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Strictly personal opinion as I have no crystal balls around here. 1. Yes, it's a great investment time right now all over CA. 2. Prices in some areas may even drop a bit but interest rates are starting their climb. Rates went up more than half a point in last three weeks. Any reduction in home prices now will more than be offset by higher interest rates. 3. Get a solid and good low interest rate, FIXED, for 30 years. Most of the REO's (real estate owned) I've previewed run about 90% needing minor repairs, paint and carpetting. About 7% are turnkey where they are so clean you could move right into them. 3% have been trashed. Real Estate is very cyclical and although this present downfall in the market was caused by a lot of scams, fraud, buyer ingnorance, the market will work through it eventually. I don't see a turnaround until late next year and a fairly good market by 2012. You're correct in that a lot of homes that once sold for over $500k or more are now on the market for 40 to 60% off. Stick with REO's as the lender has already gone through the foreclosure process and now has the legal title. Short Sells or Short Pays are really a pain as the legal owner is still in the loop even of he walked away from the home. It takes several months to go through this process and it doesn't make sense to tie your money up for that long when other, readily available REO's are available. But, even though there is a glut on the market, we are seeing many of these REO's get multiple offers on them. If banks place them on the market at a low price, lower than the market dictates, it's because they're hoping for bidding action. We've seen REO's close at between $40k and $70k more than the original listing price. Tell your REALTOR ( not just a real estate salesperson, but a REALTOR) what you want and where. They can find you a list of those homes. Preview the ones you're interested in. I don't know how handy you are but personally I'd lean more toward a Turn Key than any others. Reason is after interior painting, carpetting, new lawns, etc, you could be dishing out another $10 grand real easy. To me it's worth it. Also, spend between $300 to $400 and get a Home Warranty Plan. That'll cover a lot of repairs if and when something happens. Lastly, you'd probably want an ROI (return on investment) fairly quickly and a turn key home allows you to quickly rent or lease it out that much faster. But the decision is all yours...preview a lot of homes from the bottom to the top of the line, get a feel for their market value, repair costs, etc. Previous years taxes were probably based on higher valuations. When buying one of these, you'll have to pay these higher tax rates. After that, your tax base should be lowered. If not, you can request a reassessment. Be sure to ask about Special Taxes and any Association Fees. These can easily add up to another $700 to $800 or more a month on top of the mortgage. Now's a great time to buy...wisely. See a REALTOR. Be sure to check their license number out on the DRE website. (Dept. of Real Estate) You can make sure they are in good standing and have no formal complaints on their record, a valid license, etc. Hope this helps.....

Source(s)

A CA REALTOR.

by sloopy

1 year ago

Asker's Rating: 

Depends on the election in November. If McCain gets in, we will probably end up becoming a third world country, because we are already in debt up to our eyeballs over this war in Iraq when we should have been going after the real terrorists in Afghanistan. However, $250k for a house in Sacramento sounds really sweet.

by indie_dude80- 1 year ago