All Forum Posts by: Allen Maris

@Aleejandro Dela Vega - Yes, welcome to SBC. There is a lot of great things to do within an hour of SM. SM also has the better investment opportunities in SBC when it comes to getting close to cash flowing. 

@Ryan Warmke - I'm with you. I'm holding buying of any type until I get more confidence in the market moving one way or another. I've talked to some really smart people about the economy and they are nervous too. The PPP and stimulus can only keep the economy going for so long before reality sets in. They kicked the can down the road and the road's not very long this time. 

@Mary Jay - Dustin has good info. 

I can't recommend going into the office enough. I did a small bump out of 12' on a house and the rules required going through a board of review because it was within a certain distance from a hill. That would have added 3 months plus a couple thousand dollars in fees. I walked in, talked to them and they waived it, approving my drawings and permit on the spot. 

If you get the permit approved, all you have to do is follow the steps along the way, get each box signed off on (as Dustin says, one for framing, one electrical, one plumbing if applicable, etc). When all those boxes are checked or N/A, you call for final inspection. That's just the last formality to make sure your smoke detectors and CO2 are installed, cover plates are on, fixtures are in and you didn't change something from the last inspection until then. They sign off on the occupancy certificate which allows you to officially live in it. So don't worry about them not approving it after you do all the steps. There would have to have been some major change you did or didn't do. And then they would just give you a remedy on how to fix it. 

For sure get an estimate on permit fees before deciding to go forward. They can be cheap or quite expensive. The other issue is if you're on a septic system, they look at each bedroom to determine the load on the system. Adding a bedroom usually means more people. If your system is old, you'll be in for a replacement in the $8k+ range. 

What does her dad's properties have to do with your living situation? Is he willing to sell or somehow help using his? Can he do an equity line or cash our refi, take some of the cash and put it into a property with you? It's pretty near impossible to make a property cash flow positive in SBC without putting a ton of money into it. And then you will be getting zero return on that large down payment. IF the market takes a dive in the near future, you may get a chance. Don't rush into anything. Let the market and economy figure itself out over the next few months. If you rush in and things get back in 6 months because foreclose forbearance has lapsed and more businesses keep going under, we could be in a bad spot. Unemployment will stay high. You don't want to be buying into that market!

@Elias Munoz, I can't say I'm an expert on Lompoc as I keep an eye on that area but mostly focus on Santa Ynez Valley. Lompoc has better cash flow potential than SB or SY, but it's still tough with current prices. Even with 20%. Seems the more favorable (potential wise, not cash flow) are north part where the new developments are and Vandenberg. South and East are dicey to me. 

@Bryce Shortall - Lesson learned on my end that having a license was only a hindrance. Possibly if I had my brokers license, that might have been better, but wasn't worth the time and effort. The one thing I miss is having all the county data for owners at my fingertips. But there are many services that handle that now. Everything else, I can do on my own. 

@Bryce Shortall, your new late reply kicked off my notice, so happy to see you're thinking about it in the area. As others have said, Santa Maria has a ton more inventory and lower price-point. Though with that, I think there's less profit (maybe not percent, but dollars). I always have to stop to think, do I do a flip that might make me $30k with less cash output or do I do a higher-priced one with a bigger dollar pay off. Depends on how involved I can be with my schedule. I won't spend 3-4 months for $30k but I would for $75K+. If I were completely hands-off and only had to write a check, yeah I'd do it for $30k. 

@Tyler Ettner - If you're ultimately wanting to be living in SB and Tahoe is a way to get free rent, I guess the questions for me become; how much would living in Tahoe slow you from your goal? Would living in SB propel you further than the money saved living in Tahoe because you have more opportunities and a higher income potential?

When I was in my early 20's, I moved to a very small town for a temporary job. Rent was 1/3 what I had been paying in LA. After the job ended, I couldn't afford to live there anymore and rent was expensive because jobs were hard to get and the ones available had a much lower salary. So I moved back to LA, paid 3x the rent price, thrived and I never looked back. Now I live in a small town again because I can afford to.

Would your grandparents let you vacation rent the Tahoe house and split the money with you? That could offset the savings. 

Also, your thinking about real estate in Tahoe is correct, as with all small town touristy, high dollar areas. Usually lower inventory and very competitive agents. They can be territorial! I was licensed at one point and saw the lack of desire for any new agents.

Lots to think about, but look at the long term benefit and if it's worth it or not.

Allen

@Vanessa Benavidez, Congrats! That's a big step forward! 

A couple of questions. Assuming this is a house? Do you have the ability to buy it with either cash or a loan on your own? 

You won't be able to delay opening escrow for too long, people get antsy about that sort of thing. So you'll be ultimately doing everything concurrently. 

Feel free to PM me and I can give you my number to talk through it.

@Elias Munoz, I'll message you and give you my number. It's easier to run through over the phone.