A Plugged-In Reader Picks An Apple For Himself (1968 Greenwich)

Start your peppersteak diet at the Brazenhead after this friday…great restaurant!

@Buyer,
An awesome house in an even better neighborhood. Enjoy!
Can’t wait to hear more on “would like all of you interested parties to know that you’re ALL wrong on your guesses.”

awesome location. cow hollow, marina, and russian hill are all easily walkable. this is really close to where i live!
two words for apple picker regarding the roof deck: hot tub.

Congratulations on buying a house you like at a price you like. Kudos, also, for resisting the mantra oft-heard here: “Just wait 6-12 months and you could buy more for less.”
I think Apple Picker is proof that this is a smart-buyer’s market.

So are you saying we’re at the bottom, sanfrantim?

Why does a single dude need this much house?

As I mentioned, I’ve been in this place during a party and I saw it before the current owner bought it and it’s a great place.
A lot of the people taking shots at it are realtors and other owners who are trying to come up with reasons why it would sell for less than the peak price, to rationalize their decision that it’s only the problem homes which have come down in price: THEIR home has (or for the realtors, homes in general have) not come down one cent.
Those of us who have been in this place know full well that it isn’t the case. It’s very pretty inside with all that glass, and very well done – not trendy, which would seem dated. It’s just that the market is deflating and that’s why it isn’t getting its peak price.
Is the buyer buying at the bottom? Not by a long shot, but the seller is willing to sell at a market price, the buyer is willing to buy at today’s market price and so the deal is going to get done.
As for the renovations, I think you’ll find that the Cow Hollow Neighborhood association will employ strict guidelines about what can be done. For example, they expect additions on the back not to extend past the building envelope of the neighbors. I don’t recall whether you can average the two (if one extends past your and the other neighbor does not). I also don’t recall where the neighbors buildings end relative to this one.
You’ll also find that they employ strict lot coverage guidelines, and that’s probably going to stop any expansion plans cold. If I recall, the portion of the backyard that does not have the condo on it is probably not sufficient to allow any additions while meeting the lot coverage guidelines, but you’ll have to check – it was many years ago that I was in there.
The city will basically refuse anything that fails to comply with those guidelines. I would be especially interested if your realtor, the one who is making all that money from the transaction, told you any of this, or if he just stood there nodding his head (or saying noncommittal things like “you could look into that”) while you identified all the possibilities.
In any event, as is, the place is great. So if you don’t get to do anything to it, it’s still a great place, just a lot cheaper than it was several years ago, in spite of the realtors and owners trying to pretend it’s because of a property problem and not the market. And if you are the kind of person who goes to Balboa Cafe several times a week, I’m sure you’ll really enjoy it.

All the bears seem to take up a new tune when one of their own buy a place, even if it’s a full two years before $400/sqft condos open up in Pac Heights…
I’m not sure this applepicker is “one of my own” or not, but I’m always happy for someone to buy their place, regardless if I think it’s a good idea financially or not. buying a home is super exciting, and I would never take that away from somebody, especially if they understand the risks associated with buying.
I have popped, and will pop, open many a champagne bottle celebrating the purchase of a home that was a bad financial investment. (including my own home). and I smiled with genuine joy each time (especially with my own home).
on a side note: as I’ve oft said, the downturn in RE won’t be nearing an end until Dec 2011… so I guess it’s 3 years until the $400/sq ft Pac Heights condo!
😉
Lastly, I see no reason why people are questioning his “need” for this place. None of us “need” to buy anything. Might as well buy a place he can grow into. we don’t all need cubix lofts.
To Applepicker: congrats on the new digs. Definitely keep us updated if you close or not, and also if you are ever able to renovate!

This is a bachelor pad. The only reno’s you need are a sweet sound system, some Italian leather couches, a couple of 60″ plasmas and a well stocked bar.
Oh yeah, please invite us to the housewarming. I’ll bring a 6-pack.

waiting2nest,
Is this gem anywhere near your parents house in the Berkeley Hills? The deals abound at 2350 Corona Ct.
Sold 6/29/2005 for $1,350,000 (90% financing via Countrywide, bet they didn’t go quietly with some skin in the game)
Currently for sale at $774,900.

“Lastly, I see no reason why people are questioning his “need” for this place. None of us “need” to buy anything. Might as well buy a place he can grow into. we don’t all need cubix lofts.”
Come on, this is a strawman. Sure, it’s not a “need” in the strictest sense, but the alternative is not only a Cubix lofts. My only point was, 2500 sf for one person seems odd.
And I legitimately was asking the question. Perhaps he has kids from a former marriage that stay with him on weekends. Perhaps he has a fiancee and they’re expecting soon. Perhaps a million things, that’s why I asked the question. But one single dude (and from his discussion of Balboa and the neighborhood I get the sense he is a dude) living in a 2500 sf house sounds pretty lonely (and a lot of upkeep) to me.

Welcome to the neighborhood! Instead of the Balboa or Brazenhead, try Terzo … our favorite place.

Basically on-topic to a thread on apples, one of my favorite local RE sites has the sales numbers for October up:
http://www.rereport.com/sf/index.html
He does a good job breaking things down by district. The one thing I wish he did was break the data down by market segment (i.e. price ranges). My sense is we’re starting to see things move downward much faster now in the higher-end ranges, but I confess I have no concrete numbers to support that (and this is where apples-to-apples comparisons become more critical as the mix can change significantly with such smaller samples).

@2350 corona
Here’s a fun game!
Click on this map for 2350 corona, and note the property’s proximity and relation to the intersection of Keith & Euclid. For those who are map-challenged, it is southwest of the intersection.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=2350%20CORONA%20CT,94708,CA,US&hl=en&CFID=3108089&CFTOKEN=30231808
Okay. Now, find the intersection of Keith & Euclid in the photograph and on the map here….
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2004/12/20/MNGRAAEL4H1.DTL&o=2
Can you say, “Hi neighbor! Mind if I come over?”
Finally, this is the best current listing at redoak:
http://redoakrealty.idxre.com/idx/phototour.cfm?cid=1&pid=40379490&bid=1&pt=SFR&actv=0

“All the renters can keep flushing their funds down the toilet in the meantime.”
And this adds value to the conversation how? Congratulations on the purchase of your property gh, hopefully it will give you something more constructive to do with your time.

@debtpocalypse
Regarding the listing at 614 Grizzly Peak. Wow, sweet views. Did you notice the agent is also the owner. He’s a serial homesitter that has been harvesting tax free capital gains every two years. Looks like the music has finally stopped.
Bought 3/21/2007 for $970,000. Currently listed at $899,000.

gh wrote, “This week I went into contract on a 1925 three-unit property in the Marina in good shape, and paid $420/sf, it has two empty units and is well located.”
I love this site and the insight both bears and bulls bring. The threads I love the most are the ones like this one about this applepicker because that’s where the rubber meets the road. Some other people like NewBuyer, ester, SkyGuy, 11223, paco have shared what they are doing now or have done in the past and. I hope you will share more numbers.
Anyways, from what you have shared, looks like one unit is occupied with a long-term and possibly protected tenant paying maybe $1 psf per month. The other two are vacant and you can rent at market rate and I’ll venture you can get $2 psf per month. So your blended rent is $1.70 psf/month. You have paid about a GRM of 20 and expect to get a cap rate of a little over 3%. Is that in the ballpark? Now depending on the investor, that may or may not be a good deal.
Certainly would love to hear more.

PHR, I think you’re right. The last bulls left are real estate sales men or people with still some hope to make a buck (or to lose less).

PHR,
I really like your insights/experience, and I’d be interested in your take on a dynamic that I think must be playing out in the small landlord market (say, less than 50-100 units).
I would guess that many of the older buildings owned by these landlords (such as your family) must generate very strong cash flow now, and that also for tax purposes strong taxable income. High taxable income is because (I would guess) that (1) the units have been fully depreciated and/or have low depreciable basis anyway, (2) prop 13 means that tax expense has not gone up with the value of the properties and (3) rents have risen significantly over the last 20 years (although less so of course on the controlled units within SF).
If I am right about this general framework, then the existing landlord would be a stronger bidder in the current market than a new entrant because of tax considerations. The new units – considered on their own – may generate low and/or uneconomic cap rates. However, they will generate relatively larger noncash depreciation expense (good) and cash prop 13 tax expense (not so good, but not necessarily too bad), both of which could be used as an offset to otherwise taxable income elsewhere in the portfolio of units.
All this assumes of course a legal structure that would allow this pooling, but I don’t see that as any impediment, because sole proprietorships to corps and family structures would all flow their numbers up to the taxpayer(s) on a consolidated basis. Perhaps this would not work with separate investor groups in partnership structures, however, because of control/ownership issues (but that gets a little far from my expertise).
Does that tax treatment analysis make sense to you, or am I off base here. Also, could this partially explain the willingness of investors to keep buying at these low cap rates even if appreciation is uncertain? In effect, they would be trading some uncertainty about the future cash flows for immediate tax benefits in existing investments.

PHR, I tend to agree with you – but I did find a few multi-unit sales/listings in the sub-$500 psf range in District 7A (Marina):
– 1452 Francisco: Active since Sep 15. Asking $1.795M for 4 units at $463 psf.
– 1950-54 Lombard: Sold 7/29/08 for $2.2M – 3 units at $459 psf.
– 2375-79 Chesnut: Sold 3/25/08 for $2.125M – 3 units at $493 psf.
There were some other possible sales in that range but the square footage was missing and I didn’t take the time to search for it elsewhere. I couldn’t find gh’s $420/sf under-contract property. Maybe sf is missing (or maybe he can just tell us where it is)?

dingdingding,
we have a winner! many do not understand why owning investment rental property is so favorable tax wise.
this is one of the primary reasons why the wealthy usually have a fair amount of real estate exposure. and in a city where its quite possible to rent a portion of your building to tenants its easy to find opportunities to spend before tax money on polishing your assets…

“So, are you selling all your real estate and jumping into stocks with both feet??”
why would i sell my real estate? esp. in this market?
as for buying stocks, none other than the oracle from omaha has suggested that this is the buying opportunity (for equities) of a lifetime. he has reportedly invested $50BILLION already this year. (says bill ackman on charlie rose’s show a coupla nights ago). so yes, i do see some interesting stocks.
personally tho, i think the world will see deflation which will lead to war and drastic changes. but as ‘the london banker’ has detailed i think the u.s. under hank n ben and TPTB is going to make out bigtime at the expense of the rest of the world’s economies.

Millionaire Renter in Marin wrote:
> PHR, I really like your insights/experience, and I’d be
> interested in your take on a dynamic that I think must be
> playing out in the small landlord market (say, less than
> 50-100 units).
Over the past few years with 2% real cap rates about 90% of the sellers of small rental buildings have been long time owner operators and 90% of the buyers have been people who know little about owning and operating apartments hoping to get rich owning real estate (who will soon learn that owning apartments is not the same as owning tech stocks)…
> I would guess that many of the older buildings owned by
> these landlords (such as your family) must generate very
> strong cash flow now, and that also for tax purposes strong
> taxable income. High taxable income is because (I would guess)
> that (1) the units have been fully depreciated and/or have
> low depreciable basis anyway,
My Dad first started buying rental homes on the Peninsula in the late 1960’s (when you could buy a nice home West of El Camino in Burlingame for $20K and after making a 10% down payment have the rent cover the 1st TD, the Seller 2nd TD and all the expenses (if you did all the work yourself and made your kids work for free). In the 70’s my Dad started buying apartments in San Mateo and Burlingame (and saving money on gardeners by making me drive around with our lawn mower , edger and blower doing yard work at all the property). All the property loans were paid off in the 90’s and my Dad was happy as can be making more (after taxes) per month than he ever thought that he would earn in a year. In the last 10 years we have renovated almost every unit/home spending from $10K (for the San Mateo rentals East of 101) to $200K (for the Burlingame homes that would sell for over $1mm) so we now have a lot more rent per month coming in and also have a nice big depreciation deduction again to reduce the tax hit. All the property is in a Family Limited Partnership/FLP and there is an ability to manage cash flows from all the property to try and keep everyone in as low a tax bracket as possible
> (2) prop 13 means that tax expense has not gone up with the
> value of the properties and (3) rents have risen significantly
> over the last 20 years (although less so of course on the
> controlled units within SF).
It is my guess that we will soon lose the prop 13 cap on rental property (but my parents will still be paying $50K less per year in some of their neighbors in the home I grew up in). The only rental property my parents own in SF is the home in Balboa Terrace that my Mom grew up (it has been a rental since my Grandfather moved in with us in the late 60’s)…
> If I am right about this general framework, then the existing landlord
> would be a stronger bidder in the current market than a new entrant
> because of tax considerations.
I have not seen many landlords with strong cash flow overpaying for Bay Area real estate except the Lembis (Walt lives a few blocks from my parents) and they have some property that is not doing real well (but they are doing fine since old man Frank made a lot of great purchases years ago)… Long time owners are all waiting with cash until Cap Rates and GRMs get back to normal. A friend of my Dad was just reminding us that he bought a couple Palo Alto REOs in 1994 for about half of what they sold for in 1989…

fronnzzz,
“We’re at the beginning of a recession triggered by too much leverage on overvalued assets (yes paco, this means your property too and the 2 places I still own, btw).”
fwiw, i’m a severly underleveraged overconservative investor.
time will tell…but the rents will still come in.

“However, do these extra “benefits” justify a purchase price with an initial cap rate of 3 or 4%?”
Probably not for a rational investor. An extra 1-1.5% shouldn’t be worth taking the price appreciation risk inherent in the low cap rate of the new investment.
But people aren’t always rational, and 30 years of rising prices, the last 20 years of which have been turbocharged by prop 13, has worked a powerful effect, and it is the highest bidder who sets the price.
Consider it from the point of view of someone very inexperienced who just inherited the 3-unit building in San Mateo (no rent control issues to worry about) that his dad bought 30 years ago for $100K and now owns it outright (let’s just make up some illustrative but plausible numbers). It’s “worth” $1M today. Rent is $40K per year, taxes are about $2K, other operating expense around $8K, leaving $30K NOI or 3% on its current value. He owes, say, $10K to the tax authorities on this income.
Now the legacy owner buys the 3-unit sitting next to his for $1M because he thinks his dad was a fuddy duddy and didn’t understand how special the SF Bay Area has always been, or how specially special it is becoming. The depreciation on the newer unit alone wipes out all tax liability on his NOI for the first. In order to buy the new property, he borrows 50% against his “equity” in the fully depreciated older unit and plunks it down as a downpayment on the newer one. He has effectively borrowed 100% of the $1M at say 7% (on a consolidated basis, the lender sees him with 50% equity now in his 2 building portfolio). Now, his entire rental stream for the new prop (assumed $40K) is wholly sheltered by the interest cost alone, and on a current basis he is now collecting $80K of cash rent on the two buildings against $70K of interest, $16K cash maintenance expense and $24K of prop 13 tax.
He’s no longer a taxpayer! And, the excess tax losses (here, $30K) that he could use against other properties (or even his nonpassive income if he meets the passive loss rules). Now, of course, there is no free lunch. He has given up his $20K after tax income from when he only owned the first property. But now he is TWICE as rich (in his mind, remember he has drunk the koolaid). $20K is only 2% appreciation on the second property (again, in his mind, this is a ridiculously low hurdle). And, of course, to the extent that he can use the additional $30K tax loss elsewhere, this would “replace” part of the income foregone so that he is not really even giving up the entire $20K net stream he used to enjoy. At a minimum, he could roll the losses forward into the basis and shelter some of the expected gain.
Obviously, the numbers are just fudges to illustrate the way this might work behaviorally. It blows up of course when the price of the buildings fall. When that starts to become commonly accepted, the cap rates will rise IMO.

PRH –
I just read your post. Thanks for the insights – very sensible analysis. I don’t have any real experience here but your post clears up a misconception I had about who was buying.
BTW, I doubt they’ll take away prop 13 for rental properties. Much of the premium in the “real” Bay Area results from prop 13 effects. Any even seemingly innocuous weakening (say, removing it for non-owner occupied, or disallowing inheritable prop 13 basis under prop 58) would knock down equilibrium pricing on all housing stock. TPTB understand this, even if most of the population doesn’t.
Anyway, from a rational economic point of view I hope they do remove it! It is a huge distorion that is going to end in tears for many recent buyers. But from a personal point of view I sort of hope they continue it. Removal might make it impossible to rent a $1.2M house for $2800/mo (owner inherited the property from father, along with the $1500 tax bill) in Tiburon, and would deprive the recent buyers of the opportunity to subsidize us by funding the public schools with their $15=20K tax assessments!

If the moral of the story is to “buy fixers w/issues”, then who are the suckers that are buying your places after you fix them up and have already unlocked all their value? At that point they’re no longer a good buy, right?

paco,
If you can do that, more power to you. You’ve got the skills.
That’s why I never understand why you are so hostile to my posts (“laughable” millionaire because I rent). My skills are in trading – that’s where my capital is best deployed, and I know a few millionaires up here who do the same.
The tax arbitrage argument for people with means who weren’t lucky enough to be born in the Bay Area (as your family was) and who have arrived releatively recently are compelling. I would have been a fool to buy a $1.3M+ place in Tiburon, when I could rent it for $2800 per month, don’t you think? There are people on our block struggling to pay their monthly nut I know for SURE. Not us!
(BTW, paco, this is a tough tax year for us because of large short term options gains. For the last few years, living in CA has been virtually tax free, because of tax free income + long term cap gains from the 2002-03 period. The Bay Area has been remarkably inexpensive for us in view of what we have receoved in quality of life and amenities. However, I’m glad I don’t own my personal residence now! We seriously might have to flee Cali – there is no way those fools are getting 10% of next year’s trading gains if this is the new trading reality.)

@EBGuy
The in-laws are much further up the hill, around Grizzly Peak and Creston. Unbelievable views up there. They believe their house has appreciated to ~$600k. I think that’s a huge understatement even in a declining market, although I know approximately diddely/squat about Berkeley real estate, but why argue the point. Given that they plan to be hauled out of the house zipped in black plastic on gurneys, it hardly matters. In the meantime we’ve arranged a truce in the real estate wars in exchange for ultrasound pictures.

lm,
“That’s why I never understand why you are so hostile to my posts (“laughable” millionaire because I rent). My skills are in trading – that’s where my capital is best deployed, and I know a few millionaires up here who do the same.”
since you asked…i find your internet persona to be inconsistant
with my idea of a saavy trader.
if your skills are in trading then why are you doing it from home in a retail acct? that’s for amateurs, not ‘professional traders’. the trading action is phenomenal right now and good traders are making size.
maybe you dabble from home with your retail acct. as a pastime
b/c you made so much money in the past and are now retired?
but if that is the case then i am dumbfounded that anyone who made that kind of money would not want to own a house.
you talk/brag about thousand dollar rounding errors in your household so i would think that you would be more bullish on the future of real estate-prices will come down and smart people will add to their portfolio. instead you have this idea that its never a good time to buy; repeatedly pointing out how flippers have flopped or how dumb homeowners subsidize smart renters.
to my ears it just sounds like jealousy. it makes you boil when you hear about some dumb owner lucking into the big ‘artificial’ run-up. you are smarter than that-you did not buy-and that guy who did will give it all back-hee hee and all that.
anyway, whatever. you seem like a nice enough fellow and i would enjoy talking about this and misean theory with you at a cocktail party.
i would sound just as obnoxious but in a more likeable way 😉

WoW….I didn’t realize that my post invoked such a response…. for the people that congratulated me….thank you. For those who question, or criticize me….well, that’s ok too….you can still come to the housewarming party to see how nice this place is…. I’m buying this place for two reasons….1) because I love it…FOR ME…2) Because I can….no financing, no BS…just cash. Could I of waited for Thanksgiving to come and go…sure….could I of waited to see if it made it to X-Mas….sure….I know that most people (even with good credit) can’t get a loan over $700k. but I also know that it only takes ONE other person like me out of 6 billion, and the one house I saw in 4 months that I really, really liked…could be gone like Keiser Sosea in a blink. Could I of waited another 6 weeks and with cash, get this place for $1.65….$1.6….maybe….but that would be gambling….and I don’t gamble. whether it’s a 44 year old mother of two Cougar at Balboa, or a $2.1 million $ condo in Cow Hollow, If I see it, and I like it, I’m going to try my damnest to get it !! Those fortunate enough to know the house hunting experience know that just the process of looking is mentally and physically exhausting…..as well as time consuming….and as many of you know (even you “renters”) time is money…..and I don’t want want to waste anymore time….it’s like finding your “wife”…..when you do, and you know it….”JUST DO IT”…..are their hotter girls out there?…probably…maybe….but if that chick is the one you like….and she’s the one you want to be with….then go get her tiger !!! yes, the opportunity cost is you may be passing on some hot steamy nights with some incredibly hot girls….but you could also be sitting in your 500 square foot/ or your 2,500 sq/ft residence by yourself…..most importantly, this is a HOME first….and an investment second. This is going to be my castle….my home….my domicile…. this isn’t a place I’m going to buy today and flip tomorrow. I hope everyone is as fortunate as i am and lucky enough to be in this position to find what you want…in the meantime, at 9am…..I’ve got a person I need to convince that a 33 year old single guy (with NO kids ) needs a 2,418 sq/ft house….

Apple Picker has nailed part of the equation that the extreme rationalists have not: Homes are more than investments. But if you want to talk about them in investment terms, then how does one value the intangible value of having a place that will always be there for your family? I can look my wife and children in the eye and know that the place they live in now will always be our place. We can get whatever pet we want. We can paint and move walls to our hearts content. We can customize our living space to the nth degree. We can be creative with our landscaping. It is our rock in stormy times and our shelter from the intransigence of renting. If you’re not in the space to set this type of foundation for yourself, please do not mock those who do so. America used to be a pro-growth nation and I think if we have another hard recession, we will go back to that mentality as traders understand the total profits to be made in a declining scenario are much less than those made in a growth economy. Those that wish for the destruction of value of others know not what they wish for.

Well yeah, owning property can serve as a the center of gravity for a family and generate a feeling of stability.
That’s why it is so sad that so many people were sold too much too soon in the prior years. Now their immovable rock is being yanked out from beneath them.
Since home purchase is such a large transaction and most buyers and not financially savvy, it would help if a professional could serve in a fiduciary capacity to advise buyers to ensure that they were not falling into a trap. Its far better to be told things like “You can’t afford this, consider a less expensive place. Or if you really want a home like this, save up a few more years to build a larger down payment.” than to have the market tell you the same a few years down the road.
Instead we got advice that looked nor further than the expiry date of the loan teaser rate.

San FronziScheme,
I wrote that post as a hard-working parent. I hate the NAR just as much as the next literate person who understands they’re nothing more than a cheerleading squad. They’re almost as bad as the people who are praying for foreclosures so that they can receive their “justified” price on real estate. Buy or don’t buy, but don’t run around trying to cut other people off at the knees. Be cognizant that there are other buyers who look at homes with more factors than just dollars and cents. The lack of acknowledgement of (much less respect) these factors is pretty unseemly.

For those interested parties for 1968 Greenwhich, (or those who want an invite to the house warming) I’m pleased to announce that by Thursday night the keys will be mine. It will take some time to get the place furnished, but I see a nice party on the horizon and will welcome many of you to check the place out. As for Scurvy, if you do come, make sure you don’t get lost when the taxi drops you off a block away! As for coming to the party Scurvy, there is no back entrance so you’ll be forced to walk into the front door of my new “Bomb Shelter”…..but I don’t playa hate, and you’ll be welcome….just do two things…1) eat more vegetables….2) let me know what you really think when you see the place in person!…..as for everyone interested in the price…well, I think I got a great house at a great price. It is as close to a single family home that you’ll find in this area that’s not $3 mil+ I got a large, renovated, turnkey property in Cow Hollow for $723 sq/ft for those whipping out the calculators, I paid $1,750,000 for the property. As I stated before to you people looking for the bottom…how much lower do you think this is going to go? This is SAN FRANCISCO and at the moment we are in a momentary blip….things will return somewhat where they were before. Maybe not as crazy, but it will be close. I’m confident this place is going to be worth more than what I paid, soon. But as I stated in a previous post, this is a HOME first, and an investment second ! If you’re interested in the house warming party, I’ll probably set up a facebook page to make things easier. [Removed by Editor] Thanks for all the wonderful insight (and not so nice comments) Time to make this baby a bona-fide APPLE !!
[Editor’s Note: Love the attitude (although we might disagree on how soon is soon). And we’ll be bringing the champagne. Cheers.]

Homes are More than Investments ,
Buy or don’t buy, but don’t run around trying to cut other people off at the knees.
No poster is cutting you at the knees, market reality does the job by itself.
I used to purchase 1, sometimes 2 small rental places a year between 1994 and 2002. I stopped buying property in 2003 after seeing so many bids way over what I considered “fair prices”.
I had very strict criteria for buying and I wanted to keep my buy vs. rent ratio in check. I didn’t have a strong enough back to have so much fixed expenses.
I guess the crazies from 2003-2006 did “cut me off at the knees” from my goal as you say. There were not many complaints at the time about high RE prices as everyone had his cut or was expecting his own.
In 2005, it was clear that this was a bubble of enormous proportions. An opportunity of a lifetime for some. A road to pains for others as the market ultimately went down to earth.
I couldn’t believe the prices and the overbids as I sold my places one by one in 2006…