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LloydDobler posted:No, they're smart people who leverage their money to make more money. Low net worth people have to borrow, which radically changes the return on investment. If that is the case I don't understand your point: rich people borrow money to make money (is good) but it is bad if poor people use leverage? (Unless perhaps you mean that rich people can borrow at lower interest rates?) Is this like that old Mad magazine piece: "If you are rich you are "eccentric" if you are poor you are "crazy" "? P: You're a glutton R: You're a gourmet P: You breed kids like rabbits R: You're blessed with a large family P: You throw away your money on booze. R: You have a well-stocked bar. P: You own a mutt. R: You possess a mixed-breed.
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Feb 1, 2011 21:44
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Buckwheat Sings posted:I'm thinking of buying a condo in Santa Monica in LA. I have pretty much zero experience and this will be my first buy if I decide to go for it and continue. I have about 90k saved up for a down payment. According to Zillow and my family income level I guess my max would be 400k for a home though it'd be pretty tight especially if it hit something like 450k. So far there's about 2-3 listings on Zillow ranging from 390-450. Haven't actually done any legwork let alone check them out yet. Wow, there isn't much love for the condos here! They aren't all horror stories. I bought a Fannie Mae foreclosed condo in Dallas in fall 2009. This was the first time I bought a place -- and I'm in my 40s, so I've rented a long time. I'm pretty happy with owning so far. The neighbors are cool and there have been no mystery assessments and don't seem to be any of those planned. The HOA seems to be in OK shape financially, and doesn't have a lot of weird rear end rules. The units seem pretty bulletproof -- lofts with lots of concrete. HOA fees seem to vary a lot. I've seen places with fees of over $1,000/m. Those seem to be in high end older places. So they have a security guard there 24/7 and I hear that old elevators are a bitch to maintain? And that helps explain the HOA fees. Other places are much more reasonable. Resources that I used when looking around: condo.com -- you can search by zip code http://www.homepath.com/ Foreclosed Fannie Mae condos People have listed a lot of reasons on why not to buy. One of the reasons I finally bought: I'm nervous about inflation and/or the US Dollar losing a lot of its value. I've got a sweet 30 year loan at 4.125%. If interest rates go up, then I'm cooking with gas. Because if there is inflation you want to be an asset owner and a borrower. And hey, if the economy works out OK in the next few years, then I'd expect that would bode well for housing prices, too. But my own personal opinion is that our "leaders" (and their voting constituents) can't stand the tax increases and spending cuts it will take to get our finances in order. And it is also pretty cool to have a place where I can trick it out how I like it.
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May 5, 2011 03:33
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