I agree with the other posters- wait at least another year. That is what I am doing. I was layed off twice in past 5 years in San Diego. Now that I am consulting I make a lot more in less time. However, I still want at least a year of cash reserves in the bank and to see how steady the work is before I take a plunge and buy.
At first, I considered Point Loma, Ocean Beach, and Pacific Beach. Then gas prices skyrocketed overnight.
Then I considered places like Poway and Rancho Penasquitos. Then the wildfires struck twice in a row in these areas. No way for buying a home in these areas to get burned down.
So now, I am looking in Carlsbad, Sorrento Valley or Carmel Valley as these are where 99% of the high tech jobs are and with gas rapidly approaching $7-9 a gallon, I really don’t want a long commute and money wasted on gas.
I hope to achieve my goal of 2 years cash reserves and then have monies for down payment 10-20% in few years.
