drakethib said:
10k in property taxes. Oh I would cry !!!!
Yep! Property Taxes in Northern NJ are riduculous! My DH's parents had a house in Hawthorne, NJ before they relocated to Houston, TX in 2002. It was a very nice colonial in a cul-de-sac. They sold it for over $500k in 2002. Of course, it is now valued over $900k.
Anyways, the property taxes back in 2002 before they even sold it was around $10k/year. Who knows how much it is now? I think it's calculated around 2% on the value of the house?
They offered to let DH and our family live in their house "rent free." We would just have to pay all the property taxes, water charges, lawn and property maintenance charges, insurance, and all other house expenses, etc. Now kkep in mind my MIL and FIL had beautiful landscaping which they pay a few thousand a year to upkeep.
DH and I discussed it and decided not to touch that "offer" with a 10 foot pole. Especially since we would probably keep our apartment in the city (easier for work & free) and only stay out in the house on the weekends and more permanentlywhen the kids started school 2 years later.
Not only would we have to put in $15 - $20K (or more) a year (more than a rental in the city) in a house that wasn't even ours, we would have someone criticizing our upkeep. They are quite particular on how they want their house to "look" - very keeping up with the Jones, IYKWIM. They also visit the NYC/NJ area at least once every 3 months (their doctors are stil up here), so guess where they will be living while here?
Also, if we kept the house, they would probably leave all their furniture and possessions behind rather than paying to move it to TX (where DH's sister lives).
So, who wants to be stuck paying for all expenses for a house that isn't even ours, stuck with someone's furniture and things, and with the actual homeowners' visiting every 3 months?
Certainly not me!
So, we declined their "lovely" offer and they sold their house for a very nice price. Of course, now they regret selling it since the price has almost doubled while their house in Houston hasn't moved much at all. I ignore all their sighings and think to myself "Don't look at me because you couldn't find a sucker!"
So while high property taxes here are preventing me from affording to buy a house here in the NYC/NJ area, it also saved me from a potentially difficult In-Law situation!