Real estate in s. or n. Orange co.? (apartment complexes, mortgage)

[Lallo]

Looks like he has all his ducks in order. The only problem I see is the $1630 limit he has put on himself. Haven't checked but I can't see finding a decent 2 bedroom with that monthly cost.

[nurserosie]

I personally not look at anything in Anaheim tho

My h.o.

[nurserosie]

I personally not look at anything in Anaheim tho

My h.o.

[k374]

I like city of Orange since it has a central location but the prices are insane with the mello roos taxes in certain places...paying $900/mo. just in taxes and HOA (2% on $300k + $300 hoa) for a starter home is nuts!

[Lallo]

Sadly, that's the price of buying in a newer community. Most newer places have HOA's of about $350 (condos/townhomes of course). Mello Roos can be somewhat doable at about @ 1700/yr, unlike Irvine properties which carry Mello Roos of 5k or higher!!!.

[k374]

$1700/yr Mello Roos is fine, but in Orange, the townhome I looked at Mello Roos was .8% which at a $350k price tag translates to $250/mo. Add $350/mo HOA and another 1.2% in Property taxes ($350), that's $950/mo. JUST in taxes/fees. and this is a recurring cost even after you paid off your home.

Now imagine that if it's $950/mo now, in the future these costs can balloon to anything depending on what local governments choose to do, and my guess is that coffers are running low and they are going to raise these costs much more than inflation...starting off with high costs like these is a bad move.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by k374

$1700/yr Mello Roos is fine, but in Orange, the townhome I looked at Mello Roos was .8% which at a $350k price tag translates to $250/mo. Add $350/mo HOA and another 1.2% in Property taxes ($350), that's $950/mo. JUST in taxes/fees. and this is a recurring cost even after you paid off your home.

Now imagine that if it's $950/mo now, in the future these costs can balloon to anything depending on what local governments choose to do, and my guess is that coffers are running low and they are going to raise these costs much more than inflation...starting off with high costs like these is a bad move.

Mello Roos does have a maturation so that should be checked out. For example, if a home build in 1997 has a 20 year Mello Roos, the owner (whoever that is) only pays it until 2017. So, a buyer shouldn't just look at Mello Roos amounts. a $1000/year MR for five years isn't as bad as a $600 MR for 20 years.

[fipster]

Looks like you're looking to buy a 300-350K house. At that price, you can buy a relatively new 1 or 2 bedroom condo in nice areas such as Tustin or Irvine. Or you can buy an older 3 bedroom condo in Orange or Costa Mesa. For a single family residence or a newer condo with 3 bedrooms, you would need at least 400K.

Personally, I live in a newer 1 bedroom condo for 300K. Not this summer, but next, we're planning to move into a 2 or 3 bedroom home for 400K. Some of our choices are:

1. An older house in Orange
2. An older house in Tustin
3. A newer condo in Tustin Ranch
4. A newer condo in Irvine
5. A tiny condo in Newport
6. A decent sized, but older condo in Costa Mesa.

[k374]

Does not have to be a single family residence, I'm open to townhomes as well if they have only 1 wall in common (so end unit townhomes). I would prefer to stick to $275k cost (@1600sqft that's $172/sqft), with 20% down and preferably no mello roos but as others have said if it's expiring within 5-7 years or so and is reasonable ($1200/year or under) then I will discount this restriction.

If Mello Roos is typically a 20 year bond then I should be looking at a 13-15 yr old home, meaning constructed around 2000 or so. My minimum age requirement is 1990+ so I should be able to find properties without any Mello Roos.

Mello Roos that is thousands of dollars a year (1-1.5% cost of the home sometimes) is not for me...I will let some other sucker fall for that.

[woodrough]

Here:

Real Estate Search | Redfin

132 (at the moment) places in OC for $275k or less built 1990 or newer. You should be able to scroll through all of those and look at the taxes in a reasonable amount of time.