Dilemma

My mind will be working on overload trying to work through this one. We made a visit to Sean’s family in the central valley this weekend. We made a stop at his grandfather’s house. The family is in the middle of making many upgrades to the house to get it into a sellable condition (it’s an older home and look it from the inside and out). While there, his mom made a comment to us, “I really wish you guys could buy this house”… Something we have brought up many times. The thought of the family selling the house to just anyone off the street is pretty hard to digest. While older, the house has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, a living room and den with an eating area in the kitchen, separate laundry room, and a pool! What’s even more appealing? The price tag: zillow estimate $168k. Um, I can qualify for that lone without Sean having employment. The drawback, the major major drawback? The location. I’m doing a zillion public transit searches online to see how I could possibly get to Palo Alto for work with little or minimal driving. The outlook is bleak. So the dilemma: if this is really a feasible option to purchase a house, what is your threshold? Is the commute worth it? So many pros, so many cons. Things that make you go aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhgggggggggggggggg!