> the total settlement costs were about 3% of the value of the home

> That's $12,777.92 to get the loan.

This is something I don't quite understand when people talk about homes: they just bought a $425,930 home. If they're getting a 30-year mortgage with a 20% down payment they will pay a total of $902k at current mortgage rates. The closing costs are such a tiny fraction of what you're spending. You wouldn't go into a store and refuse to buy a $40 item when you realize you need to pay $3 in sales tax, why would you be bothered by having to pay 3% of the home's value or 1.4% of what you will end up paying in the end?

Same thing with property taxes: my home-owning friends complain about property taxes like they're some huge imposition. OP is paying $515/month in property taxes. My rent has gone up by more than that in the past 3 years that I've been in my current apartment.

That being said, I appreciate this post for the breakdown of all the expenses. I'm considering becoming part of the land-owning elite, so this is useful.

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conorcleary 5 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Some of these numbers need federal limits/maximums on them, at least in some categories of 'home'.

	▲	lapetitejort 4 hours ago \| parent [-]
		In California, property tax can only go up 2% every year based on the original purchase price (prop 13). For my neighbor who bought their house in the 60s, this must be peanuts.

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intrasight 5 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

> Same thing with property taxes

Without high property taxes, more homes would appreciate in real terms.