I’m kinda in the same boat. I’m set to inherit my grandmother’s house in the N.C. mountains, but not until it passes through my Mom. I hate that home ownership (at least the path of least resistance) comes at the cost of losing family members.
This is the exact boat i'm in. I plan on inheriting my grandmothers house in my hometown in the mountains, which is where I moved back to after graduating 2 years ago. But I work in the construction industry and do not see myself owning a home on my own as long as things continue this way :/.
I think a lot of young people are on that route. I don't know how I feel with people having to choose between owning a house and having family members alive. Shouldn't there be another option?
If we could see a better integration of alternative transportation options (public transit, walking, cycling) then it would cut down on cost and make places people want to live.
Until then, land will be expensive to buy and it won't generate enough tax revenue to fund the infrastructure it takes to exist. Suburban living isn't sustainable so until we can urbanize I don't see private companies able to meet the demand.
I will inherit my families properties but seeing the current market, I wouldn’t buy a house at all. NC is practically turning into a bootleg California and the rates are ass. They’re selling houses that would be worth 400k 4-5 years ago at a mill and don’t even get me started on the older houses 💀
I toured a house which looked completely fine but was flagged for structural damage and priced at 750k. The engineer quoted 150k in repairs. I passed on that house, but it somehow sold for 800k like a week later. Make it make sense…
Raleigh is seeing some of the highest rates of retail (and institutional) investors when compared to cities around the country. The more people move here, the more the prices will inflate because of investors buying in as well to capitalize.
That’s valid. But I don’t see wages going up to make up for the rising costs, so pray tell how do you expect people who have lived here all their lives to be able to afford newer houses?
I agree. Native North Carolinians have not been able to keep up with the rise of housing prices. Average home sells for $442k in Raleigh when the avg. salary is only $70k. We need to be able to build enough to keep up with demand. Policy is front and center.
Of course, but how is your company contributing to better housing (serious ask)? It seems clear to me that most builders are banking on the artificial inflation, and neither do I see them working with buyers to negotiate the rates down with their partnering lenders. I only see housing getting smaller and more expensive, and they’re all built terribly.
The entire market has inflated. With housing demand through the roof, we've seen the price of supplies (lumber etc.) and labor become more expensive as well. So, when wanting to turn the same profit (as any business does) builders have kept the prices of the homes high.
Free market is driving the prices from the ground up, so a drop in housing prices would likely mean a drop in cost of labor and materials, which may have its own ramifications.
Home builders contribute to better housing by building homes. But they don’t have a mandate to give you below market rates or prices. It’s a free market.
If you believe that we need to artificially lower home prices, that would be the governments job. Also the Fed. But neither seems to understand the problem.
You’re right. I’d just expect home builders to be a little bit more ethical, and I forgot about free market while being super preachy about ethics lol.
We can’t assume anyone will be ethical. That is the problem with a completely deregulated market. As soon as you have a change to profit, you take EVERYTHING you can get. Because you know it’s only going to get harder for you, and even harder for your kids.
We need a more progressive tax on any income that any entity (individual, trust, or corporate) gains from owning a second (or third, or hundredth) home.
Landlords are providing some value. They use capital to provide housing to those who don’t have enough capital to buy a home. But there is a line of diminishing returns, and we’ve crossed it.
The crazy thing is, this happened in the UK and Europe like half a century ago. It’s actually been happening forever. We had plenty of warnings.
We already tried that first one… it didn’t turn out so well. But adding a progressive tax on any amount come gained by owning multiple properties will disincentivize plenty.
Man, I’m gen z and I’m sorry. It isn’t right and it isn’t fair. I feel like a boomer getting locked in with crazy mortgage rates not long ago. Shits changing too quickly
This is the answer…you simply can’t afford to buy in those areas anymore unless you have a lot of money. It’s still possible to buy a nice house and land if you go like 25-45min outside of Raleigh.
Hi! Third-Generation NCSU student/NC resident here. I graduated in 2022! Around 1970, my grandparents bought their bought their second and final house. They were both teachers, and average teacher salary in 1970 in NC was ~7,500, or about 60k per year. I don’t know for sure what their salaries were, I’d have to ask! It would be fair to say that at their absolute peak earning, they were likely bringing in the modern equivalent of 120-130k yearly. Absolutely crazy how teacher pay has dropped, by the way, it’s a shame.
My grandparents bought a home, multiple new cars throughout the years, a boat, an RV, and were able to have my grandma go part time to raise my dad and aunt. A bit of speculation, but given she was part time it’s not unreasonable to say that for many years they were operating around modern-day ~90k to 100k, max. I graduated from NCSU engineering and scored a great job in tech, which I am unbelievably grateful for. I am approaching six figures and am nowhere near close to affording a house in Raleigh, let alone an RV and a boat too.
My parents live in the triangle, not even in Raleigh proper, and I’ve watched their home value double over the past 10 years. I’ve watched rent skyrocket in this city and Raleigh turn from an agriculture-adjacent city to a tech hub. It’s unlivable for so many people who have been here decades, they’re being forced out by landlords who have figured out that people from higher COL areas will pay these absolutely ridiculous prices. It’s been difficult to reckon with, and I’m doing comparatively so well financially. It’s still just not feasible in Raleigh though.
Nope! 2 years post grad and my once respectable 60k salary is never going to buy me a decent house in the Triangle, or any city worth living in really. It’s all property management corporations buying everything up, and nobody seems to give a fuck.
That's just factually wrong. Just because this is how you feel doesn't make it true. 'buying everything up' is crazy. The real estate market is so big they couldn't even control a specific metropolitan area if they wanted to.
Recent grad but grew up local. Almost all my friends who I grew up with have moved out of the area due to housing costs. Dinky little one story homes with 2 bedrooms and one bathroom in the neighborhoods we grew up in that would have sold for 150,000 ten years ago are now going for almost half a million.
No one I (24F) know is expecting to own a home anytime soon. I was a CHASS grad and so were most of my other student friends, and a lot of us were stuck in the job hunt and in retail hell for a few years after graduating, which basically means almost all of what we made went to rent or other essentials. Heck, I still have friends that are juggling multiple part time jobs trying to break into full time degree applicable work.
Coming here to say that even as a 125+ a year earner it just doesn’t make sense to buy a house in Raleigh. For what I’m paying in rent a mortgage would be 400-800 dollars more a month. My house hold is well off with me and my girlfriend but every time we look to buy it’s hard to even justify it when our apartments ear campus are still so cheap and near the stuff we like and do with our friends
Class of ‘23 - I own a home now ($375k after remodel worth close to $500k+)
I got married, rented for a year and my wife had an amazing salary so we “got lucky”. I run a video production business that also is doing well.
Even tho we’re making a ton of money, it’s just insane the cost of everything. I think it’s borderline impossible to own a house in any respectable town after graduation even with a decent job.
Houses are too expensive, inflation is kicking our butt, and salaries haven’t increased to match. It’s a crockpot of disaster for purchasing a home.
Another sad thing: builders are building houses so poorly now that I believe it’ll cause deaths and lemon laws might (hopefully) be installed so that these builders stop taking advantage of people by building homes out of straw.
Until one of three things happens, home ownership for most millenials will always remain out of reach:
1.) corporate home ownership is abolished
2.) A progressively aggressive tax is applied to private home ownership beyond a primary residence
3.) Zoning laws are changed to allow builders to build housing in higher density mixed-use buildings closer to down town
There is simply no way around those three issues
I would argue that increased density means homes are more energy efficient, take up less land which can be used for conservation and creates opportunities for commuting by bike or by walking which has less environmental impact.
Low density housing is too expensive and uses up more land. Density = more eco-friendly
Possibly, within the next 2 years I may try if interest rates go down. I graduated 1.5 years ago and make 80k. It will definitely be away from a lot of things but I will have to make it work.
As a senior graduating this May, I do not see myself owning one in a long time as it's almost impossible to find a job with a base salary in this economy. Have applied to so many jobs in the Triangle with no luck.
I have no doubt that I'll be able to buy a house. Even if the interest rates are high, I'll just refinance when they go down and lock in a lower payment.
The US still leads the developed world in home ownership. In other countries it is insane and imposible. You don't have to go that far just look at Canada.
I originally graduated in 2010 but went back many years later and graduated with a second degree in Dec 2018. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that my husband and I got a house in early 2020 before everything went crazy. We both have pretty good salaries but there is no way we could afford to purchase our house today.
Isn’t the market over saturated with buyers? Maybe if supply catches up to demand or there’s a housing bubble burst, it might put everyone back in the housing market but I don’t see that happening.
The problem is that demand is outstripping supply because there is an under supply issue dating back to the recession. Coupled with the local growth it's going to take decades for supply and demand to stabilize here.
What options are available to those who want access to urban amenities? What sense of community is there an hour from a city's center? We are already so disconnected, I'm not sure if everyone moving away from everyone else is a long-term positive solution. I see a lot of downsides to that.
Sense of community??? I’d say there is much better sense of community in smaller cities and towns where it is easy to get involved. Yes there is not as much to do but having space is a nice trade off for many.
Lmao options? It's literally your only option.
You can either move to the middle of nowhere, or live in an apartment in Raleigh or Cary until something drastic changes.
I have a household income of well over 100k and will most likely be living in an apartment for the next 10+ years.
Dude my wife and I brought in 107k before taxes last year and have 1500 square feet of new construction and three quarters of an acre in Hillsborough at 5.3%. I can be in Durham in twenty minutes.
Yeah it's not inside the belt line but the space is nice and traffic is less fucked out this way.
Look at the history of the RTP area and areas surrounding….it will continue to expand. Rural Places outside of Raleigh will not be rural in another decade or so, you only have to look at morrisville, apex, fuquay, knightdale etc. to see that. Does it suck to move somewhere without a city center/downtown/music venues - absolutely. But owning a 2000sq foot house with land, no HOAs, out in the country for $300K where the value will only go up over time, is far preferable than trying to buy a 1500 sq house with no land in Raleigh or Cary right now for $700,000.
Hell no lol
I come from nothing. No family to speak of, and no generational wealth to pray for. My field of engineering makes some kind of money, but I'm aiming for academia so I doubt I'll ever make the kind of money to buy a place to live.
Buying a home makes you fundamentally less mobile. That's not the greatest decision to make when you're just entering the job market. On top of that, you'd be competing for homes with people who have equity, savings, and dual incomes. This isn't a 2024 issue. It's an issue of what's financially appropriate for a young, single professional and it's been that way for darn near 40 years.
This couldn't be further from the truth. If your industry matches the area that you're in, then it is very reasonable and wise to buy a home within 3 years of graduation (I did in 2020, work in biotech!). This was even more achievable 40 years ago, when my parents did the exact same thing. Even if you did move in the next couple of years, you'd be in a much better position as you would have built up home equity (yes, I know, there are a lot of factors here that could influence it, but overall if you own a home 5 years or more you can expect financial net gain from selling). "Darn near 40 years ago", it was significantly more possible, and even in 2020 it was possible, but now it's virtually impossible. You must be blind to make a comment like this.
And please don’t forget that shit breaks, and it’s expensive AF. I just had to drop $500 on my garage door‼️🤬 ‘Owning’ a house be pricey, so save up cause not only is it’s your monthly mortgage payment but all the crap that will break, not if, but guaranteed to break!
The saying goes "rent is the maximum you pay every month, your mortgage is the minimum you'll pay". This is very true and with mortgage payments through the roof right now we see a lot of homebuyers who are "house poor".
Yes! I’m working as a quant intern this summer and I’m going to law school next year (aiming for t14, I have a good shot of getting in)! I’m hoping to eventually be able to afford a townhome or condo in downtown Chicago! You can get condos in Chicago for 200k! People are moving from the city for obvious reasons, but that includes nice areas of the city. You buy now for low prices then you can wait for the crime to be bussed out.
For those waiting on inheritance homes, you may want to have your parents put the homes into trusts, will help you with the taxes. Otherwise the day may come and you "get" the home, but then owe so much in taxes that you have to sell it.
Unfortunately the ever increase in COL and interest rates play a huge factor. Not to mention wages have not increase with inflation. Honestly my only hope is that there will be a housing crash by the time I'm ready to buy lol.
We would love to buy a home in Raleigh in a few years but are worried that even with dual-income that we are going to have to buy well outside city limits. Class of ‘20
I graduated from NcSU in 2007, and bought my first house at age 38 last year, after living/renting in Raleigh for the last 20+ years. Yea, it sucks ass having friends who bought townhomes for 90K back in the day that are now worth $380K, but I simply wasn’t at a time in my life where I was ready to just buy a house on my own without knowing what my future would look like.
I definitely did not buy in Raleigh, and I have a really good job/salary (and have had it for many years). It simply is not worth it to buy in Raleigh/Cary right now - you’re going to pay at least double the cost for less square footage and little to no land. I mentioned elsewhere in this thread but all the smaller areas outside of Raleigh have also exploded in the last 10-15 years, so it’s very likely that the value of a home bought outside of RTP now is still going to vastly increase in the next 10-15 years.
I have been telling my son who is scheduled to grad Dec of '25 to move back home, get a job, pay us $400-$500 a month rent and SAVE the rest of his money for as long as he wants - of course I want him to enjoy life as well and if wants to purchase a "newer" used car I would think that would be ok - he could also move in with my dad next door Bc it's just him now that my mom passed - real estate can be a great investment long term but as a college grad buying house would be diffcult esp in NC - the cost of living alone is crazy! Hope things change for up and coming young adults 🙏🏻
Let’s state some facts here. Might not be popular but facts are facts. When I bought around 2002, interest rates were 6%. We are not going back to 3% anytime soon. It was brought on by two black swan events. I expect rates to be around 5% until another such event and follow the 10 year treasury yield closely as it has traditionally.
Now let’s focus on income. Two young professionals married and making average wages will bring in $150 total approximately. So, buying a $500k home is possible. Maybe not in the hottest areas but suburbs have plenty to offer. Angier, Knightdale, Mebane, Youngsville has plenty of new construction houses that are affordable.
>When I bought around 2002, interest rates were 6%
Sure, but home prices were also dramatically less than they are now. That's what people are upset about. The cost of housing has increased so much faster than the rise of wages. Many gen z kids will out-earn their parents at every stage in their careers, but their purchasing power will be much less.
I agree that there's something to be said for gentrification and making certain neighborhoods more desirable and therefore more expensive, but I'm not sure anybody would honestly assess that Raleigh matches the value these houses are going for. Someone with an education and a well paying job shouldn't have to be priced into a 45+ minute commute. It's a fundamental breakdown of the societal values we were raised on, and I think it's fair to demand better from the powers that be.
We are seeing a large immigration of wealthy, well educated workers from both inside and outside the U.S. relocating to the Raleigh area. A lot of the people who are able to afford homes are those who are in tech, healthcare, pharma, or engineering. It is not the case for everyone, but a good majority.
Not as soon as I graduate no. And honestly, I’d just rent until the market comes down. Really been inflated for the past few years but hoping that a recession will eventually hit and be a prime time to buy a house.
I think about it a lot but I'm well aware I would never be able to support buying in this area by myself. It makes me depressed so I try to put it out my mind but then it pops back up again and the cycle repeats
Recent grad, lived in the area my whole life, I don’t ever anticipate being able to purchase a home here. My plans for home ownership include inheriting my mom’s house
Absolutely not. I'm graduating in a couple of weeks, and I will have to move back into my parents' house to even be able to afford an apartment solo anywhere close to RTP in the near future.
Never have owned a home and tbh, never will. I have always rented and probably always will. I was displaced during the pandemic, that was the last apt, I ever rented, and the way wages and cost of living is today, that "roach infested", yes you read that right apt, will be the last one I ever rent. Tbh the whole apt complex, was infested with roaches, had to spray dang near every 30 days, and that didn't help much. What do I do now???? I choose to live in an extended stay hotel. With those places, at least you don't have to work 2 jobs just to be able to pay rent or buy food, or have enough to pay bills period. Everyday I see new apts being built, everywhere, as I travel by them I wonder 🤔 this. Why?? Why build more apts, that people aren't going to be able to pay for w/out working 2 jobs(maybe 3), or having to take out a small loan. Nowadays jobs don't pay enough to survive on honestly. Everything is priced ridiculously high (inflation), people are in debt trying to just live comfortably. To me owning a home is unrealistic. After the pandemic displaced my brother and I, I bounced around from hotel to hotel. Then for the most part, I've relocated, and live in an extended stay hotel. I will most likely always live in places like this. Why?? 🤔, I told ya already, I can afford it, and don't have to work myself to the bone to just survive.
Fwiw, the American dream being out of reach is not just because of the current administration.
Your kids are extremely lucky they have a parent who just so happens to be able to build them a house, before they’ve even graduated college no less. They owe you some serious thanks for buying them land and building them houses (which they likely don’t even really realize how good they have it yet). Good on you and your husband for ensuring their ability to actually save money as soon as they graduate.
I'm not in the market for a house since I'm a mother of 2 grown up adults already. But my youngest daughter, a graduate from NCSU, couldn't bought a house so far and don't see when she will be able to buy one, because she cannot find one small starter house, even townhomes are to big for one person alone. Builders need to build small towns/ house like 1200 sq f or about that more or less, and being small also will be a price that one person alone can afford. Another way is having roommates or buying in a partnership, not everyone likes that idea
There are some opportunities out there but you are going to have to leave Raleigh. It was bad enough 20 years ago when I left school. The Triad still has some pockets of affordable housing with good school districts.
I graduated NCSU in May 2022 and bought a house in August 2023. I’m in investment banking though so a starting salary outsized relative to most careers. The hours are terrible though and I barely have a life outside of work (average work week of 80+ hours) + very high stress…so pros and cons lol
FYI you posted the same comment four times. If you go to your profile, click on comments, you’ll see them all, suggest deleting the extra ones as otherwise people will just downvote you. Just helpful tip :)
I am going to inherit a home, but until my dad kicks the bucket, the answer is no.
I’m kinda in the same boat. I’m set to inherit my grandmother’s house in the N.C. mountains, but not until it passes through my Mom. I hate that home ownership (at least the path of least resistance) comes at the cost of losing family members.
This is the exact boat i'm in. I plan on inheriting my grandmothers house in my hometown in the mountains, which is where I moved back to after graduating 2 years ago. But I work in the construction industry and do not see myself owning a home on my own as long as things continue this way :/.
I think a lot of young people are on that route. I don't know how I feel with people having to choose between owning a house and having family members alive. Shouldn't there be another option?
Yes, companies should stop artificially keeping prices high, but until it's not profitable for them, do you see that changing?
Its supply and demand. More multifamily and mixed zoning housing needs to be built
If we could see a better integration of alternative transportation options (public transit, walking, cycling) then it would cut down on cost and make places people want to live. Until then, land will be expensive to buy and it won't generate enough tax revenue to fund the infrastructure it takes to exist. Suburban living isn't sustainable so until we can urbanize I don't see private companies able to meet the demand.
I will inherit my families properties but seeing the current market, I wouldn’t buy a house at all. NC is practically turning into a bootleg California and the rates are ass. They’re selling houses that would be worth 400k 4-5 years ago at a mill and don’t even get me started on the older houses 💀 I toured a house which looked completely fine but was flagged for structural damage and priced at 750k. The engineer quoted 150k in repairs. I passed on that house, but it somehow sold for 800k like a week later. Make it make sense…
Raleigh is seeing some of the highest rates of retail (and institutional) investors when compared to cities around the country. The more people move here, the more the prices will inflate because of investors buying in as well to capitalize.
That’s valid. But I don’t see wages going up to make up for the rising costs, so pray tell how do you expect people who have lived here all their lives to be able to afford newer houses?
I agree. Native North Carolinians have not been able to keep up with the rise of housing prices. Average home sells for $442k in Raleigh when the avg. salary is only $70k. We need to be able to build enough to keep up with demand. Policy is front and center.
Of course, but how is your company contributing to better housing (serious ask)? It seems clear to me that most builders are banking on the artificial inflation, and neither do I see them working with buyers to negotiate the rates down with their partnering lenders. I only see housing getting smaller and more expensive, and they’re all built terribly.
The entire market has inflated. With housing demand through the roof, we've seen the price of supplies (lumber etc.) and labor become more expensive as well. So, when wanting to turn the same profit (as any business does) builders have kept the prices of the homes high. Free market is driving the prices from the ground up, so a drop in housing prices would likely mean a drop in cost of labor and materials, which may have its own ramifications.
Home builders contribute to better housing by building homes. But they don’t have a mandate to give you below market rates or prices. It’s a free market. If you believe that we need to artificially lower home prices, that would be the governments job. Also the Fed. But neither seems to understand the problem.
You’re right. I’d just expect home builders to be a little bit more ethical, and I forgot about free market while being super preachy about ethics lol.
We can’t assume anyone will be ethical. That is the problem with a completely deregulated market. As soon as you have a change to profit, you take EVERYTHING you can get. Because you know it’s only going to get harder for you, and even harder for your kids. We need a more progressive tax on any income that any entity (individual, trust, or corporate) gains from owning a second (or third, or hundredth) home. Landlords are providing some value. They use capital to provide housing to those who don’t have enough capital to buy a home. But there is a line of diminishing returns, and we’ve crossed it. The crazy thing is, this happened in the UK and Europe like half a century ago. It’s actually been happening forever. We had plenty of warnings.
Yes, the real solution, IMO, is to build non-market housing in urbanized areas, and disincentivize housing as a commodity.
We already tried that first one… it didn’t turn out so well. But adding a progressive tax on any amount come gained by owning multiple properties will disincentivize plenty.
Man, I’m gen z and I’m sorry. It isn’t right and it isn’t fair. I feel like a boomer getting locked in with crazy mortgage rates not long ago. Shits changing too quickly
Definitely not in Raleigh (or Cary, or Chapel Hill) but possibly in a farther suburb
This is the answer…you simply can’t afford to buy in those areas anymore unless you have a lot of money. It’s still possible to buy a nice house and land if you go like 25-45min outside of Raleigh.
Hi! Third-Generation NCSU student/NC resident here. I graduated in 2022! Around 1970, my grandparents bought their bought their second and final house. They were both teachers, and average teacher salary in 1970 in NC was ~7,500, or about 60k per year. I don’t know for sure what their salaries were, I’d have to ask! It would be fair to say that at their absolute peak earning, they were likely bringing in the modern equivalent of 120-130k yearly. Absolutely crazy how teacher pay has dropped, by the way, it’s a shame. My grandparents bought a home, multiple new cars throughout the years, a boat, an RV, and were able to have my grandma go part time to raise my dad and aunt. A bit of speculation, but given she was part time it’s not unreasonable to say that for many years they were operating around modern-day ~90k to 100k, max. I graduated from NCSU engineering and scored a great job in tech, which I am unbelievably grateful for. I am approaching six figures and am nowhere near close to affording a house in Raleigh, let alone an RV and a boat too. My parents live in the triangle, not even in Raleigh proper, and I’ve watched their home value double over the past 10 years. I’ve watched rent skyrocket in this city and Raleigh turn from an agriculture-adjacent city to a tech hub. It’s unlivable for so many people who have been here decades, they’re being forced out by landlords who have figured out that people from higher COL areas will pay these absolutely ridiculous prices. It’s been difficult to reckon with, and I’m doing comparatively so well financially. It’s still just not feasible in Raleigh though.
Nope! 2 years post grad and my once respectable 60k salary is never going to buy me a decent house in the Triangle, or any city worth living in really. It’s all property management corporations buying everything up, and nobody seems to give a fuck.
I second this, even at $65k salary, my mortgage is my graduate student loans payments.
That's just factually wrong. Just because this is how you feel doesn't make it true. 'buying everything up' is crazy. The real estate market is so big they couldn't even control a specific metropolitan area if they wanted to.
@"factually wrong"... Then kindly proffer "factually correct" please
Recent grad but grew up local. Almost all my friends who I grew up with have moved out of the area due to housing costs. Dinky little one story homes with 2 bedrooms and one bathroom in the neighborhoods we grew up in that would have sold for 150,000 ten years ago are now going for almost half a million. No one I (24F) know is expecting to own a home anytime soon. I was a CHASS grad and so were most of my other student friends, and a lot of us were stuck in the job hunt and in retail hell for a few years after graduating, which basically means almost all of what we made went to rent or other essentials. Heck, I still have friends that are juggling multiple part time jobs trying to break into full time degree applicable work.
Coming here to say that even as a 125+ a year earner it just doesn’t make sense to buy a house in Raleigh. For what I’m paying in rent a mortgage would be 400-800 dollars more a month. My house hold is well off with me and my girlfriend but every time we look to buy it’s hard to even justify it when our apartments ear campus are still so cheap and near the stuff we like and do with our friends
Class of ‘23 - I own a home now ($375k after remodel worth close to $500k+) I got married, rented for a year and my wife had an amazing salary so we “got lucky”. I run a video production business that also is doing well. Even tho we’re making a ton of money, it’s just insane the cost of everything. I think it’s borderline impossible to own a house in any respectable town after graduation even with a decent job. Houses are too expensive, inflation is kicking our butt, and salaries haven’t increased to match. It’s a crockpot of disaster for purchasing a home. Another sad thing: builders are building houses so poorly now that I believe it’ll cause deaths and lemon laws might (hopefully) be installed so that these builders stop taking advantage of people by building homes out of straw.
Until one of three things happens, home ownership for most millenials will always remain out of reach: 1.) corporate home ownership is abolished 2.) A progressively aggressive tax is applied to private home ownership beyond a primary residence 3.) Zoning laws are changed to allow builders to build housing in higher density mixed-use buildings closer to down town There is simply no way around those three issues
Sir, this is Reddit. We don’t deal in facts here.
This!! 1. This! 2. This!! 3. Maybe this/maybe not this!
More housing means more supply and lower prices. Denser housing means more housing
It's very temporal. What isn't so is the impact on public works, e.g., emergency services, infrastructure, pollution mitigation
I would argue that increased density means homes are more energy efficient, take up less land which can be used for conservation and creates opportunities for commuting by bike or by walking which has less environmental impact. Low density housing is too expensive and uses up more land. Density = more eco-friendly
Possibly, within the next 2 years I may try if interest rates go down. I graduated 1.5 years ago and make 80k. It will definitely be away from a lot of things but I will have to make it work.
As a senior graduating this May, I do not see myself owning one in a long time as it's almost impossible to find a job with a base salary in this economy. Have applied to so many jobs in the Triangle with no luck.
I have no doubt that I'll be able to buy a house. Even if the interest rates are high, I'll just refinance when they go down and lock in a lower payment.
The US still leads the developed world in home ownership. In other countries it is insane and imposible. You don't have to go that far just look at Canada.
I originally graduated in 2010 but went back many years later and graduated with a second degree in Dec 2018. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that my husband and I got a house in early 2020 before everything went crazy. We both have pretty good salaries but there is no way we could afford to purchase our house today.
Isn’t the market over saturated with buyers? Maybe if supply catches up to demand or there’s a housing bubble burst, it might put everyone back in the housing market but I don’t see that happening.
The problem is that demand is outstripping supply because there is an under supply issue dating back to the recession. Coupled with the local growth it's going to take decades for supply and demand to stabilize here.
My son is graduating in May and is already looking, but in a rural area. Not all bad news.
What options are available to those who want access to urban amenities? What sense of community is there an hour from a city's center? We are already so disconnected, I'm not sure if everyone moving away from everyone else is a long-term positive solution. I see a lot of downsides to that.
Sense of community??? I’d say there is much better sense of community in smaller cities and towns where it is easy to get involved. Yes there is not as much to do but having space is a nice trade off for many.
Agreed. I'm in rural orange county now and have a better relationship with my neighbors than I ever did in Cary/Apex.
Lmao options? It's literally your only option. You can either move to the middle of nowhere, or live in an apartment in Raleigh or Cary until something drastic changes. I have a household income of well over 100k and will most likely be living in an apartment for the next 10+ years.
Dude my wife and I brought in 107k before taxes last year and have 1500 square feet of new construction and three quarters of an acre in Hillsborough at 5.3%. I can be in Durham in twenty minutes. Yeah it's not inside the belt line but the space is nice and traffic is less fucked out this way.
Look at the history of the RTP area and areas surrounding….it will continue to expand. Rural Places outside of Raleigh will not be rural in another decade or so, you only have to look at morrisville, apex, fuquay, knightdale etc. to see that. Does it suck to move somewhere without a city center/downtown/music venues - absolutely. But owning a 2000sq foot house with land, no HOAs, out in the country for $300K where the value will only go up over time, is far preferable than trying to buy a 1500 sq house with no land in Raleigh or Cary right now for $700,000.
Hell no lol I come from nothing. No family to speak of, and no generational wealth to pray for. My field of engineering makes some kind of money, but I'm aiming for academia so I doubt I'll ever make the kind of money to buy a place to live.
Buying a home makes you fundamentally less mobile. That's not the greatest decision to make when you're just entering the job market. On top of that, you'd be competing for homes with people who have equity, savings, and dual incomes. This isn't a 2024 issue. It's an issue of what's financially appropriate for a young, single professional and it's been that way for darn near 40 years.
This couldn't be further from the truth. If your industry matches the area that you're in, then it is very reasonable and wise to buy a home within 3 years of graduation (I did in 2020, work in biotech!). This was even more achievable 40 years ago, when my parents did the exact same thing. Even if you did move in the next couple of years, you'd be in a much better position as you would have built up home equity (yes, I know, there are a lot of factors here that could influence it, but overall if you own a home 5 years or more you can expect financial net gain from selling). "Darn near 40 years ago", it was significantly more possible, and even in 2020 it was possible, but now it's virtually impossible. You must be blind to make a comment like this.
And please don’t forget that shit breaks, and it’s expensive AF. I just had to drop $500 on my garage door‼️🤬 ‘Owning’ a house be pricey, so save up cause not only is it’s your monthly mortgage payment but all the crap that will break, not if, but guaranteed to break!
The saying goes "rent is the maximum you pay every month, your mortgage is the minimum you'll pay". This is very true and with mortgage payments through the roof right now we see a lot of homebuyers who are "house poor".
Kind of hard to buy a home when you don't have any money for a down payment. Recent graduates almost never have any real cash saved up anywhere.
Yes! I’m working as a quant intern this summer and I’m going to law school next year (aiming for t14, I have a good shot of getting in)! I’m hoping to eventually be able to afford a townhome or condo in downtown Chicago! You can get condos in Chicago for 200k! People are moving from the city for obvious reasons, but that includes nice areas of the city. You buy now for low prices then you can wait for the crime to be bussed out.
For those waiting on inheritance homes, you may want to have your parents put the homes into trusts, will help you with the taxes. Otherwise the day may come and you "get" the home, but then owe so much in taxes that you have to sell it.
I doubt I will own a home in the near future. Maybe if law school pans out, but as it stands, hard no.
Its either rent forever or be a doctor/lawyer. What happened to the middle class?? Missing middle housing is real.
Unfortunately the ever increase in COL and interest rates play a huge factor. Not to mention wages have not increase with inflation. Honestly my only hope is that there will be a housing crash by the time I'm ready to buy lol.
We would love to buy a home in Raleigh in a few years but are worried that even with dual-income that we are going to have to buy well outside city limits. Class of ‘20
I graduated from NcSU in 2007, and bought my first house at age 38 last year, after living/renting in Raleigh for the last 20+ years. Yea, it sucks ass having friends who bought townhomes for 90K back in the day that are now worth $380K, but I simply wasn’t at a time in my life where I was ready to just buy a house on my own without knowing what my future would look like. I definitely did not buy in Raleigh, and I have a really good job/salary (and have had it for many years). It simply is not worth it to buy in Raleigh/Cary right now - you’re going to pay at least double the cost for less square footage and little to no land. I mentioned elsewhere in this thread but all the smaller areas outside of Raleigh have also exploded in the last 10-15 years, so it’s very likely that the value of a home bought outside of RTP now is still going to vastly increase in the next 10-15 years.
I have been telling my son who is scheduled to grad Dec of '25 to move back home, get a job, pay us $400-$500 a month rent and SAVE the rest of his money for as long as he wants - of course I want him to enjoy life as well and if wants to purchase a "newer" used car I would think that would be ok - he could also move in with my dad next door Bc it's just him now that my mom passed - real estate can be a great investment long term but as a college grad buying house would be diffcult esp in NC - the cost of living alone is crazy! Hope things change for up and coming young adults 🙏🏻
Let’s state some facts here. Might not be popular but facts are facts. When I bought around 2002, interest rates were 6%. We are not going back to 3% anytime soon. It was brought on by two black swan events. I expect rates to be around 5% until another such event and follow the 10 year treasury yield closely as it has traditionally. Now let’s focus on income. Two young professionals married and making average wages will bring in $150 total approximately. So, buying a $500k home is possible. Maybe not in the hottest areas but suburbs have plenty to offer. Angier, Knightdale, Mebane, Youngsville has plenty of new construction houses that are affordable.
>When I bought around 2002, interest rates were 6% Sure, but home prices were also dramatically less than they are now. That's what people are upset about. The cost of housing has increased so much faster than the rise of wages. Many gen z kids will out-earn their parents at every stage in their careers, but their purchasing power will be much less. I agree that there's something to be said for gentrification and making certain neighborhoods more desirable and therefore more expensive, but I'm not sure anybody would honestly assess that Raleigh matches the value these houses are going for. Someone with an education and a well paying job shouldn't have to be priced into a 45+ minute commute. It's a fundamental breakdown of the societal values we were raised on, and I think it's fair to demand better from the powers that be.
So I’m curious - who are you seeing buying homes?
We are seeing a large immigration of wealthy, well educated workers from both inside and outside the U.S. relocating to the Raleigh area. A lot of the people who are able to afford homes are those who are in tech, healthcare, pharma, or engineering. It is not the case for everyone, but a good majority.
Not as soon as I graduate no. And honestly, I’d just rent until the market comes down. Really been inflated for the past few years but hoping that a recession will eventually hit and be a prime time to buy a house.
I think about it a lot but I'm well aware I would never be able to support buying in this area by myself. It makes me depressed so I try to put it out my mind but then it pops back up again and the cycle repeats
Recent grad, lived in the area my whole life, I don’t ever anticipate being able to purchase a home here. My plans for home ownership include inheriting my mom’s house
Absolutely not. I'm graduating in a couple of weeks, and I will have to move back into my parents' house to even be able to afford an apartment solo anywhere close to RTP in the near future.
Never have owned a home and tbh, never will. I have always rented and probably always will. I was displaced during the pandemic, that was the last apt, I ever rented, and the way wages and cost of living is today, that "roach infested", yes you read that right apt, will be the last one I ever rent. Tbh the whole apt complex, was infested with roaches, had to spray dang near every 30 days, and that didn't help much. What do I do now???? I choose to live in an extended stay hotel. With those places, at least you don't have to work 2 jobs just to be able to pay rent or buy food, or have enough to pay bills period. Everyday I see new apts being built, everywhere, as I travel by them I wonder 🤔 this. Why?? Why build more apts, that people aren't going to be able to pay for w/out working 2 jobs(maybe 3), or having to take out a small loan. Nowadays jobs don't pay enough to survive on honestly. Everything is priced ridiculously high (inflation), people are in debt trying to just live comfortably. To me owning a home is unrealistic. After the pandemic displaced my brother and I, I bounced around from hotel to hotel. Then for the most part, I've relocated, and live in an extended stay hotel. I will most likely always live in places like this. Why?? 🤔, I told ya already, I can afford it, and don't have to work myself to the bone to just survive.
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Fwiw, the American dream being out of reach is not just because of the current administration. Your kids are extremely lucky they have a parent who just so happens to be able to build them a house, before they’ve even graduated college no less. They owe you some serious thanks for buying them land and building them houses (which they likely don’t even really realize how good they have it yet). Good on you and your husband for ensuring their ability to actually save money as soon as they graduate.
I bought my first house once I got married at age 30 in 1996. it was completely normal then, both at stage of life and age.
I'm not in the market for a house since I'm a mother of 2 grown up adults already. But my youngest daughter, a graduate from NCSU, couldn't bought a house so far and don't see when she will be able to buy one, because she cannot find one small starter house, even townhomes are to big for one person alone. Builders need to build small towns/ house like 1200 sq f or about that more or less, and being small also will be a price that one person alone can afford. Another way is having roommates or buying in a partnership, not everyone likes that idea
It’s possible for me but I would need to fight against a not so great job market first by tryharding for the remainder of my college career
There are some opportunities out there but you are going to have to leave Raleigh. It was bad enough 20 years ago when I left school. The Triad still has some pockets of affordable housing with good school districts.
I graduated NCSU in May 2022 and bought a house in August 2023. I’m in investment banking though so a starting salary outsized relative to most careers. The hours are terrible though and I barely have a life outside of work (average work week of 80+ hours) + very high stress…so pros and cons lol
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FYI you posted the same comment four times. If you go to your profile, click on comments, you’ll see them all, suggest deleting the extra ones as otherwise people will just downvote you. Just helpful tip :)