Real Estate Prices (San Antonio, Spring, San Diego: foreclosures, houses, neighborhoods)

[moai]

My wife and I are currently living in Reno, NV and looking to relocate, as there is no way we can afford a house here, and Reno is changing for the worst--at least for us.

We have been looking at the real estate prices and can't believe it, frankly. It is so unbelievably cheap! What is the proverbial "catch", if any?

Most of the houses we have looked at so far are inside the 410 freeway loop, toward the west. With a 2000+ sqft home going for around $170k....wow. Is that area a war zone or something? A toxic waste dump? The pictures look pretty and the houses quite nice, so what gives?

That said, are there any zip codes/neighborhoods to avoid? We are planning to raise a family, of course, but a commute is fine. Driving for 20 to 30 minutes for anything is the way things are in Reno, so we are used to it. A walking neighborhood with cool local watering holes and cafes sounds nice, too.

We plan on an extended visit to pick which area would be best for us, but it would save us a lot if we knew specific areas to check out when we get there.

San Antonio is a beautiful city, that's for sure.

[rd2007]

The average person doesn't make a whole lot of money here, so that drives the real estate price they can afford. There's nothing wrong with the area you looked at, although I would personally recommend you look outside 410.
and the toxic waste dump is located where Kelly AFB used to be and as irony usually has it, where I'm typing this from..

[moai]

Originally Posted by rd2007

The average person doesn't make a whole lot of money here, so that drives the real estate price they can afford. There's nothing wrong with the area you looked at, although I would personally recommend you look outside 410.
and the toxic waste dump is located where Kelly AFB used to be and as irony usually has it, where I'm typing this from..

Thanks for the quick response!

I was just kidding about the toxic waste dump. Here in Reno a 1100sqft house is around $250,000. It's insane. The houses I have looked at online look really nice and are half that. Hope I didn't offend...

We were just looking at places near Banderas. It sure is pretty country around San Antonio. Are there other towns nearby that have big lots like that? That might be pretty cool, too.

[whitechocolate86]

Originally Posted by moai

Thanks for the quick response!

I was just kidding about the toxic waste dump. Here in Reno a 1100sqft house is around $250,000. It's insane. The houses I have looked at online look really nice and are half that. Hope I didn't offend...

We were just looking at places near Banderas. It sure is pretty country around San Antonio. Are there other towns nearby that have big lots like that? That might be pretty cool, too.

Why can you not afford property in Reno...the justification for SoCal's prices are lack of land...I didn't think Reno had a lack of land...

[whitechocolate86]

Originally Posted by rd2007

The average person doesn't make a whole lot of money here, so that drives the real estate price they can afford. There's nothing wrong with the area you looked at, although I would personally recommend you look outside 410.
and the toxic waste dump is located where Kelly AFB used to be and as irony usually has it, where I'm typing this from..

Hey,
What do you do for a living...if I may partially derail this thread?

[rd2007]

Bandera is outside 1604 and it is nice, but the traffic you have to go through to get out of it is currently not very nice.. We bought a 2700 sq. ft. house in 2002 in a fairly nice and popular neighborhood for around $140K. We came here from Monterey and San Diego and it definitely is a little bit cheaper here.. The salary is a bit of a culture shock though. I was military and was used to being on the poor end of the pay scale, but here we were considered pretty well off.
The main City-Data site will give you plenty of details as far as crime, average income, and a bunch of other useful info broken down by zip code. It's a pretty valuable site and no I don't get paid to say that

[rd2007]

Originally Posted by whitechocolate86

Hey,
What do you do for a living...if I may partially derail this thread?

defense contractor
I actually work on Lackland, but they're keeping us over here on Kelly where the training equipment is.

[firstclassflyer]

So, I guess you would say the "catch" is salary. It's nice to bring an out of state salary with you (as in my case), are military, or a business owner, otherwise you will most likely take a hit on your income. Also, property/school tax will most likely be more (could be much more) than where you're coming from. No casino's to subsidize here. Weird, but I travel extensively on business...and will happen to be in Reno on Thursday!!

Funny, we're from San Diego as well...and we used to say that same thing about places like Reno,Phoenix, Denver, Colorado Springs etc.., ...where's the toxic waste dump?? So cheap.

[moai]

Originally Posted by whitechocolate86

Why can you not afford property in Reno...the justification for SoCal's prices are lack of land...I didn't think Reno had a lack of land...

Because people are moving here from CA. They will pay over market value for a house and still get a deal compared to where they are from. WE also have serious water issues, as there is not enough water for the people here now and more are coming every day. Our housing costs have always been inflated, but it is insane now. I am sure with foreclosures that prices will drop some, but not enough.

The average house price here is $350k. And it isn't worth it for what you get. A $500k house here is $225 in San Antonio. And the drug scene in Reno is out of control.

Before I got married I lived in a neighborhood where a pregnant woman was shot and killed in a drive-by at the grocery store--400 meters from my house. A 2 bedroom 1 bath house in that area is $310k.

We would rather move, get way more house for our money, and have money left over to go out to eat, see a concert, travel some, and save for retirement.

[moai]

Originally Posted by whitechocolate86

Hey,
What do you do for a living...if I may partially derail this thread?

I used to work on computer systems/networking for sports books, but got sick of it, retired, and now I am getting my Master's in education and I am going to teach, and eventually move into administration.

I am 43, the wife is 23. I was never married, no kids (her either) and I made a decent living and saved my money so when I got fed up I could bail and not feel it. I go to school and tend bar two days a week for something to do.

I have always been something of a late bloomer!