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Old 10-25-2007, 01:39 PM
 
5 posts, read 28,077 times
Reputation: 12

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I have a few random questions...

1. What is the average rent for a 2 bedroom condo in Huntington Beach area?
2. Is the area of Heil/Bolsa Chica a good area? safe? clean? near to retail/food?

I'm debating of buying a condo in this area and renting it out. I'm not sure what the pros and cons would be in this area. Any opinions are welcomed!
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Old 10-25-2007, 01:44 PM
 
11,715 posts, read 40,446,365 times
Reputation: 7586
Unless you put a ton of money down, you''ll have negative cash flow every month since purchase prices are so much higher than rental prices. Look on Craig's List for rental rates. Last time I looked, they were around $2000/mo but can be lower or much higher depending on the condition and age of the unit. Heil and Bolsa Chica is a fine area. Anywhere in HB is close to food and shopping.
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Old 10-25-2007, 01:50 PM
 
5 posts, read 28,077 times
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Ya I was definitely going to put in 20% down. I am having such difficulties finding places where I will make a positive cash flow. I'm almost 'ok' with having a few hundred negative in hopes that in 5-10 yrs I earn in appreciation. =\
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Old 10-25-2007, 05:15 PM
 
Location: South Orange County
264 posts, read 397,768 times
Reputation: 48
Quote:
Originally Posted by swtsarina View Post
Ya I was definitely going to put in 20% down. I am having such difficulties finding places where I will make a positive cash flow. I'm almost 'ok' with having a few hundred negative in hopes that in 5-10 yrs I earn in appreciation. =\
You might want to explore new "hot" places like St. George, Utah. Moab is building quickly, and you might make out waaayyy out there. There are places in Arkansas and North Carolina that would possibly be good places to make an investment like that. The far west and the southwest (California-Washington-Oregon-Arizona-Nevada) have long since been a Mecca for investors. The cost of real estate is much too high.
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Old 10-25-2007, 10:00 PM
 
Location: Southern California
57 posts, read 197,045 times
Reputation: 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by swtsarina View Post
Ya I was definitely going to put in 20% down.
A 20% down payment is a TON of money to you?? Just how long have you been in the business?

Quote:
I am having such difficulties finding places where I will make a positive cash flow.
This should be enough to tell you that the smart money has left real estate.
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Old 10-26-2007, 02:30 PM
 
5 posts, read 28,077 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by A Proud American View Post
A 20% down payment is a TON of money to you?? Just how long have you been in the business?



This should be enough to tell you that the smart money has left real estate.
Ya I know in S.Cal it's merely impossible to get a positive cash flow. My hope is that a few yrs would be negative, and eventually rent may rise and appreciation may rise in the long run which will eventually give me a positive cash flow and/or appreciation. I'm very new to real estate so forgive me if I sound idealistic but really I am not. I'm really tryin to do a lot of research and figure out what is best for me. So any suggestions is always welcomed.

As for the downpayment, I've been saving my entire life for a home purchase. I saved tons and yes it is enough for a 20% down for a $300k range.

I wouldn't mind purchasing out of state which is cheaper, but I guess I find it harder since I'm not there to see the home, I don't know the area, can i really trust the property managers, etc. It's just more research I have yet to do.
One step at time. =)
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Old 10-26-2007, 02:40 PM
 
11,715 posts, read 40,446,365 times
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California isn't the state to cut your teeth in the residential real estate business. Prices are so high that it takes a lot of your own capital and often a lot of leverage to get in and that increases the risk. Real estate prices aren't going up. They're holding steady at best and sinking in most places. Do you want to see your investment vanish over the next 5 year while you're in a negative cash flow situation?
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Old 10-26-2007, 05:13 PM
 
Location: South Orange County
264 posts, read 397,768 times
Reputation: 48
Quote:
Originally Posted by swtsarina View Post
Ya I know in S.Cal it's merely impossible to get a positive cash flow. My hope is that a few yrs would be negative, and eventually rent may rise and appreciation may rise in the long run which will eventually give me a positive cash flow and/or appreciation. I'm very new to real estate so forgive me if I sound idealistic but really I am not. I'm really tryin to do a lot of research and figure out what is best for me. So any suggestions is always welcomed.

As for the downpayment, I've been saving my entire life for a home purchase. I saved tons and yes it is enough for a 20% down for a $300k range.

I wouldn't mind purchasing out of state which is cheaper, but I guess I find it harder since I'm not there to see the home, I don't know the area, can i really trust the property managers, etc. It's just more research I have yet to do.
One step at time. =)
You might then want to try investments other than real estate...that said, there are some terrific mutual funds out there returning great percentages...international blue chip funds and intenational real estate funds are doing very well.

Check out some Fidelity or Vanguard funds....great returns without the headaches involved with very expensive California real estate.
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Old 10-26-2007, 09:51 PM
 
Location: Southern California
57 posts, read 197,045 times
Reputation: 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by swtsarina View Post
I'm very new to real estate
This is the Darwinian part of the cycle, in which the market purges the weakest participants.

You most likely do not want to be part of this process.
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Old 10-27-2007, 01:15 AM
 
3,853 posts, read 12,865,527 times
Reputation: 2529
Bad time to be investing in real estate. Most people are trying to dump their property before it declines. Sales are hitting record lows and inventory is skyrocketting. Here is what you should be looking at. Basically this is how much debt is going to be resetting in ARMs. When there are more resetting then it means that more people are more likely to fall into foreclosure (because their mortgage payments will be increasing). When more people foreclose then it means that more homes will be put up for sale (and increase inventory). Eventually the inventory gets so high that home prices start to decline. To make matters worse home sales are declining as well. Home prices will continue to decline until jan 2012 because that is when all the arm resetting is over. At that point inventory will start to decline and home buyers will return to the market. Increasing sales and decreasing inventory means higher home prices.

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