what price is considered "affordable" rent in Virginia Beach? (2009, mortgages)

[rtandc]

Originally Posted by wheelsup

Raleigh is OK. I prefer to be closer to water but there is a lake here. Not sure what the entry level price point is to get on it though. At $90k/yr, depending on what you want, you can get a 3000 sq ft. newer home. Or you can buy cheaper and get a decent house in a decent neighborhood for sub $200k.

To put it in perspective this home in Virginia Beach:
2700 Einstein Drive, Virginia Beach, VA, 23456 - MLS ID#0848268 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com®

Would be around $150k-$180k depending on location...

To be fair the house you listed is in a 55 and over community and included in that price is allot of amenities that is not available in other neighborhoods

[wheelsup]

Originally Posted by rtandc

To be fair the house you listed is in a 55 and over community and included in that price is allot of amenities that is not available in other neighborhoods

Like what? Don't HOA fees pay for ammenties, not the sales price of the house? Or is it different there?

[telemonster]

Originally Posted by oduhoo

Very few are forced to pay rents or mortgages here. If they are high it is for a reason: namely people want to be here. Those who constantly complain do so b/c they haven't found a way to survive and like to complain.

I have lived in Raleigh. Charlotte. Asheville. I'm back here for a reason. Adapt and you can do well here.

No, some of us just know that the prices are a left-over from the speculative mania.

Pilot Article today: Virginia Beach ranks #11 in the US for high credit card debt. That sounds promising!?

Region ranks 11th for credit card debt | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com

Hampton Roads used to be cheap, but then there was a housing bubble. That drove up the prices in over 60 markets. Now they are correcting. The gov't talks about trying to save the high prices (meanwhile incomes are still stagnant) but there is nothing they can do. There is no real justification for the high prices. There is lots of empty inventory. Especially on the high end. Some of the high end homes will probably rot away before they get an occupant.

It's just the name of the game. Like beanie babies. We look back, and think, "who would ever pay $3,000 for a toy?" And those people that were paying $2,500 for a playstation 3 right before Christmas so Snotly Jr. could get his Christmas wish. There weren't any good games out for the thing, and the day after Christmas they were selling for list price. Half the people that were buying them didn't want them, they just wanted quick money with little work. This is the same as housing.

I've always been more concerned with the destruction to the US Economy caused by the housing bubble/credit bubble than actual housing for myself.
And I dislike it when cheaters are rewarded.

[telemonster]

Originally Posted by rtandc

To be fair the house you listed is in a 55 and over community and included in that price is allot of amenities that is not available in other neighborhoods

Yea retirement communities are higher priced.

But if you look at the housing for sale, much of the $250K should be listed for around $130K here in homicide roads.

The stuff in Raleigh has gone up, because it's one of the more affordable places left. I wouldn't be surprised if their market falls as well. As other markets fall and home prices come into line with salaries I think people will look to other areas more.

Much of it comes down to, where are the good jobs at? 757 doesn't have many great jobs.

And for what it's worth... in the past I've worked for NASA, Joint Forces Command, Jefferson Lab (particle accelerator), two technology startups, a $1Bil+ Navy contract and some other places. Some were good but now I realize I would have done much better elsewhere. I'm hoping my current company goes somewhere, but who knows.

While I'd like to see the area get better, I just think it lacks the right mentality. I think better people leave, and worse people come here. Not to be a jerk but reflecting on things... yea.

Good place to see some data on ASKING prices (not real sales prices) www.housingtracker.net
www.melissadata.com has lookups by zip code of median home price sale by month. Another killer resource.

[wheelsup]

To put it in perspective, I worked a few short sales in Virginia Beach. One particularly sticks out in my mind. Couple bought it new from the builder for $549,000 in a high end sub-division. Combined income was $85,000 or so. No money down, interest only mortgage.

Immediately turned around and re-listed it for $629,000. No takers. Kept lowering the price as the real estate market collapsed around them. Interest only mortgage. Mortgage resets, they're hurting. Finally gave up and went to short sale, selling for around $350,000. There was nothing wrong with it. The only winners? The Realtors.

The sad thing is they knew the majority of people who had bought the other houses in the sub division were doing the exact same thing.

Homes in my neighborhood in Raleigh are down around 10% from their peak. They were selling for around $100/sq ft now they are down to around $88/sq ft. I bought mine last year at this time for around $88 as well, telling me they dropped last year but have held steady sense. The higher end homes certainly are dropping more though. I remember house shopping in Virginia Beach last year at this time when we were considering a move. What you could buy for $180k was a joke. Either a small condo/townhome in an OK area or a crappy stick built home in the ghetto. I saw the writing on the wall, salaries just did not support those prices.

[telemonster]

Great story! That is why I believe the prices are not based on fundamentals and will sink further. Too many people have the idea that real estate is instant riches. When too many people are into it, then it's overheated. You see it on TV. You got the mortgage spam email. Everyone was talking real estate, and spending their equity. Banks had all the signs up about borrowing against your house for short use items like vacations.

Oh well. What can you do.

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by oduhoo

Very few are forced to pay rents or mortgages here. If they are high it is for a reason: namely people want to be here. Those who constantly complain do so b/c they haven't found a way to survive and like to complain.

I have lived in Raleigh. Charlotte. Asheville. I'm back here for a reason. Adapt and you can do well here.

The military is forced to pay rents and mortgages here. However, they dont pay, the taxpayer pays, however they run the housing prices up, and keep them from falling back down.

I personally, do not know anyone under the age of 30 years old who wants to be here. It has nothing to do with adapting, it has to do with complete lack of opportunity for upwardly mobile people in almost all career fields.

[oduhoo]

Originally Posted by Randomdude

The military is forced to pay rents and mortgages here. However, they dont pay, the taxpayer pays, however they run the housing prices up, and keep them from falling back down.

I personally, do not know anyone under the age of 30 years old who wants to be here. It has nothing to do with adapting, it has to do with complete lack of opportunity for upwardly mobile people in almost all career fields.

Oh well, you all have a great time complaining about Hampton Roads. Remember, no one is forcing you to stay.

And regarding the under 30 crowd . . . I work with 100 of them and nearly everyone I know considers this to be a decent place or better. Decent weather, surf, colleges, things to do. I guess it's who you hang with.

[Randomdude]

Originally Posted by oduhoo

Oh well, you all have a great time complaining about Hampton Roads. Remember, no one is forcing you to stay.

And regarding the under 30 crowd . . . I work with 100 of them and nearly everyone I know considers this to be a decent place or better. Decent weather, surf, colleges, things to do. I guess it's who you hang with.

Actually, I am forced to stay because of lack of a safer alternative.

As for the people you work with, if living six to an apartment and making 3/4's of what theyd make somewhere else for the same job is worth the "surf", then good luck with that.

Others of us have much broader goals then being perpetual beach bums until we are 45.

[chesapeakesim]

Originally Posted by telemonster

Great story! That is why I believe the prices are not based on fundamentals and will sink further. Too many people have the idea that real estate is instant riches. When too many people are into it, then it's overheated. You see it on TV. You got the mortgage spam email. Everyone was talking real estate, and spending their equity. Banks had all the signs up about borrowing against your house for short use items like vacations.

Oh well. What can you do.

It's interesting to see Americans perceptions of real estate after the bubble. I recently read an article on cnnmoney.com (wish I still had the link), that had the stories of 6 people who had suffered cause of the housing market. Of the 6, I think 5 had bought houses over $500K. One guy had bought a rental property using an adjustable rate mortgage and was paying $1750 a month and surprise, surprise it "adjusted" and sent his payment to $2750. Think he was getting like $1800 a month in rent. So he was pleading with the bank to adjust his interest rate (I guess he could not refinance cause he was retired and did not make any income). So you start to sort of feel bad for the guy.
But then the article goes on to say that he bought it for like $400K and now it is worth $800K. Then you learn that he and his wife have 5 rental cottages in Florida.
Another one of these stories was about a guy that had bought in Tampa and was making tons of money during the boom years but now was making less cause of the slow down. He was not behind on his payments, but he called his bank and wanted to skip a few payments and tack them on the end of the loan so he could spend money on the holidays.
The point is, after the housing boom, people almost feel entitled to making money on their house and then when they don't, they feel the banks/government should bail them out. With the first guy, you have already made $400K on the rental property and have 5 other houses so the bank should not readjust his loan. The second guy, come on. No bank is going to tell you you can skip payments just cause you want to buy your kid a Playstation 3 on Christmas.
I had expected the article to be about normal people who had lost their jobs and had lived within their means and were struggling. Instead it was about pretty well off people who weren't raking it in any more on their houses and wanted a hand out. Unfortunately this seems to be the attitude of a lot of people nowadays.