Not Here It Isn't

For about 16 months my husband and I have been renting and living in a duplex. Well, actually it is like 3/4 of a house because we split the first floor with our neighbors, and then we have the whole upstairs. It isn't a bad place, rent is very reasonable and our neighbors are super nice. But, we would still like to own a place of our own that we could fix up and add our personal touches to it.

So we have been looking around at houses for awhile. We probably have toured about 20 different houses and came up empty. We actually put in an offer on a house, but they turned us down.

Our quest continues and we grow incredibly frustrated. For one thing, houses in our area are so over priced. If I hear one more newscaster say that the housing market is a "buyers market" one more time I am going to chuck the TV across the room. It might be a buyers market elsewhere, but not here.

I decided to do some research at different places throughout the country to see what a comparable house in each place would cost and here is what I found out.

Where We Live

This house is right in our area. It is 2150 sq ft, with four bedrooms and two bathrooms. It also has a two car garage. The house is brand new.

This house comes with the hefty price tag of: $224,900







Ohio (Closer to home, but a little more west.)

I have a friend who lives in Ohio and told us that the houses were pretty reasonable. So I thought I would check them out and see what they had to offer.

This house here is a little smaller then the one where I live. It is about 1544 sq ft. It has four bedrooms, two and a half baths, a two car garage and was built in 2004. It's a little older and a little smaller, but still a very nice house.

This house is on the market for: $100,000.

Now that is a major price drop!


Indiana (The mid-west)

I saw at a couple of different places that Indiana was one of the best places to find a nice house at a reasonable cost. I can now see that is very true.


This house is still smaller than the first house with 1,494 sq ft. It has three bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, and a two-car garage. This house is the oldest one so far. It was built in 1999.

It is listed at: $116,000.





North Carolina (Sign me up for warmer weather)

I one time went on a vacation to Myrtle Beach, and we decided to visit this town in NC. I immediately fell in love with the community and it's small town charm. It had several business downtown, and was a really pretty city. So naturally, it was a choice for me to look at their houses for sale.
This house might not look like much, but it is a completely refurbished 1920s bungalow with 1,085 sq ft, three bedrooms and one bathroom. There isn't a garage, but parking is available off street.

I know the house is a lot smaller then the one available in my area, but this house is right downtown in the adorable city. Within walking distance from farmers' markets, restaurants and great stores.

This house is for sale for:$114,950. Oh, I should also mention that a beach is only about an hour away.


Washington (The Wild West)

So we have hit the north, the south, the Midwest and now time for the west. I will say that a lot of places out west are very expensive. But, I did happen to find this community to have a decent amount of houses for a reasonable price.

The photo (being this small) doesn't do this house justice. It isn't run down, it is just the pixelation of the photo.

So this house is 1500 sq ft, three bedrooms and one bathroom. I can't find anything about parking.

But the inside is all new and looks very nice.

This house could be yours for: $120,000.



Now I understand that not all of the houses that I have shown are created equally. The one where I live is bigger than all the others, but the other houses have various other good qualities.

The biggest point I am trying to make is, that where I live is considered to be a distressed community. If we are that distressed, than why are our houses so expensive? Are we all doomed to rent for the rest of our lives while we wait for this huge drop in the housing market?

But, for now, I guess we will continue to look and keep our eyes peeled for "our house."