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nostradamus
ParticipantWell it couldn’t hurt to go take a look and see what actually needs to be done on the condo. Usually the photos REAs post are the ones that make it look good. Your condo’s photos don’t look good at all so imagine what they’re not showing you.
Run the faucets, flush the toilets, turn on/off everything electrical, run any remaining appliances, check for mold or wood rot or termites or carpet beetles, look for dark spots on the walls close to the ceiling (indicating roof leaks), talk to the upstairs/downstairs neighbors, and video/photo everything for later review/negotiation. Walk around the property and look for graffiti or junk or hazards. See if any cars were broken into, see if the public areas will require “special assessment” like new pool heater, resurfacing the parking lot, repainting the exterior, fix leaking roofs, etc.
I personally don’t like anything too close to the freeways. For MM I don’t like much East of Cam. Ruiz. I think you can find some bargains between Cam. Ruiz and Cam. Santa Fe, to the South of Mira Mesa Blvd. In a year or two you can find bargains to the North of MMB in that area. This is all IMO. One reason I like West of Cam Ruiz is because it is close enough to Sorrento Valley to get good renters, yet it is also close enough to Vons/Seafood City/Edwards Cinemas etc.
ParticipantWell it couldn’t hurt to go take a look and see what actually needs to be done on the condo. Usually the photos REAs post are the ones that make it look good. Your condo’s photos don’t look good at all so imagine what they’re not showing you.
Run the faucets, flush the toilets, turn on/off everything electrical, run any remaining appliances, check for mold or wood rot or termites or carpet beetles, look for dark spots on the walls close to the ceiling (indicating roof leaks), talk to the upstairs/downstairs neighbors, and video/photo everything for later review/negotiation. Walk around the property and look for graffiti or junk or hazards. See if any cars were broken into, see if the public areas will require “special assessment” like new pool heater, resurfacing the parking lot, repainting the exterior, fix leaking roofs, etc.
I personally don’t like anything too close to the freeways. For MM I don’t like much East of Cam. Ruiz. I think you can find some bargains between Cam. Ruiz and Cam. Santa Fe, to the South of Mira Mesa Blvd. In a year or two you can find bargains to the North of MMB in that area. This is all IMO. One reason I like West of Cam Ruiz is because it is close enough to Sorrento Valley to get good renters, yet it is also close enough to Vons/Seafood City/Edwards Cinemas etc.
June 12, 2008 at 3:24 PM in reply to: OT: Details of the Tesla Motor’s WhiteStar sedan emerges. #222076ParticipantIt is definitely consumer-driven. We will not further alternative energy vehicles until there is a demand for them. Problem is, the price and performance of electric vehicles is still far from that of gas-driven… so people will usually choose the gas-driven unless they have the luxury (i.e. funds) to go with the electric. Even I am relying on my combustion-engines to this day.
June 12, 2008 at 3:24 PM in reply to: OT: Details of the Tesla Motor’s WhiteStar sedan emerges. #222180ParticipantIt is definitely consumer-driven. We will not further alternative energy vehicles until there is a demand for them. Problem is, the price and performance of electric vehicles is still far from that of gas-driven… so people will usually choose the gas-driven unless they have the luxury (i.e. funds) to go with the electric. Even I am relying on my combustion-engines to this day.
June 12, 2008 at 3:24 PM in reply to: OT: Details of the Tesla Motor’s WhiteStar sedan emerges. #222192ParticipantIt is definitely consumer-driven. We will not further alternative energy vehicles until there is a demand for them. Problem is, the price and performance of electric vehicles is still far from that of gas-driven… so people will usually choose the gas-driven unless they have the luxury (i.e. funds) to go with the electric. Even I am relying on my combustion-engines to this day.
June 12, 2008 at 3:24 PM in reply to: OT: Details of the Tesla Motor’s WhiteStar sedan emerges. #222225ParticipantIt is definitely consumer-driven. We will not further alternative energy vehicles until there is a demand for them. Problem is, the price and performance of electric vehicles is still far from that of gas-driven… so people will usually choose the gas-driven unless they have the luxury (i.e. funds) to go with the electric. Even I am relying on my combustion-engines to this day.
June 12, 2008 at 3:24 PM in reply to: OT: Details of the Tesla Motor’s WhiteStar sedan emerges. #222243ParticipantIt is definitely consumer-driven. We will not further alternative energy vehicles until there is a demand for them. Problem is, the price and performance of electric vehicles is still far from that of gas-driven… so people will usually choose the gas-driven unless they have the luxury (i.e. funds) to go with the electric. Even I am relying on my combustion-engines to this day.
ParticipantWow bjensen I’m honored to be on that list.
The only semi-IE area I’m looking at is Jamul because I need space and I’ve heard such good things about it from Rustico and other residents. That place is for me to live.
For rentals I’m looking in Mira Mesa (I’m sticking West of Cam Ruiz), Sorrento Valley, and Clairemont/Bay Park. I’m never going to the Stepford wife towns of CV or 4S, I just don’t like it and reminds me of the movie Little Children (do see this movie). This is just my personal opinion. The premium to live in those areas is, IMO, not worth it. Of course, those places are also depicted in Weeds.
Anyhow, prices are still about 25% off what would work for me. We know about foreclosures and we speculate about shadow inventory. One fact is that rates will rise and I think that factor alone is enough to warrant a 25% drop in price so I’m fine, just saving my money for that day. There is no hurry at all.
ParticipantWow bjensen I’m honored to be on that list.
The only semi-IE area I’m looking at is Jamul because I need space and I’ve heard such good things about it from Rustico and other residents. That place is for me to live.
For rentals I’m looking in Mira Mesa (I’m sticking West of Cam Ruiz), Sorrento Valley, and Clairemont/Bay Park. I’m never going to the Stepford wife towns of CV or 4S, I just don’t like it and reminds me of the movie Little Children (do see this movie). This is just my personal opinion. The premium to live in those areas is, IMO, not worth it. Of course, those places are also depicted in Weeds.
Anyhow, prices are still about 25% off what would work for me. We know about foreclosures and we speculate about shadow inventory. One fact is that rates will rise and I think that factor alone is enough to warrant a 25% drop in price so I’m fine, just saving my money for that day. There is no hurry at all.
ParticipantWow bjensen I’m honored to be on that list.
The only semi-IE area I’m looking at is Jamul because I need space and I’ve heard such good things about it from Rustico and other residents. That place is for me to live.
For rentals I’m looking in Mira Mesa (I’m sticking West of Cam Ruiz), Sorrento Valley, and Clairemont/Bay Park. I’m never going to the Stepford wife towns of CV or 4S, I just don’t like it and reminds me of the movie Little Children (do see this movie). This is just my personal opinion. The premium to live in those areas is, IMO, not worth it. Of course, those places are also depicted in Weeds.
Anyhow, prices are still about 25% off what would work for me. We know about foreclosures and we speculate about shadow inventory. One fact is that rates will rise and I think that factor alone is enough to warrant a 25% drop in price so I’m fine, just saving my money for that day. There is no hurry at all.
ParticipantWow bjensen I’m honored to be on that list.
The only semi-IE area I’m looking at is Jamul because I need space and I’ve heard such good things about it from Rustico and other residents. That place is for me to live.
For rentals I’m looking in Mira Mesa (I’m sticking West of Cam Ruiz), Sorrento Valley, and Clairemont/Bay Park. I’m never going to the Stepford wife towns of CV or 4S, I just don’t like it and reminds me of the movie Little Children (do see this movie). This is just my personal opinion. The premium to live in those areas is, IMO, not worth it. Of course, those places are also depicted in Weeds.
Anyhow, prices are still about 25% off what would work for me. We know about foreclosures and we speculate about shadow inventory. One fact is that rates will rise and I think that factor alone is enough to warrant a 25% drop in price so I’m fine, just saving my money for that day. There is no hurry at all.
ParticipantWow bjensen I’m honored to be on that list.
The only semi-IE area I’m looking at is Jamul because I need space and I’ve heard such good things about it from Rustico and other residents. That place is for me to live.
For rentals I’m looking in Mira Mesa (I’m sticking West of Cam Ruiz), Sorrento Valley, and Clairemont/Bay Park. I’m never going to the Stepford wife towns of CV or 4S, I just don’t like it and reminds me of the movie Little Children (do see this movie). This is just my personal opinion. The premium to live in those areas is, IMO, not worth it. Of course, those places are also depicted in Weeds.
Anyhow, prices are still about 25% off what would work for me. We know about foreclosures and we speculate about shadow inventory. One fact is that rates will rise and I think that factor alone is enough to warrant a 25% drop in price so I’m fine, just saving my money for that day. There is no hurry at all.
ParticipantHi cv,
Where do you get the $20k estimate? I’ve just had quotes from 3 different contractors to redo a bathroom which isn’t nearly as trashed as those, and the quotes were in the $10k range per bathroom (including basic tiles, countertops, etc). I’d say $20k just for the bathrooms. Then you have the kitchen, which will be vital for the picky renter. Then again, a picky renter might not be renting in this area. Anyhow, the quotes I got were for superficial things, not plumbing or wiring or drywall or other, like this unit surely needs. So I’d say $50k+ to fix it up. You can always do the work yourself (I’ve been doing my own bathrooms, it’s coming out great) for much cheaper but have to invest a lot of time.
You also have closing costs to think about, is that part of your $150k estimate? I see you’re already thinking about the special assessment, this is good. If there are a lot of vacancies (you mentioned REOs) then there is a good chance you will be assessed or just plain raise the HOA to cover the lack of HOA dues paid by those vacancies.
Heaven forbid you should end up with a disgruntled renter. I would aim for an engineer or other professional to rent your unit, and be picky about it. If you fix the place up nice and present it well, and are thorough in choosing your tenant, you can break even.
That being said, you can also break even if you wait 5 years. Don’t worry about rates going up, because this is a cash-only sale so rates do not affect you other than to lower the sales price! The ONLY reason I’d say “buy now” is if you were affected by interest rates but even that is debatable.
ParticipantHi cv,
Where do you get the $20k estimate? I’ve just had quotes from 3 different contractors to redo a bathroom which isn’t nearly as trashed as those, and the quotes were in the $10k range per bathroom (including basic tiles, countertops, etc). I’d say $20k just for the bathrooms. Then you have the kitchen, which will be vital for the picky renter. Then again, a picky renter might not be renting in this area. Anyhow, the quotes I got were for superficial things, not plumbing or wiring or drywall or other, like this unit surely needs. So I’d say $50k+ to fix it up. You can always do the work yourself (I’ve been doing my own bathrooms, it’s coming out great) for much cheaper but have to invest a lot of time.
You also have closing costs to think about, is that part of your $150k estimate? I see you’re already thinking about the special assessment, this is good. If there are a lot of vacancies (you mentioned REOs) then there is a good chance you will be assessed or just plain raise the HOA to cover the lack of HOA dues paid by those vacancies.
Heaven forbid you should end up with a disgruntled renter. I would aim for an engineer or other professional to rent your unit, and be picky about it. If you fix the place up nice and present it well, and are thorough in choosing your tenant, you can break even.
That being said, you can also break even if you wait 5 years. Don’t worry about rates going up, because this is a cash-only sale so rates do not affect you other than to lower the sales price! The ONLY reason I’d say “buy now” is if you were affected by interest rates but even that is debatable.
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