Something about being in your 30s just gets your clock ticking.
No, not your biological clock. Your homeownership clock.
My conversations with friends these days tend to revolve around our real estate fantasies. Take, for example, a recent convo I had with my friend Kat. She asked about my dream home, I asked about hers. We quickly discovered we had much of the same criteria: two or three bedrooms, lots of natural light, a small yard for grilling and chilling on warm California nights.
There’s only one problem: In this crazy-hot real estate market, neither of us can afford it on our own.
You see—despite living within the orbit of Silicon Valley’s “Man Jose”—we’re both single. But why should we single millennials be penalized for not having the dual income needed to make a down payment on a home in our area?
Then it hit us. What if we combined forces, pooled our money, and bought a place together? Our friendship is bound to last longer than 50% of marriages—oops, make that 40%—right? And we’d both get equity in the place, making it easier if we wanted to buy on our own next time.
Our collective mental wheels were turning, but before I started shopping for our new patio furniture, I reached out to our stable of experts to ask how this might go down. The good news? It can be done. The bad news? It probably shouldn’t be.
How it worksApparently, Kat and I aren’t the first pals to have this idea. Lots of friends (and more than a few siblings or cousins) try their hands at buying a home together. If you’re thinking about going this route, you’ll definitely want to consult with a real estate attorney, because these arrangements can be tricky.
“Having a lawyer draft such an agreement should cost under $1,000 and is well worth the money if you can afford it, especially if you get into a conflict while in the agreement,” says Bruce Ailion, a Realtor® and attorney in Atlanta.
Who holds the title?This determines who can sign documents and how the property is transferred in case of an owner’s death (buzzkill, I know). Co-buyers who aren’t married to each other may share a title as tenants in common or as joint tenants with right of survivorship. You can also look into creating an LLC, but that’s usually most advantageous if you’re buying a rental/vacation property.
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No, not your biological clock. Your homeownership clock.
My conversations with friends these days tend to revolve around our real estate fantasies. Take, for example, a recent convo I had with my friend Kat. She asked about my dream home, I asked about hers. We quickly discovered we had much of the same criteria: two or three bedrooms, lots of natural light, a small yard for grilling and chilling on warm California nights.
There’s only one problem: In this crazy-hot real estate market, neither of us can afford it on our own.
You see—despite living within the orbit of Silicon Valley’s “Man Jose”—we’re both single. But why should we single millennials be penalized for not having the dual income needed to make a down payment on a home in our area?
Then it hit us. What if we combined forces, pooled our money, and bought a place together? Our friendship is bound to last longer than 50% of marriages—oops, make that 40%—right? And we’d both get equity in the place, making it easier if we wanted to buy on our own next time.
Our collective mental wheels were turning, but before I started shopping for our new patio furniture, I reached out to our stable of experts to ask how this might go down. The good news? It can be done. The bad news? It probably shouldn’t be.
How it worksApparently, Kat and I aren’t the first pals to have this idea. Lots of friends (and more than a few siblings or cousins) try their hands at buying a home together. If you’re thinking about going this route, you’ll definitely want to consult with a real estate attorney, because these arrangements can be tricky.
“Having a lawyer draft such an agreement should cost under $1,000 and is well worth the money if you can afford it, especially if you get into a conflict while in the agreement,” says Bruce Ailion, a Realtor® and attorney in Atlanta.
Who holds the title?This determines who can sign documents and how the property is transferred in case of an owner’s death (buzzkill, I know). Co-buyers who aren’t married to each other may share a title as tenants in common or as joint tenants with right of survivorship. You can also look into creating an LLC, but that’s usually most advantageous if you’re buying a rental/vacation property.
Click here to read more