All Forum Posts by: Josh Alexander

Life long Yorba Linda resident, because of the school system and safety Yorba Linda homes tend to rent out quickly. Like the previous post said pricing will depend on condition and many Yorba Linda renters expect at least a moderately updated home. 3 bed 2 bath start in the $3,000 and will go up from there depending on location and amenities. Just rented a fully updated pool home 2 bed 1.5 bath for $4,500 this last week so the pricing can definitely fluctuate. You need to expect to put 50%+ down to break even on most properties around here though as the average 3 bed 2 bath is going for 1.2-1.3 million right now. You can find deals in the high $900,000s that need some work so if you’re up for some sweat equity that could also be an option. Hope this helps get you started! 

Glad you are getting into real estate investing! Here to help if you have any questions as you begin your journey. For So Cal house hacking is the way to go because of the relatively high home prices.

Hey Sarah, if you did stay local how far are you willing to go outside of South OC to house hack or find a property with an ADU? I saw you said you briefly looked in Riverside which would really be one of the only markets that make sense to do that in right now so if you are willing to go that direction you can find places for $500,000-$600,000 that have some potential.

I would just call your loan servicer and find out. You don't want to build an ADU based on what you think the bank will do especially if it's going to potential cause a lot of financial issues. Not sure of your current income, but they are also bringing back ADU grants in CA starting in December (from CalFHA) which could get you up to $40,000 in free funds so might want to look into that before starting your project as well, hard to turn down free money if you qualify.

 Do you have cities you are thinking about specifically yet or still flexible with the areas around north OC/parts of Riverside? 

Hey Katie, I live in the Yorba Linda area. Sounds like you're in good financial shape to look for a property. The first thing you'll want to do is run the numbers with your lender(if you need a local referral let me know) to see what price points you'll be able to look at and then you can also start seeing what mortgage payments are going to look for the two different property types this will allow you to get down to analyzing deals. I will say it will be hard in North OC to find something unless the downpayment is higher but depending on how far you want to go you can look at places in Corona, Norco, Murrieta, etc and the price points drop by $300,000+ dollars. Deals tend to make more sense out there. If you are looking for cash flow typically multiple unit properties are going to be your best bet but might require a little more work up front and there are not a lot of them around the area to scoop up right now. If you are looking for cash flow immediately them short term rentals might be something you could also look into in places like Big Bear but appreciation isn't as good up there as it is down here. Either way right now with inventory so low patience will also be key in waiting for the right deal to jump on.  Hope that helps!  

Hey Blake, if you’re looking for a home for yourself or to use the home to house hack there are special loans out there that might work for you. If you just graduated there are loans that you can get that don’t require employment history as long as you have an offer letter from your new job. What part of OC are you thinking of looking in? 

Do you have an idea of what part of OC you want to mostly work in? 

 Welcome to the group! This is a great place to learn and grow your real estate knowledge🙂 

 Makes sense, is Riverside an option or is that too far away? Also, something else to consider is getting that SRF and renting out a room or two to compensate for the higher rental costs, but you would still need to qualify to purchase it based on your income so might be a little more difficult. Sounds like a condo in an area that is still relatively affordable might be a good starting point for a home. Maybe the Anaheim/Orange area, La Habra is also another one that is growing and homes are still "affordable" compared to most of OC.