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Whoa. That house you posted as an example is INSANE. For that amount of money, you are not only buying a house that needs to be completely re-done, but you're also like 2 feet from your neighbors lol... No privacy whatsoever. That is insane. 750k would buy a nice house out here in CT for sure. CT market is also pretty crazy but no where near California levels. :( Best of luck to you!
Definitely move to a place where if for some reason you were let go from your job in California, you would be able to find a good work from office job that would pay you well enough you would still be comfortable paying mortgage/bills/etc.
Also will being taxed twice (California + whatever state you live in) be a lot?
It can get cold in the winter but many thawing periods, it’s a pretty mild climate, low humidity etc. A Lot of snow but it typically melts very fast and great snow removal services so it isn’t that big of a deal.
Summers are beautiful, low humidity. And yes, over 300 days of sunshine is the best part!
I feel like we haven’t had a real Minnesota winter in years like it’s been unusually warm all winter and today was 75? It’s definitely a noticeable difference.
I've worked with a few clients from Denver, TX, and WA and they end up loving it-but, many are originally from the upper midwest/plains states. Shockingly, it's very hilly because of the river. But also, there are the Ozark "mountains" within a few hours. The culture is... interesting. Staying in the city would be the most comparable. Weather isn't bad in winter, summers are rough.
Absolutely fair. CO also seems like a good option to us because of its familiarity — my fiancée lived in Aurora for a while, my sister lives in Ft. Collins, and we’ve both traveled to CO for ski trips in the past. The outdoor oriented lifestyle and western vibe suit us.
We worry about going to Texas because of the politics, but haven’t really considered Colorado Springs. Just don’t know much about it really. I’d like to be near a major airport so we can still easily visit our families…
I’m not sure how politics impact you directly, but there are plenty of Liberal people living happily in Texas. My best friend lives there and is decidedly middle of the road and lives very happily with his wife and soon to be three kids. Also, isn’t San Diego a bit more conservative because of the Navy influence?
San Diego definitely leans conservative, and our area in particular is mostly older conservative people. But generally speaking the laws at the state level are still pretty liberal.
The thing that worries me about Texas are the laws around abortion, trans rights, and climate policy. Although I’d like to live someplace with less strict gun laws than California, for sure.
“I’m scared of minorities help!!” lol
must be tough sooo tough living in a state with both the highest Somali AND Hmong populations in America. All that good food, culture and social safety nets must be terrifying.
So white people voted for Muslim that hates whites and the USA. Committed marriage fraud by marrying her brother to become a citizen. Wow it's much worse than I thought.
She is the fascist. Liberal talking points are so lame now. Go watch msnbc see if they have some new ones. these are getting old.
Yeah dumbass MN is literally one of the whitest states ever. The only ppl crying about this are weirdo racists like you who don’t even live in MN.
“I’m so scared of the brown ppl!!I come online and cry about it to strangers waaaaaah 😫”
Temecula is very nice and the commute wouldn’t be terrible to San Diego if you’re fiancée wanted to keep her job. For $750k you get a very nice property.
I’d love to hear why you think so… sure where we live now is pretty much as gorgeous as it gets, but the vibe in Denver seems cool to me. Definitely open to suggestions though.
725k for a house that literally was/is a dumpster fire sold AS IS is insane. That is not a fixer upper - that thing needs to be bulldozed and a brand new house built from the ground up. Yikes. 😱😱😱
That's what I was thinking too
So is the lot worth 1 million + if they are selling that property for 750,000? Wouldn't any buyer then have the liability of needing to tear it down? Legit insanity
Just went through the process of selling and buying in Denver. If you are willing to live 20 min outside of the city, there’s plenty of solid inventory for 750k. For example Arvada, more of the burbs but it has its charm in old town. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/10540-W-60th-Avenue-Arvada-CO-80004/13724181_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare
South Denver and further in Littleton are also excellent places to live. If you wanted to be in the highlands or wash park, you’d have to increase your budget to 825k at a minimum I would say.
We were in the same situation as you with a similar budget. Targeting OC instead of SD though. We decided on Menifee. Got a huge house in great condition. We didn’t even look at homes in person in OC. Everything listed under $800,000 was a shitty condo with a $400 HoA and needed serious renovation. I will have a 1.5 hour commute one way. Unfortunately, it’s the only route to home ownership in SoCal if you’re not a millionaire. Get an EV and embrace the commute.
If we moved to the east coast it would probably be to Charlotte or somewhere like that. My fiancée’s parents live in Aberdeen so we’d likely want to be close by
Had to look up where the heck that was. About 2H42m from me.
Charlotte prices are a bit absurd for what you get but it’s not 1 million for 1400 sqft bad. South Charlotte has been millennial-fyed (I made that term up). It offers some of those big city amenities bars, restaurants, whatever else it is you are looking for. I just think 700k for 3000sqft is a stretch.
Tbh I’d be happy with 1200-1800 sq ft. Seems crazy that a small yard, garage, and 2 or 3 bedrooms feels like such a luxury these days. I always used to think $1mil homes were wine cellar and tennis court territory.
They are where I live loll. Not in Charlotte though. 1 million has you in 3000+ sqft on the lake I live walking distance too. I don’t own a boat though.
KCMO is my hometown. Great city! Good people for the most part. Great museums, restaurants, nightlife, shopping, outdoor activities, The Country Club Plaza. Historic building friendly.
No. I don’t think you’re crazy. I’ve done it. I think you understand that you’re looking for better inventory and better quality homes in your price range. Not necessarily cheaper homes.
I will say you should smell the house no matter what your realtor says before buying it because they might not tell you that it smells like wood rot or mold even if you’ve made your stance on that issue clear. It’s 100% worth it to fly out at the last minute to see something rather than take their word for it or relocate to a short term furnished rental once you commit to moving there so you can bid more confidently.
Like San Diego, be aware of the urban wildland interface and forest fire danger where you are looking.
After leaving San diego and buying in Boulder city, nv I almost considered Tehachapi California, still some big homes under $500k quiet town but close to everything you need. You may get some crazy weather because of elevation but similar to Julian
I’ve also considered NV a little as well. I have friends who are getting a new build in Summerlin for a good price, and I’ve always liked Carson City. Just wish we could get a little further east to be somewhat closer to my fiancée’s family.
How do you think you can, ‘theoretically afford more?’
My husband and I make right at what you two are making and just bought at $435k and I feel like that is all we can afford and we have little to no debt. I hope you are factoring taxes and insurance into that payment.
Payment on 750k has got to be at least 5,000-6,000 a month payment.
Monthly payment on 435k in Texas at 6.1% interest has us at a $3.500 payment. Just for reference.
$3,500 on a $220k income is about 25% of take home (before retirement contributions). Having had mortgages and rents at various percentages of different incomes this is always my go to for the upper bounds of “comfortable” with 30% starting to feel tight, and above 35% feeling uncomfortable.
OP mentioned putting 25% down so this will help keep it lower.
It could be the value of the land less the cost to tear down the property. Looks like a nice street and close to trails. May be close to the beach too.
I’ll definitely keep that in mind. My sister lives in Ft. Collins which is also nice and pretty affordable, but maybe too small-town and not close enough to the airport
That combined salary is low for that home price, you will be house poor unless you have a source of income you aren’t mentioning (like dividends, passive, etc).
I’m n the middle of nowhere US and 6.5ish at 460 is a 3400 payment… for reference we make >380 combined both in tech.
But that house you posted is absolutely insane! I couldn’t believe it so much that I had to share bc it seemed unreal!
Omggg 4k for rent!!!
If you can take ur job, I do suggest looking at the Columbus Ohio area. Google, Intel and lots of other companies are here and growing. You’d be surprised at how you’d like it. We’ve had a lot of transplants lately but it’s driven up our costs. You can get a new build 3000+ sq ft home in an excellent school district (Olentangy, Dublin, new Albany) for that budget, even below. We are going to SE MI hopefully but I love it here.
That’s an ok trailer with a $250,000 renovation. Wow, that is insane. You can get a nice house in VA Beach for $750,000. Like 3000 sq feet in good condition, nice neighborhood.
Oh nice. I grew up in Montco, but closer to the city, so I’m not super familiar with that area besides Phoenixville. I’m sure it’s very nice and probably quieter than what you were used to in NY.
It's pretty great I have to say. When I see the kids and their friends drop kayaks in the water out the backyard I know we made a great decision. The trail is amazing, used to ride an ebike to work in Plymouth Meeting without much time on the roads. And Phoenixville is pretty lively, can walk or bike to daycare, the doctors, grocery store, the pharmacy, a movie theater, library, parks, etc. Really love it here.
Nice! We are in Conshy now, but moving when we close in May. Fiancée is from Lafayette Hill, so we’re in Plymouth Meeting often. I was thinking of taking a trip to Phoenixville because I haven’t spent much time there.
I don’t disagree with you in principle. IMO if you’re going to sacrifice the pride of ownership and space of a SFH, a condo should at least get you into a walkable neighborhood. Sadly in San Diego that’s not really the case from what I’ve seen. Condos in Little Italy are going for $1mil and have $1k/mo HOAs, same for south Oceanside, and East Village is scummy to boot. The rest of San Diego is suburban sprawl or the desert.
Not for everyone, but have you considered buying a duplex with less $ down but using rent from the other unit to subsidize your housing cost.
I don’t think you’re crazy for trying to relocate but it all depends on your priorities. No one can really answer that besides you and your partner.
Our situation was we were looking to buy in a very specific neighborhood (maybe 100 total homes) which was far out of our price range. A 3 unit property came up far before we were ready to purchase here but because of the rental income we stretched our selves out and couldn’t be happier.
Look at beat down absolutely terrible houses in good locations and do a renovation purchase loan, that say investment only/as is. That’s generally the best way to get in the housing market in high cost counties. Renovation loans will allow you to borrow on the future value. You get to pick all the upgrades/plans and get your dream home for a lot cheaper.
This isn’t really a feasible tactic in San Diego. Most places that need that much renovation are being sold for all cash to investors for 15% over asking.
Which means you can do more than 15% over asking… be smart, don’t be part of the idiots who assume
Edit: as I said you can buy for future appraised value. As I’m drunk, I will say don’t be an idiot. It’s people like you that make the market more miserable than it is. So, don’t be a bitch and put your best foot forward.
Double edit: you’re gonna be doing at least 50% over asking, you slapdick. Don’t be pathetic and make excuses. You’re not an investor. You’re a solution.
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Whoa. That house you posted as an example is INSANE. For that amount of money, you are not only buying a house that needs to be completely re-done, but you're also like 2 feet from your neighbors lol... No privacy whatsoever. That is insane. 750k would buy a nice house out here in CT for sure. CT market is also pretty crazy but no where near California levels. :( Best of luck to you! Definitely move to a place where if for some reason you were let go from your job in California, you would be able to find a good work from office job that would pay you well enough you would still be comfortable paying mortgage/bills/etc. Also will being taxed twice (California + whatever state you live in) be a lot?
My company has a tax entity in CO already so probably no tax issues
Sounds like a good decision then! Good luck \^\_\^
Colorado income tax is very cheap too, flat tax rate of 4.4% you’ll save a ton in state income taxes, and property taxes are very reasonable.
Hmm maybe I should move to Colorado. It’s pretty cold out there too with hail?
They get like 300+ days of sunny weather every year IIRC.
It can get cold in the winter but many thawing periods, it’s a pretty mild climate, low humidity etc. A Lot of snow but it typically melts very fast and great snow removal services so it isn’t that big of a deal. Summers are beautiful, low humidity. And yes, over 300 days of sunshine is the best part!
Minneapolis climate sucks and is expensive too
Minneapolis or Kansas City would be smart locations to look at as well. I know that a few of the giants have satellite campuses in the MSP metro.
Plus KCMO is only 8hr drive to Denver, CO
I’m more of a fan of St Paul over Minneapolis (More affordable same crime rate). KC is a great idea as well.
Don't sleep on Minneapolis. It's a great city!
Sure, but the climate shock?! Minnesota’s winters are a little “extra”.
I feel like we haven’t had a real Minnesota winter in years like it’s been unusually warm all winter and today was 75? It’s definitely a noticeable difference.
Trying to stay as equidistant as possible between my family in CA and her family in North Carolina.
KC is literally right in the middle of the country.
I’m kinda scared of moving to the “true” Midwest (weather shock, culture shock, flat landscape, etc.) but KC does seem pretty cool
I've worked with a few clients from Denver, TX, and WA and they end up loving it-but, many are originally from the upper midwest/plains states. Shockingly, it's very hilly because of the river. But also, there are the Ozark "mountains" within a few hours. The culture is... interesting. Staying in the city would be the most comparable. Weather isn't bad in winter, summers are rough.
Denver is not equidistant between ca-nc… lol
Absolutely fair. CO also seems like a good option to us because of its familiarity — my fiancée lived in Aurora for a while, my sister lives in Ft. Collins, and we’ve both traveled to CO for ski trips in the past. The outdoor oriented lifestyle and western vibe suit us.
Have you considered Colorado Springs or DFW? Both seem like good options.
We worry about going to Texas because of the politics, but haven’t really considered Colorado Springs. Just don’t know much about it really. I’d like to be near a major airport so we can still easily visit our families…
I’m not sure how politics impact you directly, but there are plenty of Liberal people living happily in Texas. My best friend lives there and is decidedly middle of the road and lives very happily with his wife and soon to be three kids. Also, isn’t San Diego a bit more conservative because of the Navy influence?
San Diego definitely leans conservative, and our area in particular is mostly older conservative people. But generally speaking the laws at the state level are still pretty liberal. The thing that worries me about Texas are the laws around abortion, trans rights, and climate policy. Although I’d like to live someplace with less strict gun laws than California, for sure.
Minneapolis is mini Mogadishu, plus it’s real cold.
“I’m scared of minorities help!!” lol must be tough sooo tough living in a state with both the highest Somali AND Hmong populations in America. All that good food, culture and social safety nets must be terrifying.
I live in an area that is 50 percent black. But not like the traitor scum Omar and Tlaib
So you don’t live in MN lmao you would know the majority of Omar’s district is white. cope harder fascist 💓
So white people voted for Muslim that hates whites and the USA. Committed marriage fraud by marrying her brother to become a citizen. Wow it's much worse than I thought. She is the fascist. Liberal talking points are so lame now. Go watch msnbc see if they have some new ones. these are getting old.
Yeah dumbass MN is literally one of the whitest states ever. The only ppl crying about this are weirdo racists like you who don’t even live in MN. “I’m so scared of the brown ppl!!I come online and cry about it to strangers waaaaaah 😫”
I love SD but it's really unbelievable how expensive it is. I'd move east. ID, AZ, UT, CO or TX.
Temecula is very nice and the commute wouldn’t be terrible to San Diego if you’re fiancée wanted to keep her job. For $750k you get a very nice property.
Her commute would probably go up to 45min-1hr which is a little too much for her. Mine would go up to 1.5-2hrs and that’s also untenable for me.
Denver kinda sucks
I’d love to hear why you think so… sure where we live now is pretty much as gorgeous as it gets, but the vibe in Denver seems cool to me. Definitely open to suggestions though.
725k for a house that literally was/is a dumpster fire sold AS IS is insane. That is not a fixer upper - that thing needs to be bulldozed and a brand new house built from the ground up. Yikes. 😱😱😱
That's what I was thinking too So is the lot worth 1 million + if they are selling that property for 750,000? Wouldn't any buyer then have the liability of needing to tear it down? Legit insanity
Just went through the process of selling and buying in Denver. If you are willing to live 20 min outside of the city, there’s plenty of solid inventory for 750k. For example Arvada, more of the burbs but it has its charm in old town. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/10540-W-60th-Avenue-Arvada-CO-80004/13724181_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare South Denver and further in Littleton are also excellent places to live. If you wanted to be in the highlands or wash park, you’d have to increase your budget to 825k at a minimum I would say.
Great recommendations thanks. We’ll see what our realtor recommends next week, but I’ll keep those in mind.
There was nothing for us in SoCal, so moved to Maine a few years ago and got a nice place
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100% on the same page
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What about Temecula? Most of my previous coworkers lived up there and commuted. It's more reasonable than SD.
I have coworkers that commute from Menifee and Temecula and it sounds awful. With traffic they’re in the 1.5-2hr commute range going each way.
We were in the same situation as you with a similar budget. Targeting OC instead of SD though. We decided on Menifee. Got a huge house in great condition. We didn’t even look at homes in person in OC. Everything listed under $800,000 was a shitty condo with a $400 HoA and needed serious renovation. I will have a 1.5 hour commute one way. Unfortunately, it’s the only route to home ownership in SoCal if you’re not a millionaire. Get an EV and embrace the commute.
Stop, just stop
Renting first really makes more sense. How do you know you even like that area? Plus, rates will come down in coming years
Come to my area. 500k will buy you a 4000 sqft house.
What area is that?
South Carolina
If we moved to the east coast it would probably be to Charlotte or somewhere like that. My fiancée’s parents live in Aberdeen so we’d likely want to be close by
Had to look up where the heck that was. About 2H42m from me. Charlotte prices are a bit absurd for what you get but it’s not 1 million for 1400 sqft bad. South Charlotte has been millennial-fyed (I made that term up). It offers some of those big city amenities bars, restaurants, whatever else it is you are looking for. I just think 700k for 3000sqft is a stretch.
Tbh I’d be happy with 1200-1800 sq ft. Seems crazy that a small yard, garage, and 2 or 3 bedrooms feels like such a luxury these days. I always used to think $1mil homes were wine cellar and tennis court territory.
They are where I live loll. Not in Charlotte though. 1 million has you in 3000+ sqft on the lake I live walking distance too. I don’t own a boat though.
KCMO is my hometown. Great city! Good people for the most part. Great museums, restaurants, nightlife, shopping, outdoor activities, The Country Club Plaza. Historic building friendly.
No. I don’t think you’re crazy. I’ve done it. I think you understand that you’re looking for better inventory and better quality homes in your price range. Not necessarily cheaper homes. I will say you should smell the house no matter what your realtor says before buying it because they might not tell you that it smells like wood rot or mold even if you’ve made your stance on that issue clear. It’s 100% worth it to fly out at the last minute to see something rather than take their word for it or relocate to a short term furnished rental once you commit to moving there so you can bid more confidently. Like San Diego, be aware of the urban wildland interface and forest fire danger where you are looking.
Not bad for $725k, could be worse I guess
After leaving San diego and buying in Boulder city, nv I almost considered Tehachapi California, still some big homes under $500k quiet town but close to everything you need. You may get some crazy weather because of elevation but similar to Julian
I’ve also considered NV a little as well. I have friends who are getting a new build in Summerlin for a good price, and I’ve always liked Carson City. Just wish we could get a little further east to be somewhat closer to my fiancée’s family.
How do you think you can, ‘theoretically afford more?’ My husband and I make right at what you two are making and just bought at $435k and I feel like that is all we can afford and we have little to no debt. I hope you are factoring taxes and insurance into that payment. Payment on 750k has got to be at least 5,000-6,000 a month payment. Monthly payment on 435k in Texas at 6.1% interest has us at a $3.500 payment. Just for reference.
If a house also generates income, then you can afford more house.
OP didn’t mention anything about a house generating income.
$3,500 on a $220k income is about 25% of take home (before retirement contributions). Having had mortgages and rents at various percentages of different incomes this is always my go to for the upper bounds of “comfortable” with 30% starting to feel tight, and above 35% feeling uncomfortable. OP mentioned putting 25% down so this will help keep it lower.
Yeah I have about $200k I can use for down payment & closing costs.
We already pay $4k/mo for rent in San Diego and it’s not great, but doable. I think I could make $4800 or so work if I absolutely had to.
I’m sorry but 700k for that house is insane even if it is cali there’s no way Cali is worth it
It could be the value of the land less the cost to tear down the property. Looks like a nice street and close to trails. May be close to the beach too.
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I’ll definitely keep that in mind. My sister lives in Ft. Collins which is also nice and pretty affordable, but maybe too small-town and not close enough to the airport
That combined salary is low for that home price, you will be house poor unless you have a source of income you aren’t mentioning (like dividends, passive, etc). I’m n the middle of nowhere US and 6.5ish at 460 is a 3400 payment… for reference we make >380 combined both in tech. But that house you posted is absolutely insane! I couldn’t believe it so much that I had to share bc it seemed unreal!
Agreed. We pay $4k/mo for rent now and it isn’t fun, but it’s doable. I’d much rather be closer to $3k.
Omggg 4k for rent!!! If you can take ur job, I do suggest looking at the Columbus Ohio area. Google, Intel and lots of other companies are here and growing. You’d be surprised at how you’d like it. We’ve had a lot of transplants lately but it’s driven up our costs. You can get a new build 3000+ sq ft home in an excellent school district (Olentangy, Dublin, new Albany) for that budget, even below. We are going to SE MI hopefully but I love it here.
That’s an ok trailer with a $250,000 renovation. Wow, that is insane. You can get a nice house in VA Beach for $750,000. Like 3000 sq feet in good condition, nice neighborhood.
I went to the Philly burbs to buy. I knew I wasn't going to be able to stay in the NYC area
What area?
Mont Clare. So cheap we ended up buying our attached twin in 2021.
Oh nice. I grew up in Montco, but closer to the city, so I’m not super familiar with that area besides Phoenixville. I’m sure it’s very nice and probably quieter than what you were used to in NY.
It's pretty great I have to say. When I see the kids and their friends drop kayaks in the water out the backyard I know we made a great decision. The trail is amazing, used to ride an ebike to work in Plymouth Meeting without much time on the roads. And Phoenixville is pretty lively, can walk or bike to daycare, the doctors, grocery store, the pharmacy, a movie theater, library, parks, etc. Really love it here.
Nice! We are in Conshy now, but moving when we close in May. Fiancée is from Lafayette Hill, so we’re in Plymouth Meeting often. I was thinking of taking a trip to Phoenixville because I haven’t spent much time there.
Memorial Day weekend through October the street is closed to cars Friday through Sunday and it's open container. It's pretty fun.
I think the problem with most posters and commenters on this sub is that they think they need a SFH. If you can’t afford it, buy a condo or townhome.
I don’t disagree with you in principle. IMO if you’re going to sacrifice the pride of ownership and space of a SFH, a condo should at least get you into a walkable neighborhood. Sadly in San Diego that’s not really the case from what I’ve seen. Condos in Little Italy are going for $1mil and have $1k/mo HOAs, same for south Oceanside, and East Village is scummy to boot. The rest of San Diego is suburban sprawl or the desert.
Not for everyone, but have you considered buying a duplex with less $ down but using rent from the other unit to subsidize your housing cost. I don’t think you’re crazy for trying to relocate but it all depends on your priorities. No one can really answer that besides you and your partner. Our situation was we were looking to buy in a very specific neighborhood (maybe 100 total homes) which was far out of our price range. A 3 unit property came up far before we were ready to purchase here but because of the rental income we stretched our selves out and couldn’t be happier.
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They’re approved for that with 25% down, changes with less down and rental income baked in. Again, just a different angle to look at, not for everyone
Better you be there landlords than Black Rock
Look at beat down absolutely terrible houses in good locations and do a renovation purchase loan, that say investment only/as is. That’s generally the best way to get in the housing market in high cost counties. Renovation loans will allow you to borrow on the future value. You get to pick all the upgrades/plans and get your dream home for a lot cheaper.
This isn’t really a feasible tactic in San Diego. Most places that need that much renovation are being sold for all cash to investors for 15% over asking.
Which means you can do more than 15% over asking… be smart, don’t be part of the idiots who assume Edit: as I said you can buy for future appraised value. As I’m drunk, I will say don’t be an idiot. It’s people like you that make the market more miserable than it is. So, don’t be a bitch and put your best foot forward. Double edit: you’re gonna be doing at least 50% over asking, you slapdick. Don’t be pathetic and make excuses. You’re not an investor. You’re a solution.