Job Discussion Forums

[Nomad Dan]

Hey everyone,

As my name indicates, I love the nomadic way. I am already itching to get overseas again. BUT I want a home base. I am currently teaching in Dallas and I have found a small brick home in a quiet neighborhood that is just beckoning me. It is priced at 60,000 very reasonable for Dallas. I am so tempted to buy it and get out of the apartment game.

My monthly apartment rent is more than my mortage payment would be.

BUT I would also love to take off for the middle east for another tour....or to Thailand or Africa or whereever! I teach bilingual kids in Dallas and there is great job security at the moment. I feel sure that I can always come home to a job. I am working on my masters degree and should finish in 2004.

I guess my concern is that I do want to be a nomad but I would also like to maintain a home base in the United States.

I am thinking of either leasing it to very specific teachers....Single or couples...when and if I decide to take off again. Perhaps even storing my earthly belongings in the garage or building a builing specifically for that purpose.

Am I on the right track here, or do I need to choose between a career here or life overseas....the later of which I am dearly missing.

Thanks,
Nomad Dan

[Irish]

Well, I don't know about Dallas but I can tell you that such arrangements are common here in Hawaii, although probably more so on the outer islands than Oahu. Many properties are owned by people on the mainland who might come out every year or every other year for a few weeks or months. The rest of the time, the unit/house is rented by other vacationers or locals, depending on whether the owners offer short or long-term leases.

The trick is having local managers you can rely on to look after things while you're away. It doesn't matter how trustworthy the tenants are--sooner or later, something will go wrong and someone has to be responsible for emergencies while you're in Thailand or Africa or the Middle East. I'm sure there are property management companies in your area who could handle this for a fee. Ideally, you've got trusted family or friends who could fill this role. The alternative is to simply trust the renters to handle everything. Myself, unless it was someone I knew very well, I'd never do that. A local manager will cost you, but I think it would be worth it for peace of mind.

A caveat: one reason this works well here is geography. Even in the worst of markets, you can usually find someone to fill the unit because the rock is only so big. Dallas is obviously different and I don't know what your odds are of having your place sit empty for an extended period of time. Just something to think about.

Good luck,

Irish

[Nomad Dan]

Thanks Irish.
Man, I wish I could look into buying a nice house in Hawaii. That would be cool!
I think I am going to go for it. I may just continue working in the United States and travel and work overseas as a consultant a few months out of the year. I think I am finding an interesting niche in bilinigual education that is marketable overseas.
I really enjoy having options...and I enjoy putting equity into something rather than throwing money at rent.
Aloha,
Nomad Dan

[Irish]

Nomad Dan wrote:

[veiledsentiments]

First off Irish, thanks for making me feel a little better about your being in Hawaii and me here in the cold.

Nomad, buying and renting property has its good points and bad points. I did it for many years while overseas. Paid off the mortgage while in the Gulf. Eventually made quite a bit of money when I sold. That is the good news.

The bad news is that the renters trashed the place and it cost me lots of time and money fixing it up. I did eventually get the money back when I sold it, but it was a great deal of aggravation.

It is crucial to have someone you can trust to manage the property. Even that does not protect you from the deadbeat tenant that may show up. I usually tell people to assume the worst and expect that when the time comes to live it the place again, you will need to do lots of repairs. If you are at all handy with a hammer, that helps.

Economically speaking, real estate is usually a good investment (though you are buying at the top of the market). But, I understand that the rental market is not very good right now because the low interest rates have allowed many to buy houses that would normally rent.

But, all in all, I think it is a good idea. Nice to let someone else in effect pay your mortgage.

[Albulbul]

Are you buying as an investment or because you want a place to stay ?
I know that in the UK housing market advisors tell you not to mix the two motives.
Also I would suggest that those telling you NOT to rent to friends and colleagues are worth listening to. Get a professional to advise you, and an agency to run the letting. Maybe it is different in the US but I suspect not.

Watch out - you can get seriously burned if you buy the wrong place or get bad tenants.

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

Nomad Dan!

I know that I'm a little late to this thread, but when I used my LAST Saudi exit-only visa last March, I decided as an expat for life, that I'd better get the Lil' Missus a place to call home. However, we were tired of living like Gypsies, so we went a different route than most folks, I think. We live not to far from Dallas and in them parts, they have little unattached dwellings behind the main house commonly known as Mother-in-Law suites...studio apartments, really. Anyway, we went into the market, found the ideal place, plunked down a decent amount of change...and it was ours. We considered going the cheap route and advertise for ourselves, but in the end, opted for hiring a property management firm that takes all of the hassle out of renting and renter relations. Now, we have a fully rented home, someone there paid to watch over it in our absence, and a place to go stay when we're at home on leave. Waddayathink?[/img]

[Stephen Jones]

Three years in Saudi and you could pay off the whole $60,000.

Depending on how much you're paying in mortgage, how much you're earning, and how much rent you can get you might decide to leave it empty. The problem with that, apart from the money you will lose, is that you will have to pay someone to look after it anyway, unless you have somebody you really trust.

My advice is to buy it and decide whether you're going to rent it or not when you know where abroad you're working, and how much cash you have.

[Nomad Dan]

Thanks for the suggestions....Since I posted I bought the house, and I am enjoying living in it....It is near my teaching job....I make 40,000 a year working for Dallas ISD as an elementary teacher.

I am wanting to go overseas...and I think I will next August.

I have found someone I trust who owns several homes in the neighborhood. He has offered to manage my property for 10 percent.
Mortgage is around 600 a month, I am hoping to rent for about 850 a month....Does this sound doable?

Also, I don't think I will be going back to Saudi...just too much hassle and it is not a cake walk there, and I have this been there done that attitude.
That SALTS job is tempting though....any body got any thoughts on that?
I am thinking about China or Thailand but ONLY IF I AM WITH A GOOD INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL...No more Cowboy or Hippie teaching gigs for me...

I would appreciate your thoughts and recommendations very much.
Thanks,
Dan

[andrew]

All creatures NEED a nest, hole, cave, coop, doghouse to return to.
I maintained one while travelling while teaching abroad. Whether to own this cave or rent this coop for peace of mind has been a problem for me for decades. I recently sold my condo-too much hassle to rent it. I invested the proceeds into income generating securities via a stock broker. I now rent a 'pied-a-terre' here in Montreal as my coop. It will remain not subletted for the time being. As time passes and should the position in KSA prove to be ageeable I will decide on the next move.
But I do think all beings require this nest.
I have chosen to rent. To buy and not use and rent out seems like a lot of anguish for me to deal with.
As Oprah says:"You can't do it alone." So unless you have someone dependable to look after the many circumstances involved with renting out your property during your absence it would seem to be too stressful to be worth it. Also in a few years you may be in a different frame of mind. I might add that the NEED TO OWN A PIECE OF PROPERTY is the same as NEED TO OWN A CAR passes as one owns these trappings.

[Nomad Dan]

You stay in the mother in law place when you are in town, while the main house is rented out....??? Is that it? I have just bought a portable building, 4 rooms, climate controlled...in the small town where I grew up. I can make a bachelor pad out of this place for storing my stuff and living when I am on leave, and rent out my brick home in Dallas....I think it is a pretty good plan...I am also paying off a 2004 pickup truck...I will just keep making payments.
I will be damned if situations and things are gonna keep me from enjoying my life and travelling.
I do have a good person whom I trust...who is a professional manager, and he will rent the place and maintain it for 10 percent. I absolutely am mixing having a place to call home and an investment...They are totally mixed.
I want to play and I want to get ahead.
I think I can manage both...Inshallah.
I appreciate your suggestions.....
Where are you not-so-far-from-Dallas, if I may ask?
I am in the Pleasant Grove area of Dallas....Not the best part of Dallas, but a quiet neighborhood....with potential...Light rail is coming close, and there is a movement to clean up the area.
Take care,
Dan

[Sharjahmite]

I, too, got tired of living like a gypsy between jobs and during summer holidays and after some soul-searching, bought a small house at the edge of a small town in a beautiful place. My family and I spend the summers there as a base when we are not travelling to and from our home in the UAE. I don't rent it out during the rest of the year. I don't regret the decision a single bit. My car is parked in the driveway and my jacket is hanging by the front door. I spend all summer gardening, landscaping and doing home improvements and just relaxing in the "nest." Every fall, my wife and kids put the house "to sleep" and our garden/yard is completely perrenials (mostly native plants) these days. When we come home in the spring, it's all still there and with a little airing out, and a lot of weeding, we are set for another summer of real home life. The "investment" value is hard for some people to understand, but I wouldn't trade the feeling of stability and security the place provides for most of the year when I'm not there.

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

Amen, brother!

[Nomad Dan]

Hey everyone. Well, I enjoy owning my own home, but hesitate to leave it to a rental agency....I think I found a great solution....I know someone in the community who manages several properties and he offered to do the same for me for 10 percent. I mentioned to him how important it is that the house be properly cared for and that I would really like to keep things in storage here at the house....His solution was to go to the Seminary College not far from here and advertise....He had done this before with success....Maybe this will be the ideal solution. I won't be making so much profit, but I will have my place, and it will be looked after.
BTW, after considering returning to Saudi Arabia, I think I am going to an international school in Seoul...Pay of about 33K per year. Housing paid. I would consider the Raytheon boys, but I am not hearing enough pro or con.
Cheers,
Dan

[Paul in Saudi]

I was talking to my accountant and broker (separately) on my last vacation. They are of the opinion that I ought not to bother.

I live here and plan to retire to Mexico.

Most Americans buy homes due to the huge tax advantages. We pay no taxes, so that does not help us. I do not wish to get into a situation where when I sell my US home (to buy a Mexican one) that I have to pay a huge capital-gains tax. (If I were to retire to the US I could roll that money over into a new home.)

So all in all, with our tax status it doesn't really make sense. I say this despite my primal urge to own some land.