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Old 03-19-2012, 11:46 AM
 
8,317 posts, read 29,365,244 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Durango Bound View Post
Durango would be a great place to live if it weren't so expensive. But, if you're like me and have to work for a living, Durango isn't a feasible place to live. Even the surrounding areas (Bayfield, Ignacio, Mancos, Hermosa, etc.) are out of the question if you want to live here long-term, IMO.
Exactly what I've been saying for lo these many years. Thank you for speaking the truth about the place. That is why there is such a large amount of turnover in who is living there, and why so many people who grow up there wind up leaving in order to make a living.
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Old 03-19-2012, 03:09 PM
 
1,072 posts, read 1,938,785 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chaffeetrekker View Post
What about the housing recession? Has there been a spike down of housing prices in Durango? Are there any houses available to buy on "short sale"?
I would think that there would be some screaming buys in housing right now at this time..
They were there, you're just too late. Many foreclosures & short sales were available from 20086-2010. They're pretty much gone by now because there were some screaming deals out there. I know, my wife & I were looking. There were many, many beautiful homes that were going for anywhere from 20-40% below the original listing prices. They're gone now because buyers like me jumped on them. And compared to many parts of the country, the taxes on those properties are so cheap as to be laughable. My last home in the Pittsburgh area sold for $315K back in 2005 and property taxes were $9K+ a year! In the Durango area, we were looking at homes that had been reduced from $800K to under $500K with property taxes less than $2K a year. Yep, tax savings of $7K a year.

My wife & I finally settled on buying land so we could custom build instead. We were able to negotiate a price 35% below the listing price.

Everything is relative. Durango may be expensive compared to some poster's areas but to other posters, they'll be right in line with their expectations.
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Old 03-19-2012, 03:28 PM
 
Location: Everywhere and Nowhere
14,129 posts, read 31,118,638 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SoButCounty View Post
They were there, you're just too late. Many foreclosures & short sales were available from 20086-2010. They're pretty much gone by now because there were some screaming deals out there.
That seems to be true of a lot of other desirable areas as well. I have a friend who sells condos in Florida who was just telling me the problem there now is a tremendous shortage of inventory for exactly the reason you state.

Prices generally reflect the incomes of buyers getting into the market (and not so much those of existing homeowners) so am guessing the ones buying into Durango now are making incomes sufficient for $300-$400k homes at today's super low interest rates. It doesn't take that many to keep things moving in a town of 16,000 and county of 40,000.
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Old 03-20-2012, 10:05 AM
 
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What everyone continues to ignore is the fact that most of those purchasers are "equity locusts" from somewhere else who do not have to rely on the local economy for an income. Most of the people dreaming about Durango on this forum are people who actually will have to make a living in the local economy and, for them, housing prices in Durango remain essentially unaffordable at the local incomes available for most local residents. All of the swarmy posts about cheap taxes discounted real estate prices, and lower living costs compared to place "X" (where "X" probably has local incomes double or more what Durango can provide locally),etc. will mean nothing to those people looking at Durango as a place to live AND work. It is certainly possible to live in the most economically inhospitable place on the planet if you bring enough money and income with you to do it. If you actually have to figure out how to exist in that inhospitable economy, the reality is much different. Durango Bound figured that out and posted quite accurately about it--he "walked the walk."
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Old 03-20-2012, 03:28 PM
 
18,608 posts, read 33,176,623 times
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When I considered moving to Durango and working (in that one job that had my name on it) I would have sold my house in the East and had enough to basically buy that house in Forest Lakes with a mortgage in line with my projected Durango income. Where I live, and in many places, no one is working at local wages to save a 20 percent downpayment for a house where they live at present, certainly not a single-income household.
People move all the time for various reasons, and it is likely that one reason will be to take higher-pay-saved and/or home equity to a place that is at least somewhat cheaper than where they are coming from. Makes sense. I think "equity locust" is sort of inaccurate, after all, would anyone, including Jazz, move to a higher COL/housing area for the helluva it? I guess that's my way of saying I resent the "equity locust" designation, especially knowing people who would fall under that designation but don't acknowledge it (or those of us who don't believe in it).
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Old 03-20-2012, 07:02 PM
 
8,317 posts, read 29,365,244 times
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I don't necessarily use the term "equity locust" in a pejorative sense, but the simple fact is that such people, however they acquire the cash to buy in a real estate market and who do not have to rely on the local economy to support themselves, are in a drastically different situation than the person who dreams of living in Colorado (or wherever), but has to temper that with the requirement of being able to a) support themselves with a locally-derived income and b) having to use that income to buy/rent their home in their chosen locale.

Want to see the people who live comfortably in a high-price place like Durango? They are people, usually over 40-60 years of age, with a lot of savings and investments, usually a continuing income independent of the local economy, and a lot of equity coming from a property sold elsewhere. They can pretty much call the tune about wherever they choose to live. People without those "advantages?" A whole lot tougher for them, if not impossible.
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Old 03-20-2012, 07:26 PM
 
Location: Everywhere and Nowhere
14,129 posts, read 31,118,638 times
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If this were really an issue wouldn't local businesses be forced to pay workers more or go with jobs unfilled? Are there very high wages or a huge shortage of workers there that would back up your argument?
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Old 03-20-2012, 09:18 PM
 
289 posts, read 772,077 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CAVA1990 View Post
If this were really an issue wouldn't local businesses be forced to pay workers more or go with jobs unfilled? Are there very high wages or a huge shortage of workers there that would back up your argument?
As I said, the majority of the working class live outside of Durango, whether it be Bayfield, Mancos, Hesperus, Ignacio, or Hermosa. I've met quite a few people who commute from places as far out as Pagosa Springs, Cortez, and Aztec, NM too.

Perfect Example: A guy who I work with and (probably) makes a salary similar to mine was paying $850 a month for a 1-bedroom loft in Durango with no yard and no garage. A couple of months ago, he and his wife bought a house in Cortez. Their mortgage payment is about the same as what their rent payment was in Durango was, but they now live in a 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom house that has a 2-car garage and decent-sized back yard.
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Old 03-20-2012, 10:09 PM
 
Location: Everywhere and Nowhere
14,129 posts, read 31,118,638 times
Reputation: 6920
Quote:
Originally Posted by Durango Bound View Post
As I said, the majority of the working class live outside of Durango, whether it be Bayfield, Mancos, Hesperus, Ignacio, or Hermosa. I've met quite a few people who commute from places as far out as Pagosa Springs, Cortez, and Aztec, NM too.

Perfect Example: A guy who I work with and (probably) makes a salary similar to mine was paying $850 a month for a 1-bedroom loft in Durango with no yard and no garage. A couple of months ago, he and his wife bought a house in Cortez. Their mortgage payment is about the same as what their rent payment was in Durango was, but they now live in a 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom house that has a 2-car garage and decent-sized back yard.
That's not much different than a lot of places. A 40-50 mile commute where I live isn't considered unusual for people who want cheaper housing.
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Old 03-20-2012, 10:45 PM
 
289 posts, read 772,077 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CAVA1990 View Post
That's not much different than a lot of places. A 40-50 mile commute where I live isn't considered unusual for people who want cheaper housing.
BUT, it's only worth that commute if you can afford to buy a house and if you're willing to sacrifice 2 or more hours of your day. If you can't buy a house, you may as well pay the extra money to live a little closer to where you work and save yourself the fuel and commute time. I've thought about renting in Cortez, but to me, the benefit of an extra $150-$200 in my pocket every month doesn't outweigh the cost of adding another 2 hours to an already long work day and the cost of fuel to get me to and from.
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