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Old 04-22-2017, 05:27 PM
 
Location: Type 0.73 Kardashev
11,110 posts, read 9,812,975 times
Reputation: 40166

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Quote:
Originally Posted by davidt1 View Post
Prices vary depending on locations. It's generally true that it is hard for an average person to own a house because taxes take a big bite of of their paycheck. After federal tax, state tax, gas tax, car tax, sales tax, public employee pensions tax, etc., there isn't a whole lot left.
No.

It's not true.

It demonstrably is not so.

17% of Californians live in rental units. 83% live in owner-occupied units. While that's high compared to the national average, it still means that 5 out of 6 Californians live in owner-occupied homes. By definition, that's 'average'.

And that 17%? It's only marginally more than the 14% of people who live in rental units in that wonderful low-tax paradise we're constantly hearing about - Texas.

Quick Facts: Resident Demographics | nmhc.org
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Old 04-22-2017, 05:35 PM
 
Location: East Bay, San Francisco Bay Area
23,535 posts, read 24,022,219 times
Reputation: 23961
You could rent a small apartment or share a home on that salary, but if you and your spouse each took a >100K position (which is the likely scenario), you could buy a small starter home or townhouse. Besides salary, there is bonus, commission and stock option compensation at many companies, which helps with a down payment on a home.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevdawgg View Post
Even if you got a 100k job in Silicon Valley, you'd still be living in a van.
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Old 04-22-2017, 06:05 PM
 
Location: San Diego CA
8,484 posts, read 6,891,592 times
Reputation: 17008
There's a considerable number of people here who bought homes back in the 60's and 70's and just never moved. They paid less than 30K for homes that are now worth from 500k to a million. They have prop 13 and pay around 1,300 in property taxes a year.


Back in the day when CA had a lot of union protected blue collar jobs it was fairly easy to buy a home and raise a family on one income. A lot of folks were also vets and used their benefits to get no down payment loans.


Currently you have a situation where the average working couple can't afford even modest homes. They rent. Some get fed up and move away to states that have lower home prices. CA is a big state and there are also many who have large salaries in tech and other cutting edge enterprises that can afford the 800k and beyond house prices here. It's a have and have not housing market.
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Old 04-22-2017, 06:41 PM
 
Location: Sierra Nevada Land, CA
9,455 posts, read 12,545,216 times
Reputation: 16453
Quote:
Originally Posted by Unsettomati View Post
No.

It's not true.

It demonstrably is not so.

17% of Californians live in rental units. 83% live in owner-occupied units. While that's high compared to the national average, it still means that 5 out of 6 Californians live in owner-occupied homes. By definition, that's 'average'.

And that 17%? It's only marginally more than the 14% of people who live in rental units in that wonderful low-tax paradise we're constantly hearing about - Texas.

Quick Facts: Resident Demographics | nmhc.org
Oops....

Quote:
Originally Posted by msgsing View Post
There's a considerable number of people here who bought homes back in the 60's and 70's and just never moved. They paid less than 30K for homes that are now worth from 500k to a million. They have prop 13 and pay around 1,300 in property taxes a year.


.
By your logic 83% of people in CA are in their 60s or 70s. Not so.
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Old 04-22-2017, 08:05 PM
 
28,115 posts, read 63,672,505 times
Reputation: 23268
I know people that bought homes for 35k in the 70's and now have 3k property tax bills... don't forget some jurisdictions add a ton of special assessments on top of Prop 13 statewide 1%
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Old 04-23-2017, 02:19 AM
 
600 posts, read 566,717 times
Reputation: 793
Quote:
Originally Posted by Unsettomati View Post
No.

It's not true.

It demonstrably is not so.

17% of Californians live in rental units. 83% live in owner-occupied units. While that's high compared to the national average, it still means that 5 out of 6 Californians live in owner-occupied homes. By definition, that's 'average'.

And that 17%? It's only marginally more than the 14% of people who live in rental units in that wonderful low-tax paradise we're constantly hearing about - Texas.

Quick Facts: Resident Demographics | nmhc.org

lol people in TX rent homes? hahahahaha


Must be Obama's fault they can't afford to buy in TX.
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Old 04-23-2017, 07:31 AM
 
Location: So Ca
26,727 posts, read 26,812,827 times
Reputation: 24790
Quote:
Originally Posted by msgsing View Post
There's a considerable number of people here who bought homes back in the 60's and 70's and just never moved. They paid less than 30K for homes that are now worth from 500k to a million. They have prop 13 and pay around 1,300 in property taxes a year.
Not true. Most who bought homes in the 1960s and 70s and remained there would have done major improvements, thus prompting a re-assessment and an increase in property taxes.

My parents bought a home in 1960 valued at $29,000, stayed for 10 years, added a room, a patio, and a remodeled kitchen, then moved up to their next home. They and their neighbors were among those who voted in Prop 13 in 1978.

And if these people you're speaking of who bought back then stayed in their homes, many of them would be well into their 80s now.
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Old 04-23-2017, 09:45 AM
 
28,115 posts, read 63,672,505 times
Reputation: 23268
^^^ Yep... I'm in a neighborhood where 80 is young... and no, I don't live in a retirement community!

My neighbors all bought lots in the 1950's and built their homes and never left.

In the last few years it looked like this...

Across the street to the right 102, directly across 97, next to them 84 and 82 couple next to them 99.

My neighbor to the right is 97 and next to him 82... all widows/widowers except for the 82/84 couple and a 89/91 couple... African American, Native American, Chinese, Japanese, old time Utah Mormon couple... etc...

Oakland is truly a very diverse city and many that came and settled did so for life.

Rather than begrudge them for low taxes, I celebrate them... I'm just under 11k and they average around 3k... nothing wrong with that and I chose to buy there and Prop 13 offers me the same protections as they enjoy... only hope I make it to a robust 100 like they have...

The 102 year old was born on a ranch in Nevada and began teaching school in a one room school house at age 16... she taught for over 50 years in Nevada and was the first person in the county to have a car... she won a Statewide contest to sell the most newspaper subscription over a year period... she was 12 and her prize was a brand new Model T and I've seen the newspaper clippings to prove it.

Affording a home is a two part question...

There is the buying and then the keeping.

A young couple I've posted about were high school sweethearts... both the first in their family to attend college... her family is from the Philippines and he is African American... at age 24 they bought their own single family home in San Leandro California... she is a registered nurse and he is a police officer...

Their first year working made over 200k income and remember at age 24... great benefits too... no silver spoon or family money... just hard work.
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Old 04-23-2017, 01:19 PM
 
Location: Silicon Valley
3,683 posts, read 9,861,803 times
Reputation: 3016
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevdawgg View Post
Even if you got a 100k job in Silicon Valley, you'd still be living in a van.
If you were making $100k, you'd be 21 years old and living in a van wouldn't be that big a deal.
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Old 04-23-2017, 01:25 PM
 
Location: Left coast
2,320 posts, read 1,869,473 times
Reputation: 3261
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ultrarunner View Post
^^^ Yep... I'm in a neighborhood where 80 is young... and no, I don't live in a retirement community!

My neighbors all bought lots in the 1950's and built their homes and never left.

In the last few years it looked like this...

Across the street to the right 102, directly across 97, next to them 84 and 82 couple next to them 99.

My neighbor to the right is 97 and next to him 82... all widows/widowers except for the 82/84 couple and a 89/91 couple... African American, Native American, Chinese, Japanese, old time Utah Mormon couple... etc...

Oakland is truly a very diverse city and many that came and settled did so for life.

Rather than begrudge them for low taxes, I celebrate them... I'm just under 11k and they average around 3k... nothing wrong with that and I chose to buy there and Prop 13 offers me the same protections as they enjoy... only hope I make it to a robust 100 like they have...

The 102 year old was born on a ranch in Nevada and began teaching school in a one room school house at age 16... she taught for over 50 years in Nevada and was the first person in the county to have a car... she won a Statewide contest to sell the most newspaper subscription over a year period... she was 12 and her prize was a brand new Model T and I've seen the newspaper clippings to prove it.

Affording a home is a two part question...

There is the buying and then the keeping.

A young couple I've posted about were high school sweethearts... both the first in their family to attend college... her family is from the Philippines and he is African American... at age 24 they bought their own single family home in San Leandro California... she is a registered nurse and he is a police officer...

Their first year working made over 200k income and remember at age 24... great benefits too... no silver spoon or family money... just hard work.
what a lovely post! I miss the bay area,where diversity is appreciated and celebrated and people are welcoming! Kudos to you!!!
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