All Forum Posts by: Christian Wathne

From what I've read you just have to ensure it stays above freezing for storage 

It really just comes down to when you want the money. Selling now will give you some short term income; holding long term (10/20/30years) will create stable retirement that will last the rest of your life. 

Nobody can know where prices will be in 3 years, ...you can think of buying the townhouse as insurance against future price gains, or it can be through of as a personal bet that bay area real estate will outperform the stock market. 

By taking out $300k from stocks (assuming approx 8%'ish per year growth) thats $24,000 per year not being earned, then adding the 2k/mo cash flow loss from owning the property they're looking at loosing $48,000 per year

On the gain side, assuming the property is currently valued at 1,200,000 and goes up in value by 5%/year for the next 3 years? it would increase by $60,000 per year, so net net, possibly doing better than keeping the money in stocks....but that being said; prices could flatten or go down, tenant could screw up the property, etc etc. There are so many variables. 

Personally I would not purchase the townhouse with the goal of moving into it in a few years

Hi BP, I need to get a sump pump system including drainage to the sump installed in a 3-4ft high crawl space. It’s under a small, 1000 sqft single story home. (Seattle area) Tried fixing the water issue last year with grading and downspouts that extend further, but the problem has not gone away so we really just need a sump pump system. Do you know what I can expect with regards to pricing for a sump pump system with drainage that pulls water from the rear of the crawl space to the pump? Does $3-4K seem reasonable or too high?

Maxing annual contributions in a vanguard target retirement mutual fund IRA and having some fun with crypto currencies

If it were my rental I would take care of the landscaping repair (prop just needs some fill dirt and re-seeding) and tell them thanks for the heads up. From what you said it's in no way the tenants fault that someone drove through the yard. 

Its required by law in Washington. I absolutely do. 

Show us a picture of the house and its surroundings; this will impact color choice 

@Chris Meunier, you're thinking about things correctly. 

Not factoring in appreciation, your rental B with 850k equity earning $3,600/yr giving you an ROI of four tenths of a percent is correct.

This is a very personal question about what path you want to take. 850k equity turning into 700k cash after fees/costs could be put towards a 25% down payment on a 2 million dollar 20+ unit apartment in a lower cost area where you should be able to generate $60k/yr in net cashflow, but there's work involved. 

Or leaving house B as is and it being worth 1.4million and appreciating on average 4'ish% a year would give you a theoretical $56,000/yr in appreciation. 

Most people on BP would say sell right away because appreciation can't be counted on and cash flow is all that matters. All those people would have sold their Palo Alto homes in the 1980's thinking prices have peaked. 

I personally believe the Bay Area will always be one of the most desirable and best appreciating places in the world to own a home, and would not sell. 

On flips I’ve found the roi in roof replacement to be great; I always replace when they’re old. House looks so much better with a new roof and buyers will be more willing to spend extra when they have that new roof security