[Bet_to_Nguyen]

Hi all,

I often lurk in this form and I think there's a lot of good, intelligent discussion going on in here. Hopefully you guys/gals can offer me some advice on this situation.

For a little background to understand my financial situation, I'm an entry level structural engineer with a master's degree earning 50k/year. I've been working for about a year and am comfortable and happy with my job (large corporation) and plan on staying until I get my professional license (2.3 years away and decent pay raise) and maybe a few years after that until I have gained enough experience to start my own business.

I currently rent a condo that is very close to work (Atlanta) and am very interested in purchasing this place when the lease is up in December. These particular units (2bd/2ba about 1000sf) go for about 160k apiece and I will have somewhere around 25k to put down on it.

The way I understand it is that condos are generally not good investment ideas (assoc. fees, not owning the land), but I can't find a house that I can afford in my area (about 250k)and the condo is only 2 miles from the office).

Here are my questions: Do condos appreciate much? Is this a good idea for me given my financial situation? Should I continue to rent (460/month) until I can afford the house I want? I don't mind having a roommate, but I don't want to depend on splitting everything. Therefore my budget will allow about 1k/month as a house payment.

These are the questions that I think of most? Are there other things I should consider? Any suggestions/experiences will be helpful.

Thanks.