All Forum Posts by: Erin W.

Hi,

Over time, I've browsed so many forum topics and now I'm thinking about investing out-of-state.  I thought I remembered reading some advice about income tax vs some other tax in both your residence state and the state  you want to invest in.  I think the person used this to say that someone in California is better off investing in Texas than in New York (based off this one consideration).

Can someone refresh me on what this tax consideration was?

Also, are there any other state-specific things to consider when choosing an area to invest in?  I live in California.

Thanks!

@Kevin Lefeuvre Thanks for the response!  I'm currently about to renovate the kitchen.  I noticed you used the word *should*.  Does this mean that it is possible to get it earlier?  Or is 12 months a strict requirement?

What are the requirements to be able to take out a HELOC?

For me specifically, I bought my personal house a couple months ago at 10% down. Are there time or equity requirements I need to reach before I can take out a HELOC?

@greg s. Fwiw, I've only been in my current situation for a few months. Previously, I was living well within my comfort zone so I have savings from before. Being in this new living situation is part of what's causing me to think about buying now.

So exactly what makes owning more expensive than renting? I realize that what I'm suggesting is not really investing since I'm OK with not profiting. But I'm thinking of it more as a gateway to investing. Right now I pay $1600 for rent. If I found something where my monthly expenses were $1500 and got a roommate to pay say $800, I thought that would be better than my rent since not only would I be paying less per month, but it would be going towards my equity? Which could help in the future since I have something I could sell or get a heloc from? People have been telling me that by renting, I'm just paying someone else's mortgage, which bothers me. I realize that to own there are maintenance expenses, taxes, etc but am I missing something?

@Anthony Ghotti cool, we've lived in a lot of the same places lol.  I'm curious--why are you looking in LA when you live in central California?  I guess for me part of what's scary is the price..LA seems so expensive to me!

cool thanks @Ciprian L.!  I am talking to a lender and am in the process of gathering/submitting paperwork to get pre approved.

Hi, I've long been *interested* in real estate investing but have always felt scared, young and too poor.  I've finally convinced myself that I am able to buy, but would only feel comfortable up to around $300k.  I'm interested in house hacking but open to other opportunities.

Honestly, I'm still scared and my current thoughts are this: for my first purchase, it's ok not to cash flow or adhere to any formulas because as long as I'm paying less than I'm paying for rent right now, it would be an improvement in my situation and I will at least learn more by getting firsthand experience in buying real estate.  And even if I end up just buying a small condo and living in it alone, it is better than renting (?? yes? no?).  The reason why I set the bar at less than my current rent is because my current rent is at the upper limit of my comfort zone.  Are there any pitfalls to this kind of attitude?

I'm also having difficulty choosing an area in LA to target.  Right now I live in Pasadena.  I really love the area but I don't know if it would be the right place for me to buy because it's expensive.  It's also far from work (but it's close to family).  The other 2 places I'm thinking of are Long Beach and Inglewood.  Both seem more affordable to me.  Long Beach seems to have more of the walkability and metro rail access, which are big reasons why I like Pasadena.  The commute to work would not be much better than my current one from Pasadena.  Inglewood, on the other hand, is very close to where I work.  It doesn't seem to have those things I like right now, but it sounds like it will in the future with new developments, Crenshaw Line, etc.  

Oh, the other option would be to continue renting in Pasadena, perhaps finding a roommate to save money and try to invest elsewhere in a cheaper market...but the long-distance thing sounds even more scary to me.

Any advice or opinions would be appreciated!