All Forum Posts by: Manny Vasquez

If the deal is good enough for you and it meets your numbers to invest, I would buy now.  I wouldn't try to time the market. You buy now at rates around 6%-7% and when they go down, you refinance.  If the numbers workout for you at 6%-7%, then they will be even better at lower rates. After you refinance, then you can buy another property with your newfound extra cash.

I own a few STR's in Orange County. Before you buy that condo in Anaheim, 1st make sure the HOA will be ok with you doing STR's in it. 2nd, you will need to get a permit/business license from the city of Anaheim. Once you get the ok from both, then you're good to go. Anaheim is a great city to invest in.

@April C. - you're very welcome April!  As a former engineer myself, I totally know what you mean.  Good luck!

My recommendation is a little biased since I am an agent, but I would like to say that "buying new" does not mean buying in "perfect condition".  One thing to remember is that the builder is also a "salesman" and does not get paid on his newly built home until the close of escrow.  He may take whatever building/repair shortcut or say whatever makes you happy just to offload the property and get his escrow check. Since you are the buyer, work with a Buyer's agent.  Have the Seller pay the Buyer's Agent, which could be negotiated in the deal.  

Just because the Seller is not using a listing agent DOES NOT mean the seller will pass on those savings to you.  Often times, buyer's fall into the false belief that they are getting a "better" deal because the seller is not using an agent.  Buyer's falsely believe that the Seller will be ethical and looking out for their best interest.  Nothing could be further from the truth.....in many cases, the Seller is looking to fill his/her pockets as fast and as deep as possible.  Critical information about the property, which may sway you away from buying, may be withheld just to offload the home.  If the Seller does not have a listing agent or does not want to pay for one that is ok.  However, you as a Buyer should definitely use a Buyer's Agent.  Now that we are in a balanced market, which is leaning more and more towards a Buyer's market, have the Seller pay the Buyer's Agent which is negotiable.

Your Buying Agent will provide added protection in the following areas (to name a few):

- Extra research on the property/neighborhood/area and advise you on any findings that may be adverse to your goals

- Will provide an extra set of eyes on the deal.  This is to make sure you are getting a fair deal and the seller doesn't pull a fast one on you

- Will provide an extra set of eyes at the time inspection.  If there are repairs to be made, the buying agent will get confirmation of the repairs in writing. 

- Help you navigate through any escrow issues that may come up during the buying process (Again, buying new properties does not mean perfect deals...these new properties can have a slew of issues come up during the escrow process.)

-The agent should be looking out for your best interests throughout the whole process.  Since you have purchased multiple properties in the past, I would recommend you work with one of the agents that you have bought with before.  

I hope the above helps and good luck!

@Tommie Rowell If you qualify to buy SFR's and multi-family properties with the low down-payment programs, I would highly suggest you start with multi-family. It will accelerate your investment goals much faster than SFR.

@Bill B. You are absolutely correct! I travel extensively for work and when I say I'm from California, everyone thinks of either San Francisco (Bay Area), Los Angeles or San Diego.  It's like you said, when people say New York they only think of NYC.  

I think the point of the article was just to be informative.  I put a "spin" to the article and welcomed the news.  As an RE Agent, I will target my marketing efforts to these "no-mortgage" homeowners to hopefully stir-up some business. As you may know, homeowners with plenty of equity have a lot more flexibility in their deal-making.

@Russell Brazil Yes, I believe they are the most populous states and the figures above are in percentages.  I will admit that I am amazed that California has 1/3 of its homeowners owning their home free and clear.  I didn't think it would be that high, but its welcome news.  

For some reason, I thought that the top 3 states for people owning their homes free-and-clear would be somewhere in the Mid-West.

Texas, Florida and California rank as the top 1, 2, and 3 in the US in terms of home-owners with no mortgage.  These people own their properties free and clear.  See the link below:

https://www.ocregister.com/202...

As an RE Agent and Property Investor, I welcome this news.  What does this mean to you as a first time buyer?  How about as an investor?  

@Rachel Perl - Here are a few ideas which I have employed in the past when listing properties for my clients:

1. Pull the listing from the MLS NOW, and leave it off the market for the next 2-3 weeks. These are the slowest times of the year due to the Holidays. These next few days on the market won't get you many eyes and your DOM-count will continue to go up. HIgh DOM are bad for the sellers, good for buyers. You can relist the property in mid-to-end of January.

2. Look at the comparables in mid-January to determine where you should be on price. Take an honest look at your property don't go off the ARV you used a year+ ago, that figure is more than likely not valid anymore.

3.  If the "sunken" room is an eyesore, you may consider "filling it" and making it level with the rest of the house.  Same with the laundry room.  The bathroom too. However, all of this "filling" may be cost prohibitive (especially the bathroom).

4. Have you considered "staging" the home?  I would bring in a Professional Stager in your area and let her advise you on how to successfully stage the home.  Share the information that other people have shared with you so that she knows what specific issues to address.  Professional Stagers are experts in hiding "eyesores" and in making other features "pop". Stagers have worked wonders for my clients, especially if there were any issues with flooring, spacing, walls, windows, rooms and general flow of the property.

5. If the above fails....then you could also offer closing costs or rate buy-downs to the buyer.  However, I wouldn't come out saying this right away as you may be perceived as a desperate seller.

I hope the above helps!  Good luck!

@Chris Kasteler - Absolutely! I'll DM you my cell number.  You may call me anytime buddy.

Hello Chris and welcome to BP!!  I'm a real estate agent and I have bought and sold many properties for my clients and myself in the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and Kern.  How may I be of service to you?