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Real Estate Is Still A Great Investment

By
Real Estate Agent with EXP Realty of California BRE# 01722617

 

I remember when I was growing up my Mom always pointing out Charlie East’s triplex on Matheson Street in Healdsburg and saying, “We could have bought that place for $46,000. It is now worth at least $500,000. conservatively. That $46,000.00 price was at a time like today during an economic downturn.

 

So here is the scoop. How about a 1200 square foot, three bedroom, 2 bath home on a golf course within an hour of Healdsburg for $79,900. It rents for $1250.00 a month and there is a good market for renters in that area that have chosen to commute. The payments are around $560.00 a month that includes insurance and taxes. This example home was built in the 1990’s and well built. I am seeing a lot of these deals coming across my desk. You can even go with a FHA loan and have as little as 3.5 percent down. On top of that there is a government issued gold bond program that can be used to get your down payment down to 1 percent.

 

If you are going to invest in gold tie it to something real. Many investors are putting their money in the gold market. Bright idea, we know where that is headed. At $200.00 an ounce yes a good investment, not at $1800.00 an ounce. What is gold tied to anyway. Tie it to real property to hedge against the eventual back slide.

 

Rates on loans tracked by Freddie Mac are now nearly a full percentage point below 2011 highs seen in February. Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.15 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending Aug. 18, down from 4.32 percent last week and a 2011 high of 5.05 percent in February, Freddie Mac said.

 

That's a new all-time low for 30-year fixed-rate loans in records dating to 1971, surpassing the previous record of 4.17 percent set during the week ending Nov. 11, 2010.

 

RENT or BUY

 

The cost of renting verses buying has been calculated recently. Rent on a two-bedroom apartment, condominium or townhouse in the country's 50 most populous cities is higher than buying. According to the index, the cost of buying was less than renting in 37 of the 50 cities (74 percent) as of July 1, 2011. About the same share, 78 percent, favored buying over renting in the last index report, released in April.

 

We define total costs of homeownership to include "mortgage principal and interest, property taxes, hazard insurance, closing costs at time of purchase and ongoing (homeowners association) dues and private mortgage insurance, where applicable. It also includes an offset for the tax advantages of homeownership, including mortgage interest, property tax and closing cost deductions."

 

For any more information I can be reached at www.HealdsburgRealEstate.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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