Rural On A Budget

Written by Jim the Realtor

December 12, 2009

19 Comments

  1. tj & the bear

    Wow, for a smaller older place… that is very tastefully upgraded, and it’s a great lot. I’d love to know what this one eventually goes for.

  2. Blissful Ignoramus

    My kitchen (70 year old house) is in serious need of remodeling, and that set-up is exactly what I would like to have in mine. That third “bedroom” is iffy, but the lot looks great.

    And if you can’t live in 1300 sq ft, there is something wrong with you, especially if you have a half acre in San Diego County. If you have a choice that’s another thing.

  3. buy a house and get rich

    I cant live in 1300 sq ft.That is like a glorified apartment.2000 sq ft is more comfortable 4 sure.Life me be rough for tiger woods and all his ladies.His place must be 10000 sq ft at least.A room 4 each night of the week.

    Are you guys going to be happy when your taxes go up next year to pay for the new real estate party?

  4. Erica Douglass

    Beautiful house and tastefully done! Is this a REO?

    -Erica

  5. Erica Douglass

    I found it on the MLS. Looks like a flipper purchased it in October and re-did it. You’re paying about $100K over what they paid, although I’m sure they’ve made many of the improvements.

    -Erica

  6. Art Eclectic

    What a great house.

    (Would be thrilled with 1300 sf. I’d turn that awkward little room into the laundry room since it leads in off the garage and turn the laundry room into a 2nd bathroom.

  7. pemeliza

    Looks like a great place to retire.

  8. Derrick Evens

    Amazing house and fantastic presentation idea!

    It sure does seem like a good time to buy. Low interest rates, low prices, tax incentives, buyer’s market, etc. But one thing you don’t hear anyone talking about is the future of home prices.

    We used to always say everyday is a great day to buy real estate because we knew it was going up. We were wrong and prices have fallen big time.

    Historically speaking, these conditions represent an excellent entry point for anyone looking to buy a home. Even if prices are flat for the next 5 years, with short and long-term tax incentives and the pay-down of principle, it still makes a whole lot of financial sense for anyone currently renting out there.

    So there, I said it. Yes, prices might be flat for a while. Especially if HVCC sticks around and the Government essentially forces prices to stay down with significant over-regulation in the mortgage industry. Even still… doesn’t matter. Now is a good time to buy.

    Derrick Evens
    http://sandiegocreditguy.com/

  9. Noz

    Hey Jim,

    Very nice videos and good work. I don’t live in SD but it gives us a glimpse of the ludicrousness of the market out there (I’m actually talking about other videos).

    One thing I’d like to ask is please don’t help flippers. These people are less than dirt.

  10. CA renter

    Very nice house and lot! Art has some good ideas WRT the laundry room and bathroom.

  11. Genius

    The pricing in Vista is looking more and more rational, from my perspective at least. I don’t know the area very well, other than the part that borders Carlsbad, but I assume there’s some sort of catch. Regardless, it would be really nice to own half an acre. One of the more tasteful interior remodels I’ve seen as well.

  12. François Caron

    If I were in the area, I’d be making a cash offer of $400K on the place. Not only is it tastefully redone and reasonably priced, it also has a big wall for my HT screen.

    I’d turn the third bedroom either into an office with its own private entrance, or the older child’s bedroom if I have more than one child and they’re getting old enough to require their own bedroom.

    The place is definitely big enough for a family of three. In fact, it might help keep the family together. No one can isolate themselves from one another for too long.

    I’ll hire someone to maintain the landscape though. That’s a pretty big yard.

  13. Scott

    Noz wants to buy but he can’t get approved over 130k.

  14. JordanT

    One thing I’d like to ask is please don’t help flippers. These people are less than dirt.

    It’s comments like these that have caused Jim to turn off the comments before. I think that there are bad flippers, but whoever did this house did a good job. As its been shown in a lot of videos, flippers in today’s market are taking huge risks with their own cash on the line not a banks. Sometimes they take houses that nobody would buy and turn them from blights in the neighborhood into a nice house. Let’s judge each flipper on an individual basis.

    Anyways, that’s a nicely re-done house and a stunning yard. If I could handle the commute from Vista, I’d try to snatch up a house just like that. I could already see myself idly wasting time just being in that backyard with a cool drink.

  15. ca renter

    As its been shown in a lot of videos, flippers in today’s market are taking huge risks with their own cash on the line not a banks.

    I’m not sure being opposed to flipping (speculative flipping being one of the causes of our “financial crisis”) is somehow politically incorrect. Not sure if that’s what caused Jim to turn off the comments, either.

    That being said, flippers are using their cash positions (oftentimes cash invested by speculative investors in funds, not “their own” cash) and making the spread between the better pricing at the courthouse steps and the higher pricing on the open market. The lower pricing is a result of a much smaller buyer pool that has to have access to cash for the TS purchases.

    The higher pricing received when the flippers sell — which is where they get their profits from — is often the result of loose lending: 3.5% FHA and some zero-down (VA and USDA loans, possibly others?) made available to buyers in the open/non-cash market. Essentially, the flippers’ profits were made possible by taxpayers, yet again.

    If the govt truly wanted to help families own their own homes, while at the same time reducing the risk of future foreclosures, they would provide bridge loans to families, concurrent with the rehab loans through FHA. If regular buyers were able to buy at the courthouse steps, they would squeeze the flippers margins to such an extent that the flippers would exit the market.

    Flippers do not provide a service by buying these homes at the courthouse steps. If they didn’t buy at the auctions, the banks would take them back and market them on the MLS, with all the same “benefits” provided flippers WRT title and lien issues. The banks (read: taxpayers) would recoup more of their money because regular buyers with access to mortgages could buy them, and the prices would be more affordable (less risk!) as long as speculators weren’t taking inventory from the fininte pool of available homes.

  16. François Caron

    I see this home as a “good” flipper experience. Who knows the state the home was in when the flipper bought it. But now, not only does it almost looks like a brand new home, it also feels like a home. Not just another box.

    The flippers deserve the money they earn on this project. They didn’t just dust off the cobwebs and added a coat of paint here and there. They’ve redid everything (including replacing the pipes) and added real value to the place!

    Give these flippers their profit! They deserve it!

  17. Geotpf

    That house is plenty big enough for a childless couple, or even one with one kid. Two children might be pushing it, considering the third bedroom is a bit iffy-I think that ideally each kid should have their own bedroom. However, the large backyard is great for kids.

  18. Erin

    Wow! If I were looking for a house in Vista that size, I would really consider it. They did a good job in such a small kitchen putting in the pantry and little side cupboard storage. Laundry room is pretty good size too.

    We have 4 kiddos though, too small for us!

  19. Noz

    @ SCOTT:

    Well…I have over $350K sitting in the bank saved up so I think $130k shouldn’t be a problem.

    @ JORDAN T:

    I don’t think anything I said was improper…I think flippers have had a big part in ruining this market so I don’t consider a flip a “good” flip.

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