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April 2, 2015 at 8:38 PM #784419April 3, 2015 at 6:49 PM #784456
joec
Participant[quote=bearishgurl]If you don’t mind my asking, joec, why don’t you think Kris’ “gf”/roommate shouldn’t pay half the rent?
And why would someone necessarily “combine” money with a partner just because they decide to get married, regardless of gender?
And why do you think a “gf” wouldn’t mind living in a small beach cottage but a “wife” would?
I can tell you right now that I’d be furious if my “spouse” told me that he could only be happy renting a “$3800 mo econobox” (assuming I was married and we were tenants). That’s a HUGE waste of money out of any household that I’m part of.
Are you implying here that all “wives” are extremely demanding and must be “taken care of” (financially) and must have everything material that they want without being expected to contribute financially to the household?
Yeah, parking might be an issue for Kris if they do not have off-street parking available to them. But a washer and dryer a “necessity” for a single or couple? Uhhh …. no. Having a washer/dryer is nice for a 1-2 person household but I do very little laundry for myself…. possibly 1-2 loads month clothing and 1 load linens? I also do 1-2 loads month of pet blankets but a lot of people don’t have pets (most tenants don’t).
Living alone, I could care less if I had to go the laundry. It’s not “ghetto” not to have your own laundry machines. Most laundries are pretty nice and Kris’ “beach community” no doubt has one nearby.
I apologize if I’m seeming to put you on the spot here, Joe, but the way I read your latest remarks, they seem a bit sexist and categorize all “wives” into some kind of a demanding monster.[/quote]
I usually just ignore all your messages now bg, but I don’t think you “got” what I was getting at with my response…
I would say I am probably as sexist as the next guy on the street, maybe more, maybe even less…but the point is the OP is 26. 26 is very YOUNG. I had more money at that age, and if he hammers at his job and just works, will have no problem buying much any house since saying as a guy is easy.
MY POINT IS, his g/f today may or probably more likely won’t be his g/f tomorrow or when he settles down and wants a family.
THE REAL POINT I was getting at is don’t buy real estate with a g/f (comment about putting a rock on it) or any other person who isn’t a wife. This is for most people. It could be a brother, sibling, etc…don’t buy real estate with other people, period…
This is all, of course, IMO, but a g/f is not a wife and I honestly don’t think a 26 year old knows that much in terms of the world/life/etc.
Singles can buy all the houses they want. I don’t have a thing against them.
I have lived in the city (SF) and I think it’s ghetto having to go to a laundry mat and no parking if you own a car which I have done both of. To me, it’s totally ghetto.
Maybe in a fancy “beach” town the coin laundry is worth it (which I don’t really care for…being an old grumpy fart now), it’s not “worth it” to me…but to me, it’s still ghetto to have to drop off clothes on the weekends and come back with the other pooh folks and collect it.
At 26, it’s probably less annoying like living with 3 or 5 guys in a house is “cool” at 19, but certainly, I wouldn’t want to do that now. I also think being 26, there is less of a need to be tied down to any particular area (in terms of housing) in case new job opportunities open up, but the OP seems set to be around here. To each their own of course.
Honestly, with your decent income, high savings, maxed retirement, etc etc etc…(been there at your age)…you can save buttloads of money that if you waited a few years, you can probably put loads down and live in most nicer places while waiting for a pullback. Of course, your taxes are probably crap for now…
April 3, 2015 at 7:12 PM #784459spdrun
ParticipantA washing machine takes up about 4 sq ft and uses a standard 120V/15A circuit. If a house doesn’t have it, it’s trivial to install. As far as a dryer, if I lived in San Diego, I’d never use one. I’d line-dry — perfect climate for it, and fuck what the neighbors think. Using energy for something that can be done using solar power is stupid.
April 3, 2015 at 8:06 PM #784460bearishgurl
Participant[quote=joec]I usually just ignore all your messages now bg, but I don’t think you “got” what I was getting at with my response…
I would say I am probably as sexist as the next guy on the street, maybe more, maybe even less…but the point is the OP is 26. 26 is very YOUNG. I had more money at that age, and if he hammers at his job and just works, will have no problem buying much any house since saying as a guy is easy.
MY POINT IS, his g/f today may or probably more likely won’t be his g/f tomorrow or when he settles down and wants a family.
THE REAL POINT I was getting at is don’t buy real estate with a g/f (comment about putting a rock on it) or any other person who isn’t a wife. This is for most people. It could be a brother, sibling, etc…don’t buy real estate with other people, period…
This is all, of course, IMO, but a g/f is not a wife and I honestly don’t think a 26 year old knows that much in terms of the world/life/etc.
Singles can buy all the houses they want. I don’t have a thing against them.
I have lived in the city (SF) and I think it’s ghetto having to go to a laundry mat and no parking if you own a car which I have done both of. To me, it’s totally ghetto.
Maybe in a fancy “beach” town the coin laundry is worth it (which I don’t really care for…being an old grumpy fart now), it’s not “worth it” to me…but to me, it’s still ghetto to have to drop off clothes on the weekends and come back with the other pooh folks and collect it.
At 26, it’s probably less annoying like living with 3 or 5 guys in a house is “cool” at 19, but certainly, I wouldn’t want to do that now. I also think being 26, there is less of a need to be tied down to any particular area (in terms of housing) in case new job opportunities open up, but the OP seems set to be around here. To each their own of course.
Honestly, with your decent income, high savings, maxed retirement, etc etc etc…(been there at your age)…you can save buttloads of money that if you waited a few years, you can probably put loads down and live in most nicer places while waiting for a pullback. Of course, your taxes are probably crap for now…[/quote]
No problem, Joe. I just think your post painted “wives” as demanding shrews and painted “gf’s” as completely different animals who were so laid back that they would live in a tent. In fact, they are one and the same (both female human adults). The truth is that wives were once gf’s and many gf’s were once wives. And believe it or not, some wives manage to be both wives and gf’s simultaneously (let’s not go there).
And all gf’s don’t need a “rock” in order to get married.
I didn’t read anywhere from the OP or his subsequent posts that he was considering purchasing RE with anybody else but himself. The OP IS, IN FACT “single,” acc to his post. Of course, if he wanted to move his gf into his new home with him, he could continue to collect $400+ month “rent” from her to help with utilities, etc, if he wished.
If the OP “settled down” later, as you say, what’s wrong with asking his fiance/new spouse to move in his house? If she won’t for stupid reasons (someone else previously lived here with you or your dad died here), then that’s shallow. It’s especially shallow if she couldn’t even afford to rent a studio apt by herself! Beggars can’t be choosers. She should be happy she is marrying someone that had the foresight to buy a house when he was young. ESPecially in a place like SD.
Not EVERYONE needs or wants to buy a property with a spouse on title for a variety of reasons. Often, new spouses don’t have good enough credit to qualify for a mortgage (or any credit at all) and will just increase the buyer’s loan costs and percentage rate if they attempt to go on the mortgage together.
I believe that just because an adult is of the female gender, this does not excuse them from their responsibility to support themselves (and their kids, if they have any), regardless of marital status. In a family with kids, BOTH parents have the obligation to support themselves and their kids in the eyes of the law.
In CA, RE which is purchased BEFORE marriage by ONE INDIVIDUAL belongs solely to the party who purchased it, unless their spouse can prove that they contributed monies for the downpayment or monies to improve it. In that case, the other spouse’s ownership percentage is apportioned accordingly if the couple should split up. An exception is if the homeowner quitclaims his/her property to themselves AND their eventual spouse as “joint tenants” after marriage. In that case, the spouse’s portion of ownership is apportioned beginning from the date of the quitclaim in the case of divorce. Homeowners who are considering doing this should seek legal counsel before doing so due to its far-reaching ramifications (ex: even if the couple never splits up, liens from the added-on spouse’s unpaid judgments and taxes, etc would attach to the ENTIRE title and thus the original owner’s half).
I was in my early twenties when I bought my first house in SD, joec. 26 isn’t too young to buy a house for a person who has been very responsible all of their working life so far and has been able to save a downpayment. The reason I didn’t suggest any “fixers” for this OP is because he only wanted to spend $450K and, even though there are “fixers” out there in SD County in that price range, they either have (costly) structural problems or the sold comps in the area they are located in will not bear a new buyer spending $70K (for labor and mat’ls) over and above his/her $425-$450K purchase price unless they could do ALL the work themselves (use $35-$50K for mat’ls) AND planned to hold the property for a dozen years or more. Here, the OP would have to be pretty handy with a toolbelt and power tools to take this kind of project on.
I didn’t check and I don’t know if there are actually any fixers with “good bones” in the cities listed in the OP.
If Kris’ rent just 2 blocks from the beach is actually only $1250, he’s “golden.” There is no way in h@ll that he can buy a “lifestyle” similar to the one he has right now for $450K (or even $550K). Lack of laundry be damned. My advice is to stay in the rental as long as his LL will keep this sweet deal going.
April 3, 2015 at 8:41 PM #784461ParticipantOn second thought (I haven’t actually looked), I think you might be able to do Allied Gardens for $450K or less if you keep submitting offers and remain patient, Kris, but it will likely be a smallish house (1500 sf). Also, unless you’re going to leave that original knotty pine (LOL) in the kitchen and room divider, those houses are lacking in character (a good portion don’t even have FP’s). Of course, a lot of people today would be turned off by knotty pine. I haven’t looked to see what the flippers are doing over there but I think its a great location!
As far as LM, maybe you can get an offer accepted on a 75+ yo smallish house in 91941 near the village but I would be prepared for hidden termite damage that the seller’s pest control company doesn’t find. It’s possible that what you buy there would turn out to need far more time, skill and money for rehab than you originally envisioned. It’s a charming, walkable area with the trolley running through but you will need to budget at least $150 extra per month to run A/C at least 6 mos year. As far as 91942 goes, most of those homes are too big for your price range so I don’t think you would be able to find anything for <=$450K unless it's really beat up. And most of those homes are picked up by cash investors. I can’t comment on San Marcos, Oceanside or Vista.
April 3, 2015 at 9:08 PM #784462FlyerInHi
Guest[quote=spdrun]A washing machine takes up about 4 sq ft and uses a standard 120V/15A circuit. If a house doesn’t have it, it’s trivial to install. As far as a dryer, if I lived in San Diego, I’d never use one. I’d line-dry — perfect climate for it, and fuck what the neighbors think. Using energy for something that can be done using solar power is stupid.[/quote]
You could install a washer inside the kitchen like they do in many parts of the world. But remember that if you live in a condo, you cannot line dry.
Yes, Joec is right. It is ghetto and highly inconvenient not to have washer/dryer.
You get better tenants in unit laundry. I bought a ~450sf condo and I’m put in a washer/dryer. The electrician off of CL charged me $350 (labor and material) for a 220v outlet. I did the plumbing and ducting myself. I punched a whole in the wall for venting. Hope nobody from the HOA will notice. Bathroom was big enough to accommodate stackable washer/dryer. I ran ducting across the bedroom.
I would never date someone who doesn’t have washer/dryer. Funny smells accumulate very fast if you let dirty laundry sit. Think NYC city where jackets and coats absorb smells from restaurants and bars, rains, snow, subway… Wear once and wash is my MO.
April 3, 2015 at 9:17 PM #784463KristopherSD
Participant[quote=bearishgurl]On second thought (I haven’t actually looked), I think you might be able to do Allied Gardens for $450K or less if you keep submitting offers and remain patient, Kris, but it will likely be a smallish house (1500 sf). Also, unless you’re going to leave that original knotty pine (LOL) in the kitchen and room divider, those houses are lacking in character (a good portion don’t even have FP’s). Of course, a lot of people today would be turned off by knotty pine. I haven’t looked to see what the flippers are doing over there but I think its a great location!
As far as LM, maybe you can get an offer accepted on a 75+ yo smallish house in 91941 near the village but I would be prepared for hidden termite damage that the seller’s pest control company doesn’t find. It’s possible that what you buy there would turn out to need far more time, skill and money for rehab than you originally envisioned. It’s a charming, walkable area with the trolley running through but you will need to budget at least $150 extra per month to run A/C at least 6 mos year. As far as 91942 goes, most of those homes are too big for your price range so I don’t think you would be able to find anything for <=$450K unless it's really beat up. And most of those homes are picked up by cash investors. I can’t comment on San Marcos, Oceanside or Vista.[/quote]
This is just mind-blowing to me that with $450k for a home and an additional $70k for remodel, with a overall total of $520k, I’m still not guaranteed a decent place. $520k won’t even get me into the city by your account, and will land me a smaller home in outlying areas. How can this unreality possibly continue? With my income I am supposedly in the top 15% of income earners in the US, yet somehow I feel poor when it comes to purchasing a home anywhere near San Diego. Unbelievable.
April 3, 2015 at 9:55 PM #784465ParticipantKris, LM is not considered “outlying.” It is a very close-in suburb directly adjacent to SD. It is only 13 miles from Balboa Park.
Those three North County cities you mentioned are considered “outlying.” Other Piggs on this board are much more knowledgeable than I on what type of “fixer” might be available in your price range in those cities, if actually listed.
You never mentioned here the size, style or age of dwelling you are looking to buy in SD for $450K.
April 3, 2015 at 9:59 PM #784464Participant[quote=KrisopherD]This is just mind-blowing to me that with $450k for a home and an additional $70k for remodel, with a overall total of $520k+ I’m still not guaranteed a decent place. $520k won’t even get me into the city by your account, and will land me a smaller home in outlying areas. How can this unreality possibly continue? With my income I am supposedly in the top 15% of income earners in the US, yet somehow I feel poor when it comes to purchasing a home anywhere near San Diego. Unbelievable.[/quote]
Kris, Allied Gardens IS in the city! The houses there ARE “decent.” Most of the tracts there are just on the plain side but that’s okay (and that just my opinion, fwiw). It’s the same with some of the tracts in Clairemont (92111). Both are “decent” close-in locations in the city.
LM is “decent” also. It’s just that 91941 is so old. Most of the homes there are framed in cedar or redwood and have plaster walls so they are very strong but they undoubtedly have termite damage if they are still original. You won’t really know until you replace a shower or a window. Then one thing will invariably lead to another. It could take a long time to properly remodel a house that age while working FT. In addition, there are springs running underground on some streets there so you will need a sump pump in the crawlspace (which tends to be pretty tall) to use after rainstorms. There are many interesting old homes in LM but I think they would end up costing much more than $70K to rehab properly. If you were to get lucky and obtain a gem on one of the “prime” streets near the village, I don’t think you should ever sell it.
There are other neighborhoods there at the foot of Mt Helix (off Lemon Ave comes to mind) which may have an occasional fixer-listing with good bones but I just don’t see you getting an offer accepted for $450K in that area, mainly due to the large and irregular lot sizes.
As I said, 91942 has mostly 30-50 yo larger two story homes. I don’t see any of them selling for =<$450K unless they can't be financed for some reason (structural damage?). Maybe I'm wrong and there is something there for you to consider. I haven't "shopped" online over there lately. Kris, the SF bay area is much, much worse. It is EXTREMELY expensive ($750K and up) to buy a 1000 sf (or less) home which is 55-85 years old situated on the peninsula in San Mateo County, for example. Said home may or may not be partially or fully remodeled. These homes aren't even situated in what we in SD County would consider to be an "upscale" city. Consider the likes of San Bruno, a small aging city just a few miles north of SFO, which had a massive gas pipeline burst a few years back ... due to faulty maintenance and calibration by PG&E. The explosions leveled 38 houses, damaged many more and killed 8 people: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_San_Bruno_pipeline_explosion
Consider yourself lucky that you live in a more reasonably-priced coastal Cali market.
April 3, 2015 at 10:03 PM #784466Participant[quote=KristopherSD]This is just mind-blowing to me that with $450k for a home and an additional $70k for remodel, with a overall total of $520k, I’m still not guaranteed a decent place. $520k won’t even get me into the city by your account, and will land me a smaller home in outlying areas. How can this unreality possibly continue? With my income I am supposedly in the top 15% of income earners in the US, yet somehow I feel poor when it comes to purchasing a home anywhere near San Diego. Unbelievable.[/quote]The problem you will face in the well-established areas in SD County (where the fixers with “good bones” are located) is that a very large portion of sales go to all-cash buyers.
Salary level … or lack thereof … has nothing to do with it.
April 3, 2015 at 10:31 PM #784467ParticipantFlyerInHI, at this point, the discussion was about SFR homes.
Call me a pig, but I wouldn’t wash a jacket after wearing it once. I’d be going through coats like they were toilet paper — they’re not designed to be washed a lot!
As far as dating, couldn’t you just let her use your washer? An excuse for her to come over more 🙂
You don’t even need to punch a hole in a wall for a dryer these days. There are condensing units that drain to the sewer.
April 5, 2015 at 7:10 PM #784480Participant[quote=KristopherSD]
This is just mind-blowing to me that with $450k for a home and an additional $70k for remodel, with a overall total of $520k, I’m still not guaranteed a decent place. $520k won’t even get me into the city by your account, and will land me a smaller home in outlying areas. How can this unreality possibly continue? With my income I am supposedly in the top 15% of income earners in the US, yet somehow I feel poor when it comes to purchasing a home anywhere near San Diego. Unbelievable.[/quote]The problem is San Diego maybe a little expensive, but it’s nothing compared to anything in the Bay Area or Los Angeles. I don’t think I’m the the only one who is here because the bay area is insane. For a simple 1.5k sqft place, you are probably looking at a mil+ or much more now anywhere in the tech areas. SF is tots cra cra. LA, it’s just as bad in any decent areas and even more than SD by tons. SD is CHEAP for what you get in terms of sq footage and amenities so for anyone outside of poor America and international buyers, you get a lot for your money here. This makes waiting hard if more people from say, China wants to move money offshore (they tend to trust the US monetary system tons more)…as well as South American/European buyers. Asians also love real estate compared to stocks so they put more of their money there. You can just go to any new homes in Carmel Valley and it’s all Asian.
Even with your decent income, it’s nothing when it comes to family wealth pooled together to help and as I’ve mentioned, near everyone I know has had help so at the starter home level you want to buy, it’s going to be insanely competitive with all the other barely can afford families who want a place. Also, people need to realize that middle class people don’t buy homes anymore in this part of California.
You are also competing with all the foreign buyers who have kids who’s parents will buy them a home just to go to school here. UCSD is probably good enough for foreigners.
I think compared to family wealth, most of us will feel poor. 🙁
A lot of people also are dual income cranking in 300k+ so being a single with decent income isn’t much compared to couples.
Don’t think you’re in he stock option game, but that helps a lot too.
April 8, 2015 at 10:52 PM #784545gzz
ParticipantDid you see my comment to you before?
“Right now there are about 5 houses on their own lots in OB under 700k. I think you should have a look, run the numbers, and make some offers. North Park and South Park would also be nice. You’re a little young and single for La Mesa and east county. For La Mesa in particular, I’d worry that all the boomers who bought in the 60s and 70s start to die off and their homes hit the market.”
Since you want a fixer anyway, why not just wait for a single-family house in a better neighborhood you can still easily afford?
This one is under 600, on a large lot, and isn’t even a complete fixer, the three photos show recent renovations (the rest of the place prob needs work):
http://www.sdlookup.com/MLS-150005182-2006_Catalina_Blvd_San_Diego_CA_92107
By the way, before I bought I also had a crazy deal on a beach house rental, paying $1100 for a house + small front and back yard + garage + additional driveway spots 1 block from the beach. On the same block people were paying $1000 for studios and $1250 for 1 bedrooms.
It killed me to give that up, but I am glad I own now!. And I would have been forced out anyway, my spinster former landlady recently died in her late 90’s and the house was sold by her nephew.
April 8, 2015 at 11:00 PM #784546ParticipantBuying in two years could mean your $450,000 house becomes a $520,000 house. That’s only two years of 7.5% appreciation. It also would mean when you do buy, the house you want to live in for life will have a higher property tax valuation locked in forever, and you be paying an extra $760 a year in taxes forever. Actually more since they go up 2% a year.
You also may have to pay higher rates. But if rates end up going down a lot, you can refinance.
I also don’t know where your $15,000 closing cost estimate comes from, that’s more than three times the normal amount.
April 8, 2015 at 11:15 PM #784547ParticipantYour remodel budget seems a bit off too. I’ve spent 1500+ hours on remodel and home improvement, but by being a tightwad, using family labor, etc my cash cost has only been around $12,000.
And that includes
a complete exterior repaint with multiple coats
partial ceiling and interior repaint
small roof improvements
multiple electrical upgrades (used a contractor for that one)
many landscaping improvements
putting a floor into the walkable parts of the attic
planting trees
new cement for the driveway and parts of the yard
adding glass tiles to the shower
putting up 120 feet of quality redwood fence
replacing random exterior parts with termite damageWhile of course you can spend $70,000, or even $700,000, on a remodel, my point is a lot of things cost close to nothing if you keep your eye out for cheap construction materials and do the work yourself.
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