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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (April 20, 1959)
Buying a House One off Life's Host important Proves Editor's note: What ihonld yon know before setting out to buy a house? The following dispatch is based on advice by experts real estate brokers, home builders, con trftfr. economists, government oanxers and homeown ers themselves. By EDWARD COWAN UPI Correspondent Washington - (UPD -A house is probably the biggest, most expensive, most important tiling you'll ever buy. If it doesn't fit or doesn't work right you can't take it back and get a refund. You proDaoiy couldn't afford to chuck it out and buy another one, either. So, in buying a house, you want 10 De especially sure you get the right one - the one you can enjoy, afford and take pride in. That means you must have ome expert knowledge about what you re buying - knowl edge of your own or some one else's. Usually some of each is necessary. One thing you can tell bet ter than anyone else is whether the house - either a new one or one that's been previously occupied - is suit able for your family needs Does it have enough bed rooms, both for the family to day and for any planned new comers? Is it so designed that it can grow with the children? Can this year's nursery be made into a teen-age rumpus room in a few years? Adequate Closet Space? Are the rooms big enough and laid out in such a way that your furniture will fit in an attractive way? Is there adequate closet space for your clothing, linens, dishes and enough shelf room (or poten tial) for books and bric-a-brac? Whether you'll enjoy living in the house will also depend on the neighborhood it's in. Pick one where there are neighbors you would prob ably like - folks who are of similar economic circum stances and may share some of your interests. If you have children, they must be con sidered in the same way, with special emphasis on age. You can tell something about this in advance by walking around the neighborhood a bit and observing it for yourself. Local bankers, real estate agents, merchants, or almost anyone else who's been around a while would be good people to inquire of. Important Feature A very important feature of the neighborhood is its schools. Are they within walking distance of the house you're considering? or, if not, is there safe, reliable, inex pensive transportation for the youngsters? Is the school a good one and the kind your boy or girl will like.? If you plan to keep the house a long time and your children are of grammar school age, bear in mind that they'll be in junior and then senior high school before long. If you're a one-car family and that car goes downtown to work every morning, bet ter check carefully on the dis tance from the house to ther shopping center. Is the public transportation close enough and scheduled so as to meet the needs of the wife and children for going downtown, to the doctor, movies, friends, club meeting and bank? Consider Neighborhood Is there a church of your denomination close by? Do you like the pastor and the way it's run? Another about the neighbor hood to consider is whether it has been improving or de teriorating recently. After all, besides buying a place to live in, you're making an in vestment whose value might just as well go up as down Zoning laws and regula tions have a lot to do with how a neighborhod fares. They guarantee - where they exist that a residential sec tion is not likely to lose its desirable qualities through the introduction of industrial or commercial activities. A readily available clue to the neighborhood's, future is whether its residents keep their buildings and property well maintained painted, repaired, trimmed, policed of debris. If the houses look un kempt and decaying, you can be pretty sure that property values are in danger. One of the biggest worries for people buying a house - especially their first is: How do I know I'm not being gypped? lips Suggested Well, there are several things you can do to make sure you don't pay too much for your house andor that it's not chock full of defects not immediately visible. Must Know Market One thing is to know the market. Look at and price many houses to get an idea of the going rates. A real estate agent may be able to tell you what to consider a maximum to pay for a house of the size, style and loca tion you desire. If you're considering a newly built house, compare what different builders are offering. Besides price, check such points as size, number of rooms, equipment (range, dishwasher), insulation, heat ing system, quality of work manship (are there hammer marks on the woodwork?), plumbing and drainage. Ask folks who bought houses from the same builder two and five years ago how they are hold ing up. If you're going to buy a house that's already been oc cupied, it might be a good idea to hire a professional appraiser to give it the once over. That's probably the soundest way to guard against overpayment or getting a "lemon." Can Test House But you yourself can also test the house in a variety of ways, examine the floors beneath the carpeting. They may be marred or stained badly in places you don't plan to carpet over. If electrical ap pliances go with the house, try them out. (They're prob ably figured into the price, even though the owner may say he's throwing them in free). Equipment such as gar bage grinders, washing ma chines and dryers should be carefully inspected for signs of hard wear and proper maintenance. Poke around in the base ment and looL for traces of mildew and water stains, signs of seepage and rotting timbers or cracked concrete. If you see any number of dis carded blown fuses, or a big supply of fresh ones, ask why. Check the fit on inside and outside doors. If the space be tween the bottom of a door and the sill is wider at one side than the other, something is sagging the house, the door, the frame or possibly the floor. Another way to avoid being gypped is to make sure you know what's in the sale con tract that it says and means what the seller claims it does. If the furnace is warranted, for instance, is the warranty iron-clad? If you're not a law yer, it might pay to consult one. How much can you afford to pay for a house? Most authorities agree that there are two rules-of-thumb to keep in mind: Don't buy a house that costs more than two-and-a-half times your an nual income; don't load your self down with a monthly payment obligation that ex ceeds a quarter of your monthly income. Monthly Payments One thing to keep in mind as a prospective homeowner is that your monthly pay ments must cover more than just the principal and interest on the mortgage. As a home owner, you have to worry about maintenance, operating costs (fuel, electricity) insur ance premiums and property and utility taxes. However, many times the bank includes these in estimating your monthly paymnts. While on the subject of money, consider the very heart of the problem: how are you going to pay for the house? Most people pay a certain amount down in cash and borrow the rest with the house pledged as collateral. Such a loan is "a mortgage loan, or simply a mortgage. How do you get a mortgage? Your attorney or real estate broker can help you here, but you can also do it your self. Inquire About Mortgage Stop in at a local or down town bank, savings and loan association, building associa tion, mortgage lender or in surance company and simply say you'd like to inquire about about getting a mortgage. The man you talk to will want to know a few things about you your family in come, general financial situa- Cubans Break Up Nicaraguan Camp Pinar Del Rio, Cuba -UPD-The Cuban army has broken up a Nicaraguan revolution ary training camp and plans to crack down on any other attempts to mount an expedi tionary invasion force from Cuban soil, a high army offi cer disclosed yesterday. Maj. Dermidio Escalona, commandant of Pinar Del Rio, Cuba's westernmost province, said the army's "get tough" attitude was designed to main tain Premier Fidel Castro's policy of non-intervention in neighboring countries. He said the army also was motivated by the belief that some persons, seeking to em barrass the Castro govern ment, had financed certain foreign revolutionary activity. The Nicaraguan camp was tion and how big a mortgage you want. You will want to ask him how much money his institution will lend you, at what interest rate, for how long and whether there are any other strings attached. You should make a special point of asking especially in these days of relatively high interest rates whether you'll have to pay a discount. That means that you'd pay inter est on and have to repay as principal an amount more than the sum actually loaned you. Mortgages fall into two major categories conven tional and those backed by the government either in sured by the Federal Housing Administration or guaranteed (for ex-servicemen only) by the Veterans Administration. Government-backed mort gages have maximum interest rates and repayment periods. In the course of qualifying for one the homebuyer gets (and pays for) an expert appraisal of his property. Other Advantages Government-backed mort gages have other advantages, too, but they also have this major drawback: they fre quently involve more paper work and delay than conven tional financing. In sum, there are a good many things to know about in order to buy a house intelli gently. The wise homebuyer will look, read, calculate, in quire and, if need be, con sult an expert. Servicemen PROMOTED Richard E. Padgham, son of Mr. and Mrs. Henry F. Padg ham Jr., Springbrook rd., Medf ord, 1 was recently pro moted to the rank of first lieutenant while serving with the Army Transportation corps. Lieutenant Padgham is sta tioned at Fort Mason, Calif, as aide-de-camp to Brig. Gen. Robert C. Tripp, commanding officer of the transportation terminal command, Pacific. A graduate of Medford High school and Oregon State col 1 e g e, Lieutenant Padgham and his wife, the former Mar cia Houghton of Medford, made their home at Fort Mason. IN EXERCISE Two Central Point Navy men recently participated in the Pacific Fleet's amphibious landing exercise, Operation Big Land, off the southern California coast. Virgil E. Elbert, fire con trol technician seaman, son of Mr. and Mrs. Floyd J. Elbert, route 1, box 298, is serving aboard the inshore fire sup port ship USS Carronade, and Roger E. Carrigan, radarman seaman apprentice, son of Mr. and Mrs. Gene B. Carrigan, 172 Freeman rd., is serving aboard the radar picket de stroyer USS Rogers. Former Disfricf Manager Retires Rilea W. Doe, vice presi dent of Safeway Stores and former district manager at Medford, will retire after 40 years of service June 1, of ficials of the company an nounced today in Oakland, Calif. Doe first joined the com pany in Idaho when only four stores were in operation. He is Safeway's oldest employee in years of continuous service. In 1957 Doe served as a member of the U. S. trade mission to Yugoslavia. MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Oregon, Monday, April 20, 1959 S PUT IT AHEAD Des Moines, Iowa-(CPD-State Sen. Jack Schroeder, a Re publican, interrupted Demo cratic Sen. Melvin Wolf to ob ject to his criticism of the motives of Republican legis lators. "My last paragraph praises you," Wolf told him. "Well, read that one first, please," Schroeder said. AID FOR MOTORISTS ' Red Bank, N. J.-TCPD-A new map of the Garden State Parkway is being prepared to day with a special panel for distressed motorists. Designed to be displayed through a car window, it says :' i big bold letters: "Send help." !Th ..lic Inn at South Sudbury, Mass., and the White Horse Tavern in Newport, R. I., are the oldest inns still op erating in the United States. Improve your home with MIRRORS All Sizes in Stock Phone SP 3-3613 SELBY Gs 303 North Bartlett SEEING THE TOWN Worcester, England (UPD -j The Severen river overflowed j its banks Sunday night and 19 swans cruised down Hood st. to see the sights. directed by Nicaraguan exile Chester Lacayo who persuad ed Cuban youths to "partici pate in the proposed expedi tionary enterprise," it was re ported, v CLOGSTON'S Metal Weather Stripping and Screens . Estimates Gladly Phone SP 3-1014 Evenings V 7 112 EAST MAIN STREET SALE! Just a few of many beautiful shoes purchased specially for our AN-' , N I VERS ART SALE! White Shoes DRESS Buy Now for Graduation 7.77 SANDALS 3.77 FLATS 4.77 Gil "" A v 7 SHOP EVERY STORE IN TOWN . . Then Come Back and Buy at PICK'S! ' PICK'S Charge Account tl0m MATCHING HANDBAGS 3.95 TERRIFIC VALUES! It's Our . 75 HALF-S Choose from a good selection of lovely styles and colors, short sleeves and a big selection of A sleeves. You'll want several at this low, low price! Sizes: IOV2 to 22'2 PRICE EXAMPLE: REG. SALE PRICE PRICE $12.95 $6.50 14.95 7.50 16.95 8.50 18.95 9.50 112 EAST MAIN STREET 4 - i ;s J 1 Yes, we're celebrating our 7th Anniversary ALL THIS ' S,. 1 f I MONTH! A great event! All new fashions to span r v J UZ the spring and summer seasons , f .1 I ... at prices that give more W.Vvk I i I s-tH"-e4-h to your budget. SHOP If Your CREDIT IS GOOD n n O n 1 vmmm i llll 3 layers, very fluffy and full ... trimmed with satin III I :E: l 77 I Shell Coral U I White L J Sizes: S-M-L LJ OUTSTANDING VALUES All This Month! CAPRI PANTS OR TAPERED LEG SLACKS Solid colors, plaids and flower ed prints. VALUES to 6.95 $277 NEW SPRING and SUMMER BLOUSES $977 A wide selection of styles and colors. Short sleeve and sleeveless. VALUES to 4.95 BUY NOW and SAVE! NEW SPRING and SUMMER Dresses 2-piece blouse and skirt combina tions. Wonderful selection of styles and colors. SIZES 8 to 16 VALUES to 12.95 $J77 NEW SPRING and SUMMER Skirts Beautfiul selection of colors in both full and straight styles. VALUES to 6.95 377 Next Door to Robinson Bros. LOADS OF FREE PARKING SHOP PICK'S APPAREL
