How To Lose Your Butt In Real Estate

[riverbabe]

When I got divorced from my first wife, my son and I moved to Redondo Beach (1983) Not far...Just a coupla blocks from the pier.

Lomita...Known for Narbonne HS and Bo Derek...Also, they have a little railroad museum there

Worked as a Med Tech at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Redondo. My first husband was an emergency room doctor at Torrance Memorial. Do they still have the poker parlors in Gardena? Used to just go and watch (not play) for the fun of it.

About the weather, here in lovely Cleveland, the snow plow has piled up 7-8feet of the white stuff on both sides of the street and driveways, and the icicles hanging from my roof are huge. You sees why I am a little nostalgic?

[IIC]

Worked as a Med Tech at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Redondo. My first husband was an emergency room doctor at Torrance Memorial. Do they still have the poker parlors in Gardena? Used to just go and watch (not play) for the fun of it.

About the weather, here in lovely Cleveland, the snow plow has piled up 7-8feet of the white stuff on both sides of the street and driveways, and the icicles hanging from my roof are huge. You sees why I am a little nostalgic?

Yeah...they still have poker rooms...also in Commerce and at Hollywood Park there is a semi-casino

[MEA_1956]

I know the answer to this one

Become an realtor, just ask my daughter. She has had her degree for over a year now and still looking for her first sell. Working for N P Dodge now, maybe her luck will change. Marlin

[IIC]

Become an realtor, just ask my daughter. She has had her degree for over a year now and still looking for her first sell. Working for N P Dodge now, maybe her luck will change. Marlin

Real estate is cyclical...Also depends on the area. It almost makes me throw up to hear Donald Trump on the radio (just yesterday in fact) promoting his seminar.

I'm almost tempted to pay the 49 bux just so I can stand up and tell him a thing or two.

However, I'd prefer that you all donate so I can attend the $7,000 Canslim Certification course...I'd REALLY enjoy getting up and telling them a thing or two or three or four....etc...

[jellynet]

I was just out in LA a week ago. One thing I noticed is that real estate out there was insainly different than it is in Ohio. To the point where it seems that things are valued above what would be safe for most people to live there...

[IIC]

I was just out in LA a week ago. One thing I noticed is that real estate out there was insainly different than it is in Ohio. To the point where it seems that things are valued above what would be safe for most people to live there...

Good observation...Although there certainly are a lot of rich people in the L.A. area, obviously most are not.

I wonder what the income/house value ratios are in different parts of the country?

[B.J]

Most couples in LA have dual incomes. It's almost a necessity.

[IIC]

Most couples in LA have dual incomes. It's almost a necessity.

I'm sorta out of touch with how much things cost nowadays 'cause my wife does all the shopping...But going back to the 70's I can tell 'ya that groceries were a whole lot cheaper in LA than they were in Nebraska.

Now, in LA...Rents/Mortgages are high it seems but dining out, clothes, electronics, jewelry are less expensive than many places. Just hafta know where to go.

I remember going to NYC on my honeymoon in 1986...Dining out was SUPER expensive...After the first day we decided that we'd diet. Hotels are very expensive there too during the week.

Anyway, Rent/Mortgage is usually the largest expense...I really would like to know the ratios for different places.

[IIC]

I put together this .xls spreadsheet to show the sales prices of different cities in California. It shows the number of sales in Jan '07 and the MEDIAN price. Also shows the Jan '06 MEDIAN and % change. The list includes Single Family resales, condos and New homes.

I put Counties in RED.

I put cities/areas that would be considered the WESTSIDE (of L.A.) in BLUE.

As you can see, Culver City is the most affordable on the Westside. There are some Westside areas not on the list...Zip Codes 90067 (Century City), 90034 (Westside Village, Beverlywood, Palms) 90024 (Westwood) 90064 (Rancho Park, Cheviot Hills)..These are all areas within the City of L.A....But they would all be more expensive on average than Culver City.

Here is my link: http://ezuploads.com/079/517079/12.xls


I will keep the upload available for a week although you can feel free to save it...Doug(IIC)

[IIC]

Affordability Index from the Nat'l Association of Home Builders:
http://www.nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentID=535


News about Affordability
http://www.bizjournals.com/eastbay/stories/2007/02/19/daily48.html

[billyjoe]

Doug,
Did you notice all the low numbers in Ohio ? 5 of the top 10 most affordable. If you had some handyman skills and 100k you could live like a king around here and probably buy a little place further south to stay during the real cold spells. I went through an older house a few days ago that could be bought for 40k. It needed some plumbing , electrical, and roofing work but I'll bet you couldn't duplicate it for a million $. Awesome woodwork , mosaic on foyer floor. Patterned aluminum on some walls. 3 cornered marble sinks in bathrooms. Double thickness hardwood floors , 3000 sq. feet , 5 bedrooms. You could put 3 more huge bedrooms in the attic. Spiral staircase, ornate plaster ceilings , private servant quarters with separate stairs to upper level.
If I were only 30 years younger.

-----------billyjoe

[IIC]

Doug,
Did you notice all the low numbers in Ohio ? 5 of the top 10 most affordable. If you had some handyman skills and 100k you could live like a king around here and probably buy a little place further south to stay during the real cold spells. I went through an older house a few days ago that could be bought for 40k. It needed some plumbing , electrical, and roofing work but I'll bet you couldn't duplicate it for a million $. Awesome woodwork , mosaic on foyer floor. Patterned aluminum on some walls. 3 cornered marble sinks in bathrooms. Double thickness hardwood floors , 3000 sq. feet , 5 bedrooms. You could put 3 more huge bedrooms in the attic. Spiral staircase, ornate plaster ceilings , private servant quarters with separate stairs to upper level.
If I were only 30 years younger.

-----------billyjoe

Well...Ohio is not one of my Top 50 favorite states...I've been there...Plus, I'm not really into using my handyman skills anymore and I don't have any servants.