All Forum Posts by: Jim G.

I did into this thread which was created 3 years ago and added up to last 3 years.  You can see the HAI has been dramatically reduced in bay area counties.  For sure the house price will be dropping which is happening now.  But I just don't have the crystal ball to tell much drop it will be.

After signed one year's lease, tenant stayed only 5 month then bought a house in the same neighborhood.  I was nice enough to let him out of the lease as long as I would find another tenant which I did.  However, after moving out walk through, I found 1) he didn't water the lawn in last 5 month that all lawn became brown, though the yard has well covered sprinkler systems (see the picture).  2) he didn't remove three security camera on outside walls.  I agreed to let him put on these camera and he also agreed to patch up and uninstall them when move out, but he fail to do that.  So my question:  For lawn problem can I charge the damage (such as replacement cost to him), though I don't plan to plant any new lawn (since new tenant has moved in already)?  Same for the outside camera, new tenant feel that leave them there would help to scare away potential burglary, can I charge the removing and patch up the wall cost even I plan to leave the camera along?  How much?  I though eventually I will remove the camera in future anyway.

Jim

@Jonathan M. I believe most people on this board would tell you to do OOS.  For some people like me who owns investment properties both in bay area and out of state for long term, most likely he/she would recommend to buy in bay area.  I don't know condo that much as all my properties are SFHs, which are located in Dallas, Phoenix, Orlando, Raleigh and even Oahu, non of them are as good as those I invested in bay area from 10 plus years term!

this is a interesting topic that I would like to share my experience. I have been doing buy and hold type of investment since 2005. While I haven't done any deal since 2014, I thought it would have been good to get my own CA Real Estate Sales Person License so that it would be easier for me to get access the properties for a potential deal. It turned that the reality wasn't like this. In order to gain access MLS and SmartLock, I would have to be part of regional RE associated with couple of thousand annual fee, which was kind of disappointed.

I was luck that I get the license 1.5 year ago w/o spending much money ($200 for a corespondent online class for RE principle, RE practice and RE law and another $150 for license test and fee). I found a broker who doesn't charge any until I did any transaction, of course w/o MLS and smartLock access. I guess I am a bad agent since I am not interested in becoming an agent at all. Given that, however, I feel the license does give me huge benefit:

1. the study to pass the license itself fed me enormous knowledge on basic aspects of RE.  I spent 2-3 months to read these 3 books, along with questionnaire, case study, etc.  which provided a lot of aha moments in related to my RE purchase experience in past years.  

2. with the license, it helps me to stay in the game. Even though I haven't done any deal in last 5 years, w/o access MLS and smartLock, I've been paying attentions in RE market.

3. This is the most important, with the license, as part of brokerage firm, it opens my networks to various agents.  This is invaluable benefit of obtaining the license.  

So I guess I will keep renew it once the time comes.

I am seeing a lot of CA folks on this site.  Would like to know your opinion on this type of gas valve.  I am living in Bay Area with a few rentals in the area.  Non of them has this type of valve installed.  I believe the damage from the earthquake would be bigger caused by aftermath fire than by the earthquake itself.  Given the high repairing cost, do you think it it is worth to upgrade all the house to this type of valves?     If you've done so, how much?  Any contractor that you could recommend?

-Jim

@George Chung I don't have experience in MFH, in Bay Area, however, for SFH, cap rate 3% is normal. Sometime you may only get 2%.

-Jim

In terms of too many unrelated messages...

I don't know if you all use this called "Key Word Alerts" feature in this site.  I use key word "San Francisco" and "Bay Area" to read the forum message.  Using "key word alerts" will reduce incoming messages quite a bit, although it wouldn't filter out newbie introduction type of messages.  

I am seeing a lot of comparison between CA and TX.  And people says the no. 1 destination after leaving CA is TX.  I've lived in TX for 10 years, lived in CA for 18 years.  I am giving my opinions here

• Do you live in California? yes
• Have you lived in California in the past 5 years? Yes
• If so, where? Bay Area
• Will you be staying or leaving?  Will stay.  If I move, I would move to SoCa
• Why? I am an immigrant, no big family root in US.  So we were pretty mobile.  After lived 10 years in Houston and Austin, TX, wife and I moved to Bay Area.  I've never left since and no plan to do so in future.  May possible to move to SoCa for better weather.  We like CA because its diversity and progressive, its variety scenery and open minded people.  As an investor who have properties both in TX and Ca, I love proposition 13.  I believe Proposition 13 structured in a way to punish new comers and encourage people who has real estate to stay longer.  I heard in news that people are leaving CA.  But in reality I am seeing Bay Are is getting too crowded and draw too many people in.  Of course, I have no statistic back.  
• What is your full time income producing job?   full time job 

Not sure if you are following this news.   Today in Oakland, and state wide, there is protests to repel Costa Hawkins law.    IMO, this would make CA's house crisis even worse.

The ballot initiative would repeal a state law known as Costa Hawkins that makes it illegal for cities to impose rent control on single-family rentals, condominiums or apartments built after 1995 or in some cases earlier — after a city adopted its first local rent control ordinance.

Currently there are a few metropolitan areas such as LA and SF/Oakland/Mt View has rental control which hasn't subject to SFH. If they remove Costa Hawkins, it would skew the housing market and further damage the principle pf free market.

Understand most people in this board are landlords, I am more interested in hearing the voice from tenants, especially those of them in California.

http://www.dailydemocrat.com/government-and-politi...

I strongly echo what @Arlen Chou said, do buy and hold in Bay Area! I brought a few SFH between 2009-2013 in Bay Area and a few out of state. Although all of them provide very good returns, not of OOS can compare with those of Bay Area, which turns out the best investment of my life! I have no plan to sale them. They generate a lot of cash, plus my day job, I accumulate more capital since.

My dilemma, however, is how to spend my capital to invest more in Bay Area.  I am a very conservative investor.  I lost a few bits two years ago in Sunnyvale and San Jose.  I literally stop buying any real estate in Bay Area after 2014.  From hindsight,  I believe it was a mistake.  I am still waiting and looking when I can jump into the game.