Housing prices - INSANE! (Los Angeles, San Francisco: short sales, apartments, foreclosure)

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by JohnG72

And again, asking prices mean absolutely nothing.

Agree. Look the place up again in 6 months, 8 months, a year when it hasn't sold. You're going to be pretty surprised at how low that "asking" price has gone, and even that won't be as high as the sellers will be expecting to get. (Or if you really watch real estate in general, not just around here, maybe you won't be so surprised. Name of the game.)

However, overall, yes, in this area of the nation homes tend to be high in proportion to income (and high just in and of themselves). No shock there.

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by DynamoLA

Breaking news: L.A. has high housing prices. We'll stay on top of this breaking development...

^ Bwah ha, yup, this. Not exactly a surprise to anyone who wasn't raised in a closet with food occasionally shoved under the door.

I am sorry, folks. Yes, it really is pretty expensive out here (in general -- every pocket is so different from every other pocket). It's a given so you have to plan accordingly. It can DEFINITELY be worth it. My little boys can't imagine living anywhere else. But yes. Not a cheap area, overall.

[nick2006]

Originally Posted by JerZ

Agree. Look the place up again in 6 months, 8 months, a year when it hasn't sold. You're going to be pretty surprised at how low that "asking" price has gone, and even that won't be as high as the sellers will be expecting to get. (Or if you really watch real estate in general, not just around here, maybe you won't be so surprised. Name of the game.)

However, overall, yes, in this area of the nation homes tend to be high in proportion to income (and high just in and of themselves). No shock there.

my wife and i have been trying to buy a property for almost 2 yrs now. i posted on this before. for less desirable locations, it won't move if its overpriced. for desirable locations, homes are still moving. trust me..this has been so frustrating for us and just want our search to end. its very hard to find a deal in an in-demand area. we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary even though the rule of thumb is to buy a home about 3-4 times your salary. i hate the thought of being house poor

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by nick2006

we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary even though the rule of thumb is to buy a home about 3-4 times your salary. i hate the thought of being house poor

Been there, done that, but not at 8-10x. Now THAT'S insane. Its not an existence I ever wish to repeat.

[Troof]

Originally Posted by nick2006

my wife and i have been trying to buy a property for almost 2 yrs now. i posted on this before. for less desirable locations, it won't move if its overpriced. for desirable locations, homes are still moving. trust me..this has been so frustrating for us and just want our search to end. its very hard to find a deal in an in-demand area. we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary even though the rule of thumb is to buy a home about 3-4 times your salary. i hate the thought of being house poor

Holy balls!

Careful bro!

[katnip kid]

I have to laugh at the OP's description..." most of the homes looked OLD (60s or 70 construction)."
I know homes from that era are dated by today's standards, at least for many. I could be happy in one of 'em.

[JohnG72]

Originally Posted by nick2006

my wife and i have been trying to buy a property for almost 2 yrs now. i posted on this before. for less desirable locations, it won't move if its overpriced. for desirable locations, homes are still moving. trust me..this has been so frustrating for us and just want our search to end. its very hard to find a deal in an in-demand area. we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary even though the rule of thumb is to buy a home about 3-4 times your salary. i hate the thought of being house poor

The market is being gamed right now. Its your choice if you want to play the game. It means 30 years of debt slavery IMO. In fact, buying absolutely makes no sense in the most "in demand" areas in LA such as on the westside(especially Santa Monica) and South Pasadena, where renting is often half the cost of buying.

Buying may make a lot of sense in areas with inexpensive homes where low interest rates mean mortgage payments are less than renting. So long as you plan to stay in the area/home 10 years or more(lets be real...at this point only dingbats believe there will be a V shaped recovery), buying in one of these areas may make sense. These are outlying suburbs with average to above average schools such as West Covina, Hacienda Heights, Whittier, La Mirada, Woodland Hills, etc. For example:

1626 East WALNUT CREEK Pkwy, West Covina, CA 91791 | MLS# C11133012

1323 East TUDOR St, Covina, CA 91724 | MLS# C11049608

8830 BOYAR Ave, Whittier, CA 90605 | MLS# P778984

319 North CYPRESS St, La Habra, CA 90631 | MLS# P792574

At $350K, a 30 year mortgage with a 4.5% interest rate and 3.5% down FHA backed loan, your monthly mortgage payment is $1700...very likely cheaper than renting the same home. With 20% down, its a no brainer IMO if you want to live in those areas.

However, if you want to live in one of the expensive areas, just rent. Rent there is not appreciably more than rent anywhere else in LA, and buying is more expensive by quite a bit.

[John23]

Real estate is crazy here.

I was in florida few years ago, in orlando. You could buy condo's there for like $150 k, lol?? Maybe $175 k if you're really splurging?

Here, the same place in west la (santa monica) or a nice area of long beach or something would be $500k.

I think the real estate prices here are a combination of...

-Old home owners (baby boomers). Say 50% who bought years ago.

-Two income families just wanting to move to LA, 25%.

-Investors, students, misc. Say 12.5% each.

And with so few good school districts, it pushes up prices 2, 3x you'd see elsewhere.

[CA4Now]

Originally Posted by nick2006

...we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary...

No one is forced to pay that. Housing prices are apparently going to continue to decline in 2012:
Foreclosures expected to rise, pushing home prices lower - latimes.com

[JerZ]

Originally Posted by nick2006

my wife and i have been trying to buy a property for almost 2 yrs now. i posted on this before. for less desirable locations, it won't move if its overpriced. for desirable locations, homes are still moving. trust me..this has been so frustrating for us and just want our search to end. its very hard to find a deal in an in-demand area. we will eventually be forced to pay 8-10 times our salary even though the rule of thumb is to buy a home about 3-4 times your salary. i hate the thought of being house poor

Sort of. Where exactly are you looking? I live in Glendora and granted that's one hell of a commute to, say, downtown, but we have top rated schools, very very low crime, it's lovely, and houses have definitely gone down as realtors were unable to sell (I watch this very carefully).