be almost $20K to get it all done).

The price is starting to look appealing though.

my rule is never buy the most expensive home in the neighborhood.

It's not the most expensive... :-) That neighbourhood has plenty of $1M (and upwards) homes.

Almost two acres with a 10,000 sqft house for about $68 per sqft?
You may need to redo your calculations. Redfin is showing 6,544 sq.ft. (which comes out to $103 per sq.ft.) Do you really need 6 bathrooms?

If we do spring for this, we'll have to get it connected, and I suspect it could be almost $20K to get it all done).
The alternative would be a geothermal heat pump. I believe techgromit could fill you in on the details as he recently put one in.

EBGuy says

Almost two acres with a 10,000 sqft house for about $68 per sqft?

You may need to redo your calculations. Redfin is showing 6,544 sq.ft. (which comes out to $103 per sq.ft.) Do you really need 6 bathrooms?

The 6544 sqft is only the top two levels. It has an almost 4000 sqft basement.

Do we NEED 6 bathrooms?? No. :-) But having more doesn't hurt.

The heated pool and tennis court are certainly pluses.

Assuming a rent of $6,500 month, my calculator says this house is OK to buy at $675K:

http://patrick.net/housing/calculator.php?forsale_ID=2096330

I had only one other 6br in that zip code to compare to, which is where I got the $6,500/mo rent estimate. If you know the rents better, please put in something else and recalculate whether it's OK to buy.

That's a nice house, it reminds of a house out in West Davie, my friend bought for about 600K, back in '95. This was before it was built up now, and it was considered way out in the boon docks.

I doubt that house would go for 500K today.

With out justifying affordability of the philosophical points of why so much space. If I were in the market and could afford it, as you probably are, then it would be no brainier for me.
But I would only buy something in that price range, only if I could afford to pay cash for it.

I've also been looking in Montgomery County. Only issue I'd have (other than being out of my price range) is Gaithersburg HS isn't exactly the best school. I think if I was going to spend that kind of money I would expect it to have a good high school.

I've heard the Washington RE market is very competitive, but would more homes in the area be going up for sale depending on the outcome of the next presidential election? With the debt load of this country I'm thinking we might be seeing federal jobs starting to go poof eventually, I know local and state governments have shed quite a few jobs already. Just a thought..

Can you imagine what a new roof will cost?

http://kunstler.com/blog/2011/11/your-new-american-dream.html?source=patrick.net

I take issue with this writting although liberal. In the bad old days all one could do is make a living by taking the very near other side of the Debt Merchants. So liberal was just this side of bad decision also. Jobs were not created by corporations.

Jobs were created by fractional reserve. Making PAPER. Of all things, legal tender (or to put it straightforward the only legal means of trade). With that captured. (having the only legal means of trade.) All that was left to do was get on the Rothschild 7000 and crank that little bastard up and print paper.

As noted http://patrick.net/?p=1191781 My comment on the ant farm in Montgomery AL. Becky Sue and all the other ants are up shit creek. Because all they can legally trade is paper. So Hyundai owns Beckys ass. The fractional reserve owns Hyundai's ass at some point. Hyundai must keep its trade lines open of course. Paying invoices one would assume.

As you can assume also the voting banks of the fractional reserve own countless corporations. (though you would never know because well its a fucking person nonperson) This was accomplished by the trust busters. Who they actually let have their way because well. Rockefeller was associated with those the locals were actually trying to find him in a not so nice way. See my article on that.

So they whipped up the corporation where you can't find a fucking thing. Nor go after Rocky with a squirrel gun. Because well Rocky dosen't exsist anymore except in nostalga. Even Corporations got dicey so they went even further and invented holding companies.

That leaves us here. Dealing with their front men. The politcians. That are mostly hired because they are sociopaths. A sociopath has very little conscience. Also they have virtually no reason. In short they live to fool others. Especially those with a conscience and that have reason. They actually look down on people like that as well, naive and stupid. They live to fuck with what they feel are naive and stupid.

So you can't actually find the true target of your ambiguity. If you did they would just fly someplace else.

I like Occupy. They are very genuine. The tea party well anything taken to the radio by Rush and Glenn and blown into the Sun. I just don't pay any attention to them for the most part. They to are sociopaths. Let me tell you never deal with a sociopath. If there is no reason in a person. There is just no point in dealing with them.

All you will ever find a sociopath to be is a one way radio. Talking louder and ignoring without conscience anything else out there. It is just one more layer between you and the people that are the true swindlers a very nasty bunch to be sure.

Anyway the point of life I feel is to enjoy it. Life can be fun. There is lots to enjoy. The struggles are serious of course. However. Life may be not such a struggle. If you rise to the fact. That maybe there is some help in all of this. Hebrew, Christian bible says work by the sweat of your brow. Think your giving birth to a watermelon. If you believe that and ignore everything else you just may be missing something. Live a little.

What I really don't want to see happen. Are people that get to the end of there life dreaming quietly of some other life. Hey I did it for my wife and childern. It was painful what I had to go through. As they quietly turn over and dream of some other life. Fearing the debt merchants that hold their string. Childerns food and shelter. That those debt merchants just may in some way hear or maybe even those that serve them. People that have worked for them all their lives understand what I am talking about. Dreaming of Daniel Boone the way he lived. Or in the west maybe with fields and cattle and buildings wide open spaces. Parents will tell kids hey its a hard life. Ok now what I say. If you stop walking into the devices that were put together. You will see the land is free. You will also see that there is water. Food other than in a supermarket. Possibly greenhouse. Hey 2 sheep multiply so do cattle. Even in Greece they said the devices set against us here are bullshit. So unity just ain't flyin' here. So looks like your kids aren't listening. Also looks smart to me. When they are old they just may roll over look out the window at cattle and land and water and everything that is theirs AND NO ONE ELSES.

Assuming a rent of $6,500 month, my calculator says this house is OK to buy at $675K:

http://patrick.net/housing/calculator.php?forsale_ID=2096330

I had only one other 6br in that zip code to compare to, which is where I got the $6,500/mo rent estimate. If you know the rents better, please put in something else and recalculate whether it's OK to buy.

Houses like this go for about $3200-$3500 per month, in that neighbourhood.

farmer11 says

I've also been looking in Montgomery County. Only issue I'd have (other than being out of my price range) is Gaithersburg HS isn't exactly the best school. I think if I was going to spend that kind of money I would expect it to have a good high school.

True. Gaithersburg HS aint among the best ones. "That kind of money"....i.e. 650K is actually the norm in the DC area for this much house. :)

My plan would be to buy it with 20-30% down and pay it off probably in 5-6 years. Even though we could afford something like this in the "premium" neighbourhoods (like Potomac, Bethesda), that would rack up to about $2M. That's a lil scary.

btw, This sold "new" in 1988 for about $330K, if that helps the math.

Wow, we just had the 2008 housing crash of the great depression II and you want to buy a house when rates are artificially lower than low, lending 110% of value is ok, and all government workers are extremely bloated with fake money. It will drop to 350K when they stop the DC corruption, if you are OK with that, sure, go for it. And the corruption will stop, the game is almost over, whether they like it or not.

swilliamscc says

Wow, we just had the 2008 housing crash of the great depression II and you want to buy a house when rates are artificially lower than low, lending 110% of value is ok, and all government workers are extremely bloated with fake money. It will drop to 350K when they stop the DC corruption, if you are OK with that, sure, go for it. And the corruption will stop, the game is almost over, whether they like it or not.

ok......

Now, in the meanwhile, folks still need a place to live, and hopefully a relatively nice one.

good luck to you. If you can put that much down then just do it. I assume your in the 1%

lisalisa says

good luck to you. If you can put that much down then just do it. I assume your in the 1%

Yes, we can put down that much. We have zero debt and a decent amount of liquid savings (around $400K), not including 401Ks. I sold my house in 2003 and have been renting ever since.

Are we (me and my wife) "in the 1%"? I don't know, and it certainly doesn't feel like that. We are a dual income household, we work hard, make a good annual income and live nicely, though not extravagantly.

But we're outgrowing our rental, plan to start a family soon, and decent houses cannot be had as rentals. Most rentals suck. We're at that point (both 39 years of age) where it's time to enjoy our house as well, not just the math behind it.

For my personal situation I would not buy it. There is just me, my wife and 5yo kid. I can't imagine using 6bd as well as fixing a roof that big and paying for pool maintenance. I would rather downsize into a better neighborhood with better schools and either pay the same money or less for a smaller house. That's the kind of house you would buy at Costco. What seems like a good deal due to size may end up stale and wasteful. I'm just sayin'.

dex248 says

What seems like a good deal due to size may end up stale and wasteful. I'm just sayin'.

But, if all the "math" is correct, buying way below "replacement cost" should be prudent, right? Sure we don't need that much space, but we do like a spacious house as such.

The same space in the "better" neighbourhoods is north of $2M.

careyre says

Can you imagine what a new roof will cost?

About the cost of roofing a 3,200 sq foot house that's all on one level.

What do I think of this house? It's gorgeous. 6 bathrooms? Even filled with guests, no one's gonna be doing the potty dance. If you can afford it and you feel good about it, why the hell not?

repo4sale says

EMOTIONAL DECISIONS = LOOSE MONEY GUARANTEED!

I AVERAGE 49% A MONTH ON NON-EMOTIONAL REAL ESTATE FOR 198 SALES... FROM 1999 TO 2008! (bought 1992 to 2000).

If your LOWEST income in 10 years is 300% of the monthly pmt & you have $100,000+ in savings after the down payment. Go for it as a "CONSUMER" with "Financial benefits".....

This is not a "Financial Investment" with "consumer benefits" like a one of my deals that average 1176% gross profit...

Record: 700+ transactions in real estate, 114 court cases, 5 passports filled, 4x/world, 68 countries visited & researched for investments, 35,000 pages reader per year on investments, finance, real estate, law, taxes, politics & economics.

100-200%/Yr California Land TIC 1031 or cash in early 6%/yr prorated $100kMi

huh?? I may be slow today....Plain English please?

How many people will be living there? I'm not sure why you would want that much house if you aren't going to use it all; it's more to clean, more to decorate, and more to break.

StoutFiles says

How many people will be living there? I'm not sure why you would want that much house if you aren't going to use it all; it's more to clean, more to decorate, and more to break.

Two for now (me and my wife). We're planning to start a family shortly, so atleast 1 kid in the near future. And we have lots of family that visits off and on.

Nice pad. Very nice.

dex248 says

That's the kind of house you would buy at Costco.

LOL. Love this!

Har says

Patience my young Jeti. Better deals are on the way. Wait.

Isn't that "always" the case? At what point do you decide: "I don't want to spend my life calculating housing math. I want to come back home to a nice pad, invite friends and family over, now and then, and ENJOY (a lil bit?) my life"?

Edit: Lemme add something here.

I'm not all head over heels over this "particular" house as such, but I'm tired of living in small houses/rentals. We make good money, and can certainly afford something much bigger. The problem is that it's just too damn difficult to decide WHEN IS THE RIGHT TIME and/or IS A PARTICULAR HOUSE PRICED RIGHT. (Sorry, for the caps, but I hope you get my dilemna). Sure, there will always be other houses, either cheaper or expensive, bigger or smaller and what not.

Just what ratio would you consider, when really really making that call? Price per sq/ft? Rental comps? Land area? There's gotta be something.

I/We keep talking about houses left and right, but there's a time for action. I *think* the time is now (with a house like this), but I could be wrong. Hell at $68/sqft you can't even build it at today's costs for the asking price.

Sorry for the rant.

I think if Patrick's numbers work and you LOVE the house, go for it.

David9 says

I think if Patrick's numbers work and you LOVE the house, go for it.

Do I LOVE the house? - No.
Do I LIKE the house? - Yes.

With all default assumptions in Patrick's calculator and a rent figure of $3200 per month, I get this:

Actual value for 7810 Warfield Rd, Gaithersburg, MD 20882 is $465,065.
A buyer paying $675,000 will lose $121,086 more than renter over 7 years. Do not buy.

kapone says

Do I LOVE the house? - No.
Do I LIKE the house? - Yes.

With all default assumptions in Patrick's calculator and a rent figure of $3200 per month, I get this:

Actual value for 7810 Warfield Rd, Gaithersburg, MD 20882 is $465,065.
A buyer paying $675,000 will lose $121,086 more than renter over 7 years. Do not buy.

Then why not rent it? or another in that neighborhood?

kunal says

kapone says

Do I LOVE the house? - No.

Do I LIKE the house? - Yes.

With all default assumptions in Patrick's calculator and a rent figure of $3200 per month, I get this:

Actual value for 7810 Warfield Rd, Gaithersburg, MD 20882 is $465,065.

A buyer paying $675,000 will lose $121,086 more than renter over 7 years. Do not buy.

Then why not rent it? or another in that neighborhood?

Houses like these are rarely for rent (and this one isn't either). Very few SFH for rent in these types of neighbourhoods.

Wood = $.

Get a painting contractor to give you a realistic cost of maintaining, repairing, and painting all that exterior wood. Also, cost of "re-skinning" the house in a cement or fiberglass siding product.

Also, be sure to visit at night to see what kind of lights those industrial buildings cast and drive over there and look for loading docks. If you see any, find out when deliveries are made.

I agree with some of the comments that ask why you need so much space. If you've never had that much space, it might seem nice to have, but take this from someone who moved into an oversized space and then left after one year: More space does mean more to repair/maintain, more to fill up with furniture, more time to deal with. Plus, there's always going to be some sacrifice on quality, if you're buying a large space for the same price as a smaller space. We found that in the end, having a slightly smaller space but nicer (location, quality of house, etc.) was actually better for us.

Extra space just translated into extra junk being stored, for us. I think it's better to get a place that correctly fits your family size (for the foreseeable future) in addition to a little extra for guests. That's just my 2 cents though, others may feel differently. Good luck!

One more thing: Your wife will be compelled to decorate and furnish EVERY room.
Set a budget and a timeline. There is nothing wrong with pulling a door shut to an empty room and leaving it that way for as long as you want.

If the bedroom count is excessive for the area you might consider converting a bedroom or two adjacent to the master bedroom in to a walk-in closet, a master bathroom, or a master retreat...

If your in your peak earning years, which I'm guessing you are, and your disposable income is as such that buying this home is more of a drop in the bucket than a large expenditure to you. As long as your still on track for your retirement moneys and such, budgeted for the kids you can fit into the place, and the costs associated with a place like this, great job security, etc.
Then, it's a beautiful place, personally I like smaller, but it's because in my home state, property taxes on this place would be 10-15k a year.

Big decision, just look at the thread in this same bucket I started titled should I buy this house, and the taxes are nearly 3k on that little place.

everything says

Then, it's a beautiful place, personally I like smaller, but it's because in my home state, property taxes on this place would be 10-15k a year.

The property taxes ARE about $11K for this house.

I don't know a thing about Maryland. But I did live on the east coast for a few years and it does get COLD in the winter and pretty hot in the summer. My first thoughts seeing as how this is a 10,000 Sq foot house is that the heating and AC bills could be huge. That is a BIG house. Likewise, its a LOT of house to maintain and take care of, which due to aforementioned weather in that part of the country means probably all the time maintenance. Anyway, looks like a nice one.

I used to live a few blocks from that house, specifically near Summit & Diamond near the train station in downtown Gaithersburg.

It's huge. What's the property taxes on it?