What can I afford? (rental, condos, homes)

[zeekosu]

I recently moved out of orange county and to the east coast but am certainly missing southern california. The cost of living was obviously one of the factors that influenced me to move. However, my previous employer is trying to get me to come back and I'm interested to see what or where I could afford to live out there if I decided to move back. My job was on the westside of LA but I lived in huntington beach, so the commute wasn't too horrible.

Here is some of my criteria
1. I make 85k per year
2. I have about 20-30k for a down payment
3. Commute no longer than 45min-1 hour.
4. 2 car garage and possibly small driveway so I can work on my car.
5. A yard is not important
6. 2 or 3 bedroom condo/house

The price of housing has gone down since I have left, but it's still not easy to afford. I'd like to be able to afford the monthly payments myself, but will most likely rent out a room to help.

Are there any reasonably affordable homes/condos out there that I could somehow qualify for and what areas are best to look?

Thanks

[k374]

2-3bd condos are about $275-350k, $275k is probably the lowest you can find in a decent neighborhood/complex, that with 10% down + closing costs will still take you over $30k out of pocket, plus I would advise having 8-12 mos. reserves in this economy so that you don't wind up losing the home that you just bought incase there is some economic disaster...that means at least $35k for the downpayment plus another $25-35k saved cash, so you need to have around $70-80k in cash to consider buying.

I don't want to dissuade you but it's better to look at the realistic picture and renting may be a smarter option during these unpredictable times! Also note that property prices are still falling.

PS - I would discount the rental income in your numbers as that is not quite guaranteed and you should run the numbers and be able to afford everything by yourself, just to be on the safe side.