buying frenzy again ;(

[Greg C]

In the "inland empire" CA it appears that the buying depression is over,, I am making an offer on a 3/2 house in my hood and the first day it was listed (yesterday) the front of the house looks like the disneyland parking lot,,, houses are getting mulitiple offers on day one im kinda bumbed i was hoping to pick up a few more rentals this year but it looks like the competition is heavy now
my realtor told me that there are lots of " realestate investor seminar people jumping in and bidding things up way too much,
on a more positive note she said there is another huge wave of inventory comming so prices should stay dow for a while

how is it out there ? are "investors " jumping in like mad in your areas?? granted here things have fallen from $190 a sq ft at the peak to $60 a sq ft now so i think we have swung down too far.In 1999 prices were at $55 a square ft here so we are back 10 years here

[Jason S.]

Originally posted by Vikram C.:

Greg, do you know what construction costs are like in your area for these homes that are selling for $75K? That is, how much per square foot would it cost to build one?

Riverside County:
1. Developer Fees $17,000 per door.
2. School Fees $6 per foot.
3. Permit/Inspection/Plan Check Fees $4,000
4. Water Meter $5,000 (if you are lucky)
5. Gas - minimum $1,000
6. Electric $500 - $5,000
7. Septic or Lateral and Connect Fee - $5,000 either way

So to build a 1,200 sq ft home you are starting at $39,700 minimum per lot.

If you build at under $29 sq ft and the land is free you can pretty much break even...... no wonder building has stopped and unemployment in the County is 16%+