Hey, y'all! Single, childfree LGBTQ+ PoC, with ehhh credit considering a move from Crescent Hill rental to Portland late next year.
Can any current Portland residents offer insight? Anything I should be looking out for as a first-time buyer? What questions should I even be asking? 😅😂
Posted Dec 18, 2019, 9:20 PM UTC
Talk to a mortgage broker or your bank first to determine if you are eligible for a loan and for how much.
This is the critical point. If you have "ehhh credit" you're probably not ready. Keep in mind you also need several thousand dollars in cash in the bank. Even if you find a deal that cuts your down payment, things like a good faith deposit, home inspections and such must be paid in cash.
A lot of people think "Hey, I pay X in rent so I should be able to pay an X mortgage every month..." and it doesn't at all work that way.
Talk to a mortgage broker and get a pre-certification letter first, first, first before even opening Zillow. Otherwise you're setting yourself up for heartbreak.
I’d try to buy a house close to McQuixote Coffee, the Table, and Louisville Grows. I feel like there’s enough foot traffic and eyes on the neighborhood in that area around 15th and Portland Avenue that would keep a lot of drifters away. Plus you’d at least have a nice cafe to walk to. But I’m honestly not sure, that’s just my two cents.
You may want to consider the Russell neighborhood which is adjacent to Portland to the south. I say that because there are currently TONS of financial incentives for new owner occupants in Russell. There is down payment assistance as well a significant amount of money available for home rehab that is specific to Russell. If you want more info, call the Office of Housing. I'll also add that contrary to popular opinion there are many nice blocks and lots of nice people in Russell. It's close to downtown and currently experiencing unprecedented investment.
I moved to an "undesirable" part of Louisville and I would highly recommend it. My wife and I used it as a financial slingshot, leveraging the KHA loan's 10k grant to buy a low-cost house and save up money.
Our story: used KHA loan to buy a 58k house in Taylor Berry for 48k a little over 2 years ago. Our mortgage was under $400/mo. This allowed us to lap our east-end friends financially, as our friends were paying over 2.5× as much for a similar home in a "nicer" location.
The good: saved up a next home down payment really quickly with a six-figure income and low cost of living. This outweighs all negatives in my opinion.
The bad: telling my wife that the gun shots she heard were fireworks, homeless people/junkies walking around (they never caused harm aside from the eyesore), drug dealers/users on most streets (again, never caused harm). I was worried that maybe Amazon packages would get stolen, but it never happened to us and even if it did, could easily replace with all the money we saved. The worst negative experience is the prejudice experienced from people who act like the east end of Louisville is the only livable part of Louisville aside from the Highlands and Germantown. One major negative is the public school systems aren't good, but that is anywhere in this state. This doesn't seem to be an immediate concern of yours though.
Overall, I would highly recommend living below your means. Stranger crime is extremely rare, yet seems to be the primary concern of east enders from my experience.
Wife and I are closing on a house and moving to the burbs now, as I will be traveling more for work and she doesn't want to live in the hood alone due to anxiety, but having a starter home with a cost lower than our cars has been a huge blessing on our financial situation, would recommend.
If you're going from renting to buying, you will need more money than you think for closing costs, lawn mowers, and all kinds of other stuff. Be handy or willing to learn, most homes in Portland are very old and you'll spend some time fixing stuff. Some blocks are quieter than others. Property on a lot of the really great blocks rarely changes hands, or when it does, it's not through the traditional sale process. It's a tight-knit neighborhood. If your idea of "community-building" is to move some place and be a good neighbor, you'll be accepted pretty quickly. If you want to move here to "save the neighborhood," you probably won't be trusted. Acceptance is never automatic, even if your grandfather came to Portland on the Mayflower. It's relatively convenient and a cheap place to live. You can get a lot of house for the money and if you have a car, you can get to all the "nice" places in Louisville and keep some cash in the bank. It's not a very "cosmopolitan" place, but it's a nice place to put down roots.
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Can you clarify on why not?
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Your insurance premiums might be getting a lot more expensive if you drive. Prepare for that.
How do you feel about living in a working class neighborhood? Are you comfortable with crime? Do you feel like you would mesh well with the neighbors or are you just there because it's cheap? Are you flipping it to some other person looking for cheap property in the future or do you plan to stay long term?
Finally, why Portland and not New Albany, Shelby Park, or Smoketown? Have you considered other options? Affordable housing exists as long as you're not planning on renting in the next ten years. (Just a thought. Louisville is still relatively cheap if you're a renter but $300 single-person rent is gone forever unless you luck out.)
If your budget is $60-80k you can have a really nice place in New Albany in a more LGBTQ-friendly neighborhood. Not that Portland is unfriendly per sé, but there are a few more places to congregate and downtown is the same distance.
One thing that you should also consider is transportation. Do you own a car or do you walk? Are you wanting to commute by bike at some point? Portland has very good access to TARC routes which is one of it's amenities.
Doesn't bother me, I grew up in working class neighborhoods and homeless shelters in other parts of the state.
I like the safety of Crescent Hill and Clifton, a lot of my friends and co-workers live here. But I'm re-prioritizing service to others in my life and feel like I could be a better neighbor elsewhere than here, where few are really wanting.
Long-term. Like 7-10 years, probably. Life happens, so who knows? I've been at this rental with a room mate for going on 4 years and each of us is paying $600, but that might change.
Contributing to community-building is important to me.
I've been to and have friends in New Albany/Sellersburg/Charlestown/Clarksville and don't find those areas as appealing, but am keeping my mind open.
Prices in Shelby Park seem high. Aside from Portland/Shawnee, I am looking at Beechmont and Smoketown.
Thanks for the heads up. I'll look around in New Albany, but while distance might be the same, commute by cycling is easier from Portland, IME.
I have a car for trips and bicycle to work when possible. TARC usage is definitely an appealing amenity.
No way you're getting a nice place for anywhere near 60-80K. I'd love to be proven wrong. But I think those days have sailed.
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