Where to buy a condo downtown? (Chicago, Buffalo Grove: to rent, HOA fees, loft)

[kk77]

I'm looking to buy a condo in Chicago and reverse commuting to Buffalo Grove. The metra stops right outside my office, so I'd like to take the train everyday. The problem is that according to the schedules, I'd need to leave from union station to get to work by 8, so I figure something within walking distance of the station is my only bet. I'd like to get a 1br/loft in bucktown/wicker park/west loop; but I'm not sure if I can afford it; 50,000/yr, only debt is $140/month student loans.

Any suggestions? I'd probably end up buying a place/moving summer of 2008.

[jessiegirl_98]

I would say that 50,000 is probably too little (unless you have savings) to buy a place in Chicago.....

[grapico]

there are studios/1 bedroom in south loop for under 200K... it really depends on if you get the mortgage or not, they aren't handing them out like they used to... I'm sure you can pull it off, beware of HOA fees though in a lot of those condos... might kill ya. Bucktown/Wicker Park is NOT walking distance from union station, unless you consider 3 miles walking distance.

[BRU67]

You could get a 1 bedroom loft in the South Loop for about $190k. It won't be big -- about 800 s.f. -- but nice with a neat little exposed brick wall. Assuming you can put 10% down (and have good enough credit to avoid having to put 20% down), you'd be looking at about $1,150 for the mortgage, $100 PMI, $250 assessment, $150 for parking (if necessary), and about $250 for property taxes.

That comes to $1,900/month, or a whopping 45% of your income. That's too high. Well, strike that. It's too high from a rational perspective, not compared to what people are actually doing these days to live in $800k starter homes on $120k household per year. Given that the market is likely to remain stagnant for awhile, and given that you will probably move once you meet the girl/guy of your dreams, the cost/benefit factor doesn't seem to favor this idea, especially since you can rent the same thing for about $1,200 or so. Better yet, rent in a less trendy area for $600-700 and save up for a downpayment on a house.

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by kk77

I'm looking to buy a condo in Chicago and reverse commuting to Buffalo Grove. The metra stops right outside my office, so I'd like to take the train everyday. The problem is that according to the schedules, I'd need to leave from union station to get to work by 8, so I figure something within walking distance of the station is my only bet. I'd like to get a 1br/loft in bucktown/wicker park/west loop; but I'm not sure if I can afford it; 50,000/yr, only debt is $140/month student loans.

Any suggestions? I'd probably end up buying a place/moving summer of 2008.

Adding onto what others have said, I really think renting is your best option right now. Besides the financial aspects the last poster illustrated - it sounds like you'd do well to rent in the city for a while to get a better feel for the different areas before you commit yourself to a mortgage.

[PAKennedy]

Originally Posted by kk77

I'm looking to buy a condo in Chicago and reverse commuting to Buffalo Grove. The metra stops right outside my office, so I'd like to take the train everyday. The problem is that according to the schedules, I'd need to leave from union station to get to work by 8, so I figure something within walking distance of the station is my only bet. I'd like to get a 1br/loft in bucktown/wicker park/west loop; but I'm not sure if I can afford it; 50,000/yr, only debt is $140/month student loans.

Any suggestions? I'd probably end up buying a place/moving summer of 2008.

I'd kill to be able to leave at 8!
Sorry, not exactly productive, just needed to throw that out there.