Can a family of three live on a single salary of $180k a year? (San Jose: real estate market, to rent)

[leftygolfer71]

I just recently had a job offer to move to Santa Clara and my wife and son currently live in Mass. I know it's kind of open ended question, but where could I live near Santa Clara that would allow us to get a nice house in the $450k range?

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by leftygolfer71

I just recently had a job offer to move to Santa Clara and my wife and son currently live in Mass. I know it's kind of open ended question, but where could I live near Santa Clara that would allow us to get a nice house in the $450k range?

Well, define what you mean by nice house? In Santa Clara, you may be able to get a 3 bedroom condo for that price. If you move to less desirable areas, you can get something for that price. Or if you're willing to commute a fairly long distance (Morgan Hill, Livermore, etc), you can get a nice house in a nice neighborhood for that price. The way I see it, you need to pick one of these three options to meet your needs:

1 - House size/layout (condo)
2 - Safe Location (not so desirable if nearby)
3 - Long commute

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by leftygolfer71

I just recently had a job offer to move to Santa Clara and my wife and son currently live in Mass. I know it's kind of open ended question, but where could I live near Santa Clara that would allow us to get a nice house in the $450k range?

Nowhere. For that money you can get a nice new house in the ghettos of South or East San Jose, a teardown in Santa Clara or Sunnyvale, or a decent 30-year-old rancher in the East Bay with a tedious commute and sometimes questionable schools. You'll need to increase your budget to around $700K before you find anything palatable for a small family. The cost of housing here is much higher than Mass.

[mstnghu2]

It is possible in this real estate market to find a somewhat decent house in a somewhat decent neighborhood, although you probably wouldn't be in a good school district and the house would probably require work. Many parts of San Jose have homes available around that price, although they're mostly in dumpier parts of town.

It wouldn't make any sense at all to buy right away though. If you're not familiar with the area, you should rent for at least a year or two so you have time to determine what you can actually afford in the type of area you want to live in.

Renting is very common these days and many people choose to do so because the amount of money saved by renting is a lot more than the amount of money that's being lost due to depreciation in owning a home.
The overall trend in real estate costs here is still mostly downward.

It honestly would be crazy to even think about buying a house without really getting to know the area first. Although it is possible to find a decent single family home right now in many parts of the Bay Area, you'll be surprised how unimpressive a home in that price range is.

[gone down south]

You can live quite well on that salary.

You'd have a hard time buying on that salary, unless you make some major lifestyle compromises.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by leftygolfer71

get a nice house in the $450k range?

Not a problem in the Burbank area of SJ. Neighborhood quality varies from street to street, but you can get a nice house and property for less than that, and have a short commute to work. And have money to fix up your house, as is the standard practice here.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by bigdumbgod

Not a problem in the Burbank area of SJ. Neighborhood quality varies from street to street, but you can get a nice house and property for less than that, and have a short commute to work. And have money to fix up your house, as is the standard practice here.

Indeed.. the pattern is to defer maintenance, then sell to the next guy as a property with "potential" or an "opportunity." They buy thinking they'll fix it up. Never get around to it. Cycle repeats.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by bigdumbgod

Not a problem in the Burbank area of SJ. Neighborhood quality varies from street to street, but you can get a nice house and property for less than that, and have a short commute to work. And have money to fix up your house, as is the standard practice here.

Yes, but then you'd probably need to fork out a lot more money to send your kids to private school. Probably a better bet to rent in a better school district for a while, both to learn the area and to save money for a larger down payment, if you were to buy in a better school district going forward.

[80skeys]

"Can a family of three live on a single salary of $180,000 a year"

Oh woah is me, I only make $180k, can I afford to live on this?

Anyone who asks a question like that ought to be forced to listen to all of Britney's songs without stopping.

[Wintermomma]

Yes a family of three can live on $180K/yr! And no you will not find a house for $450K in any good area with good schools. If you are lucky, really lucky, maybe $200K more than that, but even still that is tough unless you are looking towhome or condo. So unless you are opting for a private school, I'd rent for a while in your target school area.