Arizona, California, Texas?

Kabin · Mar 9, 2006

I found a link to an San Diego article on affordable housing in CA.

San Diego hit an all time low of 8% affordability. A household earning of $150,040 would be necessary to qualify for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 6.2 percent on a median-priced, single-family resale home of $616,840.

My recollection of Bob Brinkers #s are off with this article as it says California households able to afford a median-priced home with traditional financing has returned to a record low 14 percent .

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060122/news_1h22afford.html

military spouse · Mar 9, 2006

I found a link to an San Diego article on affordable housing in CA.
San Diego hit an all time low of 8% affordability. A household earning of $150,040 would be necessary to qualify for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 6.2 percent on a median-priced, single-family resale home of $616,840.
My recollection of Bob Brinkers #s are off with this article as it says California households able to afford a median-priced home with traditional financing has returned to a record low 14 percent .
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060122/news_1h22afford.html

That's insaine! We actually have the annual income listed with our only debt being our current house and a $374 payment on a motorcycle and if we were to sell this house, keeping the $374 payment there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY we could afford a houe over $600,000. We certainly couldn't max out IRAs, 401ks and other investments. 6% or 14%...it just doesn't matter it is way too low. In El Paso, TX (houses have recently appreciated) I could work as much per diem at a certain public hospital and nights are $37 per hour and I could buy a nice, new house for about $150,000 (much less when we lived there).

military spouse · Mar 9, 2006

A few months back I was listening to Bob Brinker, a well known host for a nationally syndicated financial radio talk show and he discussed California housing and said only 1 in 20 can currently qualify to purchase a home. It's huge problem for those renting in CA or considering a move there and it's been that way for a long time. I'm sure one could find pockets of relative affordability like Bakersfield or El Centro. But images of dirty truckstop towns with Waffle House fine dining usually aren't what people have in mind when considering a moving to California.

I LOVE Bob Brinker. The other great financial radio program I enjoy is heard on Christian radio stations or can listen directly on crown.org. I could spend all my free time listening to those great shows!

Sheri257 · Mar 10, 2006

I'm not suggesting that anybody pay $500,000 for a house in San Diego or anywhere else for that matter. What I am suggesting is ... you may have noticed that California is a very big state. If you choose to live in a cheaper inland areas ... which really aren't much more expensive than Arizona ... you can do better because you make more money and more net income.

:typing

Sheri257 · Mar 10, 2006

You are probably more of an exception. I can only speak for O.C., San Francisco, and Grass Valley where one can't touch a house for $300,000. I would actually consider moving back if I could get a new house with all of the new amenities for $300,000.........but I can't........or atleast not where I would want to live.Youare very fortunate to have that kind of equity of a house with that initial price.

Maybe I am an exception but we spent a lot of time researching local housing markets for two years before we bought. Our goal was to buy in a cheap area that was within commuting distance to lots of good paying jobs ... so the growth ... and appreciation potential was high. We thought it would take a few years but, as it turned out, it happened a lot quicker than that.

We did get lucky but, we also waited for the right house at the right price. There were many times when we walked away because people tried to jack up the price. I do have friends who paid more in those situations, but I refused to do it. If you take the time to research and hold out for the better deals ... I still think you can still do very well in California's housing market ... especially now that the market is softening.

:typing

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 13, 2006

I still think most areas of CA are way overpriced for the average person to live. I have a friend who makes over 100K a year and lives in Bakersfield (not your prime real estate location) and the house he bought is about 2300 sq feet, built in the 70's, and he paid the same price as our 3500 square foot house in AZ which we bought brand new.

I was born and raised in Ventura County, California (the coast) but could not afford to purchase a house there due to the lack of affordability. So I bought my first house in Bakersfield, a fairly nice 2-story home, for $145,000 in 2003. The job market is crappy in Bakersfield, so I commuted back and forth to the Ventura area daily for work (230 miles round-trip daily).

I sold the first house to my parents in the spring of 2004 and purchased a smaller Bakersfield house for $153,000. I sold the second house in the summer of 2005 for $259,000 and used the $100,000 profit to buy a brand-new house cash in Texas. The problem I had with living in Bakersfield was the sluggish job market. There are plenty of jobs there, but the majority pay poorly.

military spouse · Mar 13, 2006

I was born and raised in Ventura County, California (the coast) but could not afford to purchase a house there due to the lack of affordability. So I bought my first house in Bakersfield, a fairly nice 2-story home, for $145,000 in 2003. The job market is crappy in Bakersfield, so I commuted back and forth to the Ventura area daily for work (230 miles round-trip daily).
I sold the first house to my parents in the spring of 2004 and purchased a smaller Bakersfield house for $153,000. I sold the second house in the summer of 2005 for $259,000 and used the $100,000 profit to buy a brand-new house cash in Texas. The problem I had with living in Bakersfield was the sluggish job market. There are plenty of jobs there, but the majority pay poorly.

I see that you are 25 years old-----that is amazing and awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!:balloons:

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 13, 2006

I see that you are 25 years old-----that is amazing and awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!:balloons:

Thanks!