If you live in Dallas then you may have had a housing advert come through your letterbox. This offers large houses for $150,000 and even other deals for prices such as $70,000 and cheaper. If this was 10 years ago then you may be skeptical. However, in this economy it seems way too good to be true. So, is this some kind of scam or just a brilliant deal? Well, the truth is that it’s neither. Instead, it’s something that may appeal to certain people – but not all. So, what does this involve?

Firstly, the properties in question are not exactly located in Dallas. If you read the small print, they’re actually ’60 miles from Dallas’. Now, that’s not that far – but still, there’s a big difference between living in Dallas and living further out. Obviously, if you go so far out then some areas will begin to drop in price.

However, the main ‘catch’ of this deal is that it’s often just selling plots of land. In other words, you’d be being a plot for $70,000 and not an actual house. Suddenly, it all makes sense. Having said this, the $150,000 deal may actually be of use to some people.

In short, this involves supplying you with the raw materials to build the shell of a house. This means that you’d buy land and the frame for this price, but you would still need to get builders in to do certain jobs. Now, if you were a tradesperson yourself, then this may sound like an attractive proposition.

In reality though, these deals don’t appeal to most people and for good measure. Honestly, it’s more convenient just to buy a regular house – even if it is in a less desirable location. And, after the costs involved in actually building a liveable home, this soon adds up.

So there we have it. This poster certainly isn’t a scam, yet it’s certainly not a brilliant deal either. As ever in life, this is a case of ‘the more you know. Sadly, if you want to buy somewhere decent in Dallas, then these days you’ll have to pay top dollar.