I'm moving to Philly next summer because of the job I'm planning to buy my first house ever (if the numbers work out).
After reading 3 books (4th one is halfway done) and listening to 50 of the Biggerpockets podcasts and many Reddit posts (before knowing BP) I'm freaking out more than before.

Things you need to know about my situation:

- I'm within the 1 hour and 30 minutes driving distance of Philly but do not know the city.

- My job is in Ogontz/Belfield, PA which I know is not a good neighborhood yet I'm kind of a safety freak and my highest priority is safety.

- Through my job, I have access to a loan with a 5% downpayment with a 30-year fixed-rate loan of 5.5% interest with no PMI.

- For the downpayment, I can put 50k which is equivalent to a 1m hose (with some room to stretch) and I'm looking for at least a 3:2 house.

- I'm NOT considering a townhouse at the moment (I like to be distant from my neighbors).

- I highly prefer the house to be within less than 30 minutes of commuting distance to Ogontz by car.

- I'm planning to stay there for 3-4 years and then move to Baltimore where part of my family is and buy another property there. In that case, I would like to rent the property out, and ideally, I would like to hold on to the property as long as possible.

Things that you could potentially help me with (and I highly appreciate it):

- I read a lot of posts and analyses here and there that house prices are gonna drop in 2023. I know nobody knows for sure, but what's your take on house prices in 2023? Is mid-2023 a relatively safe time to buy, or should I wait?

- Should I consider buying at all? I used the NYTimes rent vs buy calculator that told me unless the rent is higher than $4500, I should consider renting. Is that too high of rent for Philly? No matter how I calculate it, I feel like buying is not a good choice (unless I'm doing my modeling incorrectly). Can you please give me some insight?

- Can I apply the investment rules on the property I'm buying, e.g. 1% rule, or a property manager cost, even though I'm going to live in it myself so that when I'm leaving I will have some cash flow?

- Can you please introduce some neighborhoods within 30 minutes of commute distance that are "very safe"? It's a plus if it's close to public transport which makes it easy to go to NYC every now and then. Based on my research (which could definitely be flawed) areas around Narberth could be an option, what do you think?

- Since this is my first house, I'm going with the rule of thumb of trying to see at least 100 houses before making an offer. Is it a realistic goal in the span of 7-8 months with a 90 minutes driving distance?

- How can I find a good buyer's agent in Philly?

Thank you for your time

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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