Buy another property in San Diego?

[Matt Grazko]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Matt and I am new to this community. I am a 26 year old living in San Diego. I currently own a 1 bed 1 bath condo in North Park (great neighborhood for those who are not aware of SD) worth about 500K. My intention is to buy a 2 bed 2 bath property within the next two years for likely around $650K, also in San Diego.

I would like to do this first, to have more space for myself and for my parents who would like to visit from out of state. And secondly, I would like to do this to turn my current 1 bed 1 bath condo into a rental property for building wealth long term. As everyone knows San Diego is a great appreciation market, and the property wouldn't cashflow at first, but it would likely in a few years once rates come down and I could refinance (I currently have a 7% rate), and once rent prices inflate a bit more. I would 5% down and make this new 2 bed 2 bath my primary residence. I was thinking I could even replicate this process and acquire several more condos in SD into my 30s.

Thoughts on this as a general strategy? And what are thoughts about purchasing in San Diego in 2024 vs 2025?

Looking forward to hearing from anyone and everyone!