Originally posted by Account Closed:Think of it this way,You could buy a home for 2.2 mil todayOr wait for a downturn to reduce the price by lets say a modest 10% of 2.2 mil That's 220,000 in savingsDivided by your "wasted" 4,000 a month in rent55 months.You could keep renting for 55 months or 4.6 years waiting for a downturn and break even if prices fall 10% I would keep renting.Except it's not that straightforward for the bay area market coz it could be 3mil before you get that 10% reduction. 

@Patrick Ng, I held one for about 12 years (8 years as a rental) and probably did a little better than breakeven; sold it for $50k appreciation in 12 years (+ principal reduction). 

A good buyer's agent is an asset that's worth his weight in gold.

Plus the added bonus of a commission, or a reduction in purchase price.

Just seems dangerous with fair housing laws, as really all I can tell from your photo is what race you are.The only time I'd consider a family vs non-family is if the other offer was similar but from some out of state investor group or something, and even then it would be the weight of a single hair on those balance scales. 

Who ensures the accounting of mortgage (principal reduction, interest paid) every month?

I decided on Charlotte after conducting a ton of research on the top markets in the US, and taking a variety of factors into consideration:Home ValuesAverage Rent / Income ratiosUnemployment RatesCrimePopulationEconomic GrowthNet Migrationand most importantly, where we'll be happyI started out with Bigger Pockets own excellent 2017 Market Analysis, and added my own numbers to help me give more weight to the factors I felt were most important.

Assuming you do not have rent control, raise the rent by $50/month, but rather than a late fee, offer a rent reduction - say $50.00 ;-) -  if rent is paid on, or before, the day it is due.We always start the clock ticking on the required Notices in our jurisdictions right away with the assumption we are headed towards eviction until the tenant pays.

Profit in real estate comes from cash flow, appreciation, and principal reduction...cash flow is only one component of it. 

The reduction in rate from 30 year to 15 year period seems not to matter to most people here in the forums, particularly since interest expense is deductible.