Latest news with #Ghio
Business Insider
28-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
A HENRY couple in San Diego who make $225,000 are renting because they don't want to become house-poor
Justin Ghio and his fiancé wanted to make the plunge into homeownership when interest rates plummeted at the height of the pandemic in 2020. They made offers on four houses in San Diego, but they were outbid on all of them. Soon enough, home prices and mortgage rates were soaring amid a buying frenzy, and they felt they'd missed their opportunity to buy. "I'd always hoped to own a home," Ghio said. "With the rising interest rates, it just fiscally wasn't seemingly responsible to make that decision to try to buy." But now, Ghio, a 35-year-old talent director, says he's relieved they didn't stretch their budget to buy. Renting is significantly cheaper than owning a home in San Diego, like in many hot housing markets, and Ghio is among a growing number of Americans choosing to keep renting rather than take on a hefty mortgage. Three years ago, the couple and their eight-year-old twin daughters moved into their current rental home in a quiet San Diego neighborhood near their kids' school. They pay $3,795 a month in rent for their four-bedroom, two-bath house with a pool. Ghio appreciates not having to worry about paying for home maintenance and repairs — their landlord provides regular gardening and pool service. And the rent is affordable. Between Ghio's salary and his fiancé's work as an esthetician, the couple brings in about $225,000 a year, broadly placing them among the ranks of "HENRYs", or those who are high-earning but not rich yet. They're enjoying the extra money they're saving by renting. "Renting feels like we make over $200,000. I think buying would feel like we're broke," Ghio said. "And you don't work 12, 15 years after school to feel broke again — at least, it's a hard pill to swallow." The decision not to buy felt especially strategic when Ghio was laid off from his previous job in talent acquisition last year. He applied for new jobs in multiple states, knowing that, because they rent, they had more flexibility to move. He's since found a new role at a translation services company in the city, but he's had to take a hefty pay cut. Are you renting a home longer than you thought you would, or have you become a renter again later in life? Share your experience with this reporter at erelman@ Zillow estimates that their rental house would sell for about $1 million. A mortgage on a comparable house in their neighborhood would likely far exceed their rent, not to mention the costs of home maintenance, insurance, and purchasing fees. If they were to buy their rental house with a 20% down payment and about a 7% interest rate, it would cost the couple about $5,300 a month, before taxes and insurance, according to Zillow's mortgage calculator. This isn't unusual. A study from the National Association of Realtors found that in 2024, homebuyers purchasing starter homes in 50 major cities spent over $1,000 more on housing costs each month than renters did. The couple has avoided becoming " house-poor," and instead, they budget more for vacations and their kids' extracurriculars. Ghio doesn't want to sacrifice the family's quality of life and "the ability to enrich our girls' childhood in a way that is unique and fun through experiences" just to own a home. The couple is also saving for their wedding and considering having a third child. "We're trying to be really pragmatic and just be like, we cannot afford a child if we buy a house," Ghio said. "The expenses would probably push us to the brink." Renting a home seems like the smartest choice for now. But if circumstances change down the road, Ghio said he's open to buying. "We're looking at things in two-year, three-year, four-year chunks," he said. "I'm not going to draw a line in the sand and say, 'No, never.'"
Business Insider
25-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
A millennial couple in San Diego who make $225,000 are renting because they don't want to become house-poor
Justin Ghio and his fiancé wanted to make the plunge into homeownership when interest rates plummeted at the height of the pandemic in 2020. They made offers on four houses in San Diego, but they were outbid on all of them. Soon enough, home prices and mortgage rates were soaring amid a buying frenzy, and they felt they'd missed their opportunity to buy. "I'd always hoped to own a home," Ghio said. "With the rising interest rates, it just fiscally wasn't seemingly responsible to make that decision to try to buy." But now, Ghio, a 35-year-old talent director, says he's relieved they didn't stretch their budget to buy. Renting is significantly cheaper than owning a home in San Diego, like in many hot housing markets, and Ghio is among a growing number of Americans choosing to keep renting rather than take on a hefty mortgage. Three years ago, the couple and their eight-year-old twin daughters moved into their current rental home in a quiet San Diego neighborhood near their kids' school. They pay $3,795 a month in rent for their four-bedroom, two-bath house with a pool. Ghio appreciates not having to worry about paying for home maintenance and repairs — their landlord provides regular gardening and pool service. And the rent is affordable. Between Ghio's salary and his fiancé's work as an esthetician, the couple brings in about $225,000 a year. They're enjoying the extra money they're saving by renting. "Renting feels like we make over $200,000. I think buying would feel like we're broke," Ghio said. "And you don't work 12, 15 years after school to feel broke again — at least, it's a hard pill to swallow." The decision not to buy felt especially strategic when Ghio was laid off from his previous job in talent acquisition last year. He applied for new jobs in multiple states, knowing that, because they rent, they had more flexibility to move. He's since found a new role at a translation services company in the city, but he's had to take a hefty pay cut. Are you renting a home longer than you thought you would, or have you become a renter again later in life? Share your experience with this reporter at erelman@ Zillow estimates that their rental house would sell for about $1 million. A mortgage on a comparable house in their neighborhood would likely far exceed their rent, not to mention the costs of home maintenance, insurance, and purchasing fees. If they were to buy their rental house with a 20% down payment and about a 7% interest rate, it would cost the couple about $5,300 a month, before taxes and insurance, according to Zillow's mortgage calculator. This isn't unusual. A study from the National Association of Realtors found that in 2024, homebuyers purchasing starter homes in 50 major cities spent over $1,000 more on housing costs each month than renters did. The couple has avoided becoming " house-poor," and instead, they budget more for vacations and their kids' extracurriculars. Ghio doesn't want to sacrifice the family's quality of life and "the ability to enrich our girls' childhood in a way that is unique and fun through experiences" just to own a home. The couple is also saving for their wedding and considering having a third child. "We're trying to be really pragmatic and just be like, we cannot afford a child if we buy a house," Ghio said. "The expenses would probably push us to the brink." Renting a home seems like the smartest choice for now. But if circumstances change down the road, Ghio said he's open to buying. "We're looking at things in two-year, three-year, four-year chunks," he said. "I'm not going to draw a line in the sand and say, 'No, never.'"
Montreal Gazette
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
‘Canadians were ready to hand the keys to the Conservatives, just not to Pierre Poilievre': former Liberal adviser
Canada News By As Canadians wake up to what will likely be another Liberal government despite a rise in support for the Conservative Party, a former Liberal adviser says it's a sign that many Canadians wanted the Conservatives to win, but not their leader. Shortly before 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, the Liberals were leading or elected in 168 ridings, four members shy of a majority, while the Conservatives were leading or elected in 144. 'Canadians were ready to hand the keys to the Conservatives, just not to Pierre Poilievre,' Jeremy Ghio, a senior director at consulting firm TACT and a former Liberal adviser, said in an interview Tuesday. While Poilievre managed to get a larger percentage of the vote than Stephen did in 2011 — when the Conservatives formed a majority government — his party was not able to beat the Liberals and Poilievre lost his own Ottawa-area seat, an area he has represented for more than 20 years, to a Liberal challenger. Ghio said that loss was indicative of the overall Conservative campaign. 'The Conservative campaign was not a bad campaign, they just did not adjust to the new reality, they kept campaigning in the same way, like if they were ahead by 25 points,' he said. Poilievre didn't allow media to travel with his campaign and didn't present an economic team, keeping the focus on what Ghio described as Poilievre's 'one-man show.' Promised cuts to the civil service may have also hurt Poilievre in a riding where there are many government workers, he said. 'The message I'm getting out of this election is that a lot of people wanted the Conservatives to win, but did not want Pierre Poilievre to win,' he said. As the two major parties strengthened their share of the vote — winning 85 per cent of all ballots cast — Ghio said he thinks the Liberal government will be in a stronger position. 'I think the Liberals will be in a better position than in the last government, just by the fact that they can negotiate piece by piece with the Conservatives, Bloc and NDP, which is not very different from the last government, but they only need four votes to make sure they pass,' he said. Quebec relations will depend on how often he turns to the NDP for support, and how often he turns to the Bloc. 'I think the the unity of the country is going to be fragile at the moment and Mr. Carney will have to be careful not to rely too much on this strong Quebec caucus as an indicator that you don't need the Bloc Québécois to govern, he's going to have to be careful, a good negotiator,' Ghio said.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Experts discuss affordable housing issue
WILLIMANTIC — Sean Ghio, policy director of Partnership for Strong Communities in Hartford, was the main speaker at a Center for Housing Equity and Opportunity Eastern CT event at Eastern Connecticut State University. CHEO is part of a series at Eastern Connecticut State University that encourages attendees to explore the intersection of housing and social justice. The series began in 2024 as a partnership between CHEO and the Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy at Connecticut College. 'Housing is fundamental to having a full life and security,' Ghio said. 'Housing instability makes it hard to live your life in the best possible way.'
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Police replace security guards at National City library in new pilot program
NATIONAL CITY (FOX 5/KUSI) — National City's public library has seen a shift in security staffing with police now stationed on-site as part of a new pilot program that launched in February. 'We've had a lot of positive feedback from the community. Staff feel a lot safer,' said National City Public Library Director, Danielle Ghio. She added, 'It also gives the opportunity for our officers to get to interact with the community in a different way.' However, not everyone is convinced the change is creating a welcoming atmosphere. Senate Bill 569 would require Caltrans to remove homeless encampments faster 'Community members, you know, regardless of who they are, where they come from, their citizenship status, all of these things should feel safe at a library and I think having more police has the opposite effect,' said Iza Lopez, who lives in Chula Vista but works in National City and frequents the library. One officer is assigned five days a week, except Fridays, for a few hours usually in the afternoons. The shift from security guards to police follows a rise in calls for service to law enforcement over the past year. More than 130 calls were made for a number of reasons. 'We would have individuals who come in intoxicated. We've had rocks thrown through our windows,' said Ghio. 'Unfortunately, we've had people bring in weapons. We've had people threaten staff.' Officials believe there are multiple factors for the uptick in complaints. 'When we had the homeless ban created that also caused an influx of people,' Ghio continued. 'You know, we do see there's a lot of events that happen in the park.' The library is located next to Kimball Park and some want to see security enhancements beyond the library space. 'If you're going to step it up, I want to see you in the community like set up a station in the park so these kids can feel safe,' said local resident, Cierra. National City's approach stands out compared to other major cities in the county. San Diego contracts security guards at its libraries. The ones at the Central and City Heights locations are armed, while the rest are not. Oceanside contracts unarmed security guards to patrol only the Civic Center Library, while Chula Vista libraries have no security or police presence at all. So far, with National City's new protocol in place, Ghio said they 'haven't had to call for any serious issues.' She added that the pilot program will run through October, at which point the city will assess how it's going and whether to possibly extend it. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
