What You Get for the Money...

[Natalie201]

Bill's thread about the Portobello house had me thinking about how to compare housing costs where we all live. There is a TV show that does this. I thought it might be fun.

I'll pick a price and everyone post a place in your town that would go for that price. give whatever specifics you'd like. I'm going to use Realtor.com because it's convenient, but use whatever resource is best for your area.

Here goes:

What You Get for the Money: $200,000

Okay, in Columbia, South Carolina, I live in the Northeast part of town which is about 10-15 minutes outside of the downtown area. Here's an average house in my area:



$198,285
4 Bed, 3 Bath
2,313 Sq. Ft.

Brand new neighborhood, award winning school district, and very close to shopping and dining.


Whose town is next?

[kah]

I'm not going to list the name of the town, since it's pretty small and I don't want any more stalkers than I already have, but here goes...


197K
2 BR
2 BA
2.5 car garage
Condo

Very minor petty crime, no major crime. A+ school system. Half hour drive from a major city.

Or you could buy a lot in the high roller subdivision for the same price.

[rappites]

I am going to list three. Since we are looking to move.

The first is Elgin, IL where we currently live. It is o.k. But, too expensive for us to buy a nice decent house. But, here is a house that is going for $198,306. Property tax is $5K per year.



2 Bed
2 Bath
Full Basement


We are currently looking to Rockford, IL as a possiblity to move to.

$194,900 property tax is $3,388



3 bed
3 bath
Full Basement



Then Murfreesboro, TN. This house is $180,000, property tax is $701. Such a difference in property tax.



3 Bed
3 Bath
no basement

[Trazalca]

$149,900
4 Bed, 3 Bath
COVINGTON, GA 30016
If you don't mind the hour long commute to Atlanta for work, this is a good start.

[Trazalca]

Here's a few more, in the same city/zip as above:


$149,900
4 Bed, 3 Bath


$149,900
4 Bed, 2.5 Bath


$150,000
4 Bed, 3 Bath


$154,900
4 Bed, 2.5 Bath


$154,900
4 Bed, 3 Bath

[omicron]

Geez, 200K will easily get you a 4bd, 2.5bth 2200sqft+ house in my area.

Hell, my 3bd, 2bath 1400sqft cost almost half of that.

I watch those flip shows on TV and it absolutely blows my fucking mind that people consider a 675K house a 'starter home'!!!!

[Natalie201]

that's one of the reasons I wanted to see the comparison with people here. I know I'm going to see similar houses to Traz and Trix but I am definitely interested in what Jake, Bill, and the like who are close(r) to bigger cities.

No offense, Traz, since I know you're close to ATL, but I know how varied it can be county to county around ATL and Covington is a LOT like Conyers. If you recall there was discussion about a Re-Lo to Con-town....yikes...aren't we glad that didn't work out???

Here's another gem in the $200K range in Columbia, SC:



$199,500
5 Bed, 3 Bath
2,450 Sq. Ft.


Nice, enclosed neighborhood with its own middle school and VERY close to brand new shopping development. Top schools in area. Again, about 10-15 minutes from downtown.

And this one has a "featured link" for a virtual tour. http://76.162.185.70/cgi-bin/PropertyDetails.cgi?Name=esp58&?_MLSNAME=columbias c&_MLSID=171927&poe=realtor&vmode=sgl

[omicron]

Bah Nat, are you insulting Dallas? :Smirk:

For instance, this house:


Is a 4bd, 2.5bth house with a pool. And it's literally right around the corner from me.
I live about 13miles north of Downtown Dallas.

[Natalie201]

Originally Posted by omicron

Bah Nat, are you insulting Dallas? :Smirk:

NOT AT ALL!!!! I was just figuring that those of us that live in the south would see some similarities. I figured Traz and Trix into the equation because both are within 4 hours of me +/-.

I'm interested in what EVERYBODY is getting for their money!!!

[kah]

This isn't my town, but it's in the same county. Frankly, I am in love with this house, but I refuse to spend 200K for a place to live.



4 BR
2 1/2 BA
2 car garage
only 1/3 acre lot, though