Is Concord, CA worth looking at to invest?

[Raymond C.]

Hi all,

I am originally from Stockton, CA but now live in Livermore, and own a four-plex in Rancho Cordova, CA which is doing okay. I'm looking for my next deal in Bay Area locations closer to home, but as you all know Bay Area prices are very high. Has anyone had any luck in Concord? I noticed rents are decent, and condos that are sub-200K (a deeper analysis must be done though because the HOAs might be the killer of cash flow). To avoid HOAs, there are some SFR's for sub 350-400K with good rents, but again, I have to do a deeper analysis and understand what others might think about the crime, outlook, etc of a Concord, CA investment.

Thanks for any input you might have if you either grew up, live in, or have invested in Concord.  I grew up in Stockton and can provide some insight there to anyone interested (which may be my next place to take a look if somewhere in the Bay Area that's lower cost of entry doesn't work out).

[Anthony De Castro]

Hello Raymond, 

I'm an East Bay Realtor living in Pittsburg.  There has been a surge of buyers moving to Concord, Pittsburg getting pushed out of the shoreline East Bay cities due to increasing rents and high priced homes.  

My children go to a private school in Oakland and for the last 3 years our commute gets longer by an average of 10 additional minutes every year.  Due to the traffic, BART has expanded and is stretching to add 2 more stations to Pittsburg and Antioch.  

I think Concord is a safe bet and you can't go wrong.  The city itself still has a better reputation than the more affordable alternative cities Pittsburg and Antioch.  If you are interested in reaping benefits of equity growth in multiple properties Pittsburg and Antioch would be a good alternative as a lower cost alternative and early stage before the BART stations open up.