Damned if we do, damned if we don't?

Do the math.

you can always refinance an interest rate but the price you buy at is it... so i would rather buy later and not worry about the interest rate

julia- but a more favorable interest rate has to exist to be able to refi...

Are there typically limits to how soon or often you can refinance on a newly purchased co-op? Do you have to wait a year or something ? I mean obviouly you can't just keep doing it over and over again.

you can refi as many times as you want but there are transaction costs so doing so multiple times wipes out savings from a better rate

I`m going to assume (and make an ass out of myself), that we are at levels we won't see again for a very long time taking out the re-fi option.

I echo the "do the math" comment, but make sure to do the math for a wide variety of different scenarios. Keep in mind that if you only stay in the place for a few years, you will never fully reap the benefits of your low interest rates. And you could be at risk for substantial loss if you need to sell at a time when interest rates go up....

Buy a $360k unit at 6.5% and need to sell it a couple of years later, you'll probably take a hit but end up OK.

Buy a $400k unit at 5% and need to sell it a couple of years later when interest rates have gone to 6.5%, you could see your entire down payment go up in smoke between market losses and transaction costs.

If you're buying mostly because of low interest rates, it would behoove you to have some kind of backup plan for needing to move within the next five years. Either accept that you're taking the risk and align your assets accordingly, find a unit where the rent could reasonably cover your carrying costs, or come up with some clever way to make the financials work in a "Plan B" scenario so that you're not wiped out. Just $0.02 from someone who is a little obsessed with risk management. ;-)