All Forum Posts by: Justin Brin

@Mike Day I think is good to look for other deals in the meantime just to make sure you are not completely depended on this seller, also if the seller is taking too long you can reach out every day or two for a status and also tell him if you don't hear from him soon you will have to move on. This way you put some pressure on him to consider your offer more seriously. 

What percentage is the structure worth vs land for depreciation?

In California in the property tax bill you can see sometimes the land is 90% and the structure is 10% but the reality to rebuild the structure can sometimes cost more then the house purchase price. So what percentage ratio is best to use?

I guess even if the IRS audits you can show the structure is worth at least 90% of the purchase price.

For example if the house cost $800,000 according the the tax bill the structure is worth like 100k but definitely no one will build you a structure for 100k.

What do you think?

Another question: What is the best way to check a metro economy strength and diversification?

I guess economy strength is also dependent on the sectors?! If a metro has 50% of the people work in the tourism industry most likely that area will get hit worse than area with only 10% who work in the tourism industry in case of a recession? 

I'm trying to compare areas by how diversify their economy so I'm looking at the BLS data report for Columbus OH and I see the numbers are a bit off:
The Civilian labor force is 1,120.7 while the Total Nonfarm jobs are 1,157.1 (36k difference).
As much as I understand Civilian labor force is the total potential force and Total Nonfarm is a percentage of the Civilian labor force.
Am I wrong?
Is the data discrepancy due to these two fields come form two different data sources and since this is statistical data then there can be a difference in the data?

(Data source link: https://www.bls.gov/regions/midwest/oh_columbus_msa.htm#eag_...)

Quote from @Joe Villeneuve:

This is a great statistic, and totally useless.  This would have value if, and only if, these numbers were universal across the country.  They are not.  A chart like this is only useful if the chart is based on the specific area/market you are looking to invest in.

This graph is not to show where to invest but to show an issue with the Real Estate market.
Over the years many Real Estate markets are becoming inaccessible for investors and home buyers that do not have lots of money.
This trend is just getting worse.
There are still areas in the US that you can buy a house for $100K but usually those areas are not desirable and will not attract good renters or good buyers.

For existing home owners this is good since this means their equity went up exponentially but for investors and buyers looking for new deals this is challenging.

Quote from @Jake Andronico:

@Justin Brin

Definitely an issue to pay attention to. My initial thoughts are building more homes will certainly help (but not necessarily solve) this issue. 

What are your thoughts Justin? 

 I'm wondering if part of the reason for this is more people are moving to the bigger metros for jobs etc. and leaving the smaller metros so this is increasing the house price in the bigger metros while smaller metros do not have much demand? 

Quote from @Nicholas L.:

@Justin Brin

it's a good question, i really don't know what it means long term.  but a lot of homeowners already own and have perfectly affordable mortgages.  the affordability crisis doesn't impact them.

That's correct that for existing owners the impact is minimal but for new buyers they are going to have an issue.

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Quote from @Justin Brin:

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Quote from @Justin Brin:

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Does anyone have any insight into whether a Timeshare restriction would apply to renting out a condo unit as an Airbnb? Their CCRs do not allow timeshare, but says nothing specifically about AirBnbs.  Thoughts?  Thanks

I guess the best is to ask the HOA directly if you are not sure? Make sure you get a reply in writing to avoid future issues.

 Thanks.  Yes, that was my thought too, but I didn't want some secretary (another resident, not a management company) to give me knee jerk reaction when they don't have any legal knowledge. 

I believe many HOA will not like short term rentals. I think most people do not want to live near a short term rental. So you want to be 100% sure they allow it and not find out after you bought it that they do not allow it.

 Yes, I totally understand, but if the CCRs don't mention short term rentals then I feel like I should be able to do with my property what I want, but yes, best to know ahead of time.

I know of cases where people bought a house in a none HOA location and the neighbors fought against the short term rental until the owner gave up and turned it into a long term rental.
I guess you need to always make sure you have good guests to make sure the neighbors don't complain.

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Quote from @Justin Brin:

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Does anyone have any insight into whether a Timeshare restriction would apply to renting out a condo unit as an Airbnb? Their CCRs do not allow timeshare, but says nothing specifically about AirBnbs.  Thoughts?  Thanks

I guess the best is to ask the HOA directly if you are not sure? Make sure you get a reply in writing to avoid future issues.

 Thanks.  Yes, that was my thought too, but I didn't want some secretary (another resident, not a management company) to give me knee jerk reaction when they don't have any legal knowledge. 

I believe many HOA will not like short term rentals. I think most people do not want to live near a short term rental. So you want to be 100% sure they allow it and not find out after you bought it that they do not allow it.

Quote from @Julie Smith:

Does anyone have any insight into whether a Timeshare restriction would apply to renting out a condo unit as an Airbnb? Their CCRs do not allow timeshare, but says nothing specifically about AirBnbs.  Thoughts?  Thanks

I guess the best is to ask the HOA directly if you are not sure? Make sure you get a reply in writing to avoid future issues.