Talk me in or out of this

[185EZ]

60 to 70% appreciation? What will capital gains tax take out of that?
I haven't done a townhouse but i know it wouldn't be for me.
Owned 2 condos in vegas I will NEVER own a condo again anywhere
But that's me

 

[pkbullet]

If it doesn't lower your quality of life, then it seems to meet your long term goals. I just always try to remember life is short, and the time your kids are home with you is even shorter. I would rather find other ways to make more money than lower the quality of life I have with my family time. Our lake house has appreciated significantly and we use it much less as a family since my kids have started their professional lives. I don't care what it costs to wait and enjoy it with grandkids.

 

[Spudsbud]

1 Listen to Shintoo !
2 Does college costs factor in? $$$$$
Jr. & Sr. in H.S. now ??

 

[hallettheck]

Thousand Oaks great place to live...raised kids there in late 80's and 90's....now in desert (different) but we enjoy.
GL

 

[shintoooo]

1 Listen to Shintoo !
2 Does college costs factor in? $$$$$
Jr. & Sr. in H.S. now ??

They are both trying to save as much money on college as possible so they are going to go to community college for the first two years. They are great kids in that sense. If we move there, they will go to Moorpark college and then decide where to go to finish up. I have 529 plans for both of them and they will get anything left over in the account.

 

[LakeMeadLavey]

Your house and location is bitchin, for sure.

The Valley definitely isn't going to get any better, it used to seem that the nice areas in Woodland Hills / Sherman Oaks / West Hills etc were sort of "insulated" from what was going on, but the last 5 years have seen that deteriorate rapidly. The neighborhoods are still nice, but the surrounding public places, grocery stores, restaurants, etc are bombarded with the homeless and drugged out zombies. It makes you wonder if it will ever affect property values, but with the overcrowding and lack of housing, and close proximity to LA, it seems like the values just keep climbing despite the conditions. Getting out of the Valley is a good move IMHO. Are the condos you are looking at on the Ventura County side or LA County side of Westlake?

I agree with BB50. The valley is getting worse by the day and most definitely will not get any better. I have lived in Thousand Oaks for 40+ years and it is not the small town it once was. With that being said, its still a great safe place to live in comparison to what is going on in the valley and the schools are very good as well.

The link you posted above for that condo is an old remodeled complex in Westlake where the parking is a real bitch. In my opinion its over priced just because its in Westlake. Also, as BB500 stated part of Westlake is LA County and part is Ventura County.

Personally I would look more into Thousand Oaks or even the Dos Vientos area of Newbury Park. Get much more for you money and a newer complex. Westlake is very yuppy and you need to drive a Range Rover or G Wagon to fit in. LOL A lot of very wealthy arrogant people and also a lot of wannabes too.

All and all I think you and your family would be very happy with the change and looks like there are a few of us inmates who live in TO! Good luck with your decision and if you have any questions on the different areas of TO let me know.

 

[lbhsbz]

It comes with a two car garage and one assigned spot and there's street parking. We have 4 cars so might be an adjustment but ultimately we can deal with it.

Why the fuck would you want to live that close to your neighbors?

 

[shintoooo]

Why the fuck would you want to live that close to your neighbors?

Go back and read the first post

 

[Joker]

We're going to go check this out as well. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1178-Westlake-Blvd-A-Westlake-Village-CA-91361/16493581_zpid/

To be honest, I’m not hot on that type of condo/townhome. If i were to buy into a condo it would be in a high rise concrete structure with floor to ceiling glass. Maybe look at one of the mixed use hotel/condo property’s such as The Pendry or The Edition in Hollywood.
If you’ve got 100 million to invest, another place we worked at is 8899 Beverly in Beverly Hills. The penthouse views are amazing.
I like your thinking of simplifying your life.

 

[shintoooo]

To be honest, I’m not hot on that type of condo/townhome. If i were to buy into a condo it would be in a high rise concrete structure with floor to ceiling glass. Maybe look at one of the mixed use hotel/condo property’s such as The Pendry or The Edition in Hollywood.
If you’ve got 100 million to invest, another place we worked at is 8899 Beverly in Beverly Hills. The penthouse views are amazing.
I like your thinking of simplifying your life.

I actually like the high rise condo's as well but that's something we'll look at when the kids are out of the house.

Maybe we can go 50/50 on the Beverly Hills penthouse?

 

[Ziggy]

Yes, this condo is in the lake community. This one is not on the lake though. Those run a lot more. I love Westlake area. We always go to Westlake on the weekends. It's a really nice area and super clean. No homeless to be seen anywhere.

Lol, whenever I hear or think of Westlake all that comes to mind is

.
Btw, I think you two have a good plan and should stick with it.

 

[Gelcoater]

Yes, this is another real estate thread. Real estate has just been on fire as we all know but I just can't see it firing on all cylinders like it has the past year and in fact things have started to slow down and flatten out a bit. I've been talking with my wife and kids (Sr and Jr in high school) and although I absolutely love my house, we are thinking about putting it up for sale and moving to thousand oaks area. Our house has appreciated about 60-70% since we purchased it at the end of 2017. We want to buy something cheaper, either another house or even buy into a new townhouse development that we checked out on Saturday. We would put a side a huge chunk of cash that we can sit on or invest into other things if the opportunity arises. My wife and kids are all on board and it wouldn't affect their schools either way. It also wouldn't add much if any time to our daily drive to the office as we go the opposite of traffic.

We would still be in real estate and if prices drop, but we would take a smaller loss on this new property should prices start to drop. Of course, if market continues to go up, we would get less appreciation as well. I just don't see the market continuing this trend and with interest rates rising, inflation out of control, and the government handouts coming to a halt, we might start seeing things slow down a lot.

I still get nervous about pulling the trigger though. I just want to make sure I'm making the correct decision as any of us here would. Moving into a townhouse would be a big change but I think we can definitely adjust. My wife and kids are thankfully very low maintenance and they are saying to go for it. This would ultimately be temporary and we would most likely move to another place in the next 3-4 years and keep this purchase as a rental or sell it depending on the market.

I want to hear what your thoughts are in either direction. Pull the trigger and cash out and buy another cheaper place or stay where I'm at and go with the flow. What say ye?

Trying to talk you into it....

I think you should do what will make you and your wife happy.

 

[Gelcoater]

Yes, this is another real estate thread. Real estate has just been on fire as we all know but I just can't see it firing on all cylinders like it has the past year and in fact things have started to slow down and flatten out a bit. I've been talking with my wife and kids (Sr and Jr in high school) and although I absolutely love my house, we are thinking about putting it up for sale and moving to thousand oaks area. Our house has appreciated about 60-70% since we purchased it at the end of 2017. We want to buy something cheaper, either another house or even buy into a new townhouse development that we checked out on Saturday. We would put a side a huge chunk of cash that we can sit on or invest into other things if the opportunity arises. My wife and kids are all on board and it wouldn't affect their schools either way. It also wouldn't add much if any time to our daily drive to the office as we go the opposite of traffic.

We would still be in real estate and if prices drop, but we would take a smaller loss on this new property should prices start to drop. Of course, if market continues to go up, we would get less appreciation as well. I just don't see the market continuing this trend and with interest rates rising, inflation out of control, and the government handouts coming to a halt, we might start seeing things slow down a lot.

I still get nervous about pulling the trigger though. I just want to make sure I'm making the correct decision as any of us here would. Moving into a townhouse would be a big change but I think we can definitely adjust. My wife and kids are thankfully very low maintenance and they are saying to go for it. This would ultimately be temporary and we would most likely move to another place in the next 3-4 years and keep this purchase as a rental or sell it depending on the market.

I want to hear what your thoughts are in either direction. Pull the trigger and cash out and buy another cheaper place or stay where I'm at and go with the flow. What say ye?

Trying to talk you out of it.

I couldn’t even imagine trying to go backwards to townhome/condo type living.
But, I’m not a “people” person

The wife and I agree we want a larger piece of land if we move.
We went to a cabin in Wrghtwood for our anniversary in September.
As we sat there on the porch, we could hear the guy across the street cutting wood for his new deck.

We could hear the mom and her kids playing in the spa on the other side of the back fence.

We could hear the next door neighbor pull up in the driveway after work and go inside and play the drums for an hour...
The trees and scenery were cool.
But.
We basically just traded one neighborhood for another.


I vote you move someplace out of the way.
And, get a new boat.

 

[shintoooo]

Trying to talk you out of it.

I couldn’t even imagine trying to go backwards to townhome/condo type living.
But, I’m not a “people” person

The wife and I agree we want a larger piece of land if we move.
We went to a cabin in Wrghtwood for our anniversary in September.
As we sat there on the porch, we could hear the guy across the street cutting wood for his new deck.

We could hear the mom and her kids playing in the spa on the other side of the back fence.

We could hear the next door neighbor pull up in the driveway after work and go inside and play the drums for an hour...
The trees and scenery were cool.
But.
We basically just traded one neighborhood for another.


I vote you move someplace out of the way.
And, get a new boat.

We’re going to be buying a place in camp Nelson soon that checks off a lot of these items on your list. One of my favorite places to go and wind down.

Something like this

246 Oak Knoll, Springville, CA 93265 | Zillow

246 Oak Knoll, Springville CA, is a Single Family home that contains 940 sq ft and was built in 1959.It contains 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.This home last sold for $232,500 in December 2021. The Zestimate for this Single Family is $273,900, which has increased by $15,300 in the last 30...

www.zillow.com

 

[OCMerrill]

God help me if I ever have to move. Moving is the worst.

 

[DaytonaBabe]

Yes, this is another real estate thread. Real estate has just been on fire as we all know but I just can't see it firing on all cylinders like it has the past year and in fact things have started to slow down and flatten out a bit. I've been talking with my wife and kids (Sr and Jr in high school) and although I absolutely love my house, we are thinking about putting it up for sale and moving to thousand oaks area. Our house has appreciated about 60-70% since we purchased it at the end of 2017. We want to buy something cheaper, either another house or even buy into a new townhouse development that we checked out on Saturday. We would put a side a huge chunk of cash that we can sit on or invest into other things if the opportunity arises. My wife and kids are all on board and it wouldn't affect their schools either way. It also wouldn't add much if any time to our daily drive to the office as we go the opposite of traffic.

We would still be in real estate and if prices drop, but we would take a smaller loss on this new property should prices start to drop. Of course, if market continues to go up, we would get less appreciation as well. I just don't see the market continuing this trend and with interest rates rising, inflation out of control, and the government handouts coming to a halt, we might start seeing things slow down a lot.

I still get nervous about pulling the trigger though. I just want to make sure I'm making the correct decision as any of us here would. Moving into a townhouse would be a big change but I think we can definitely adjust. My wife and kids are thankfully very low maintenance and they are saying to go for it. This would ultimately be temporary and we would most likely move to another place in the next 3-4 years and keep this purchase as a rental or sell it depending on the market.

I want to hear what your thoughts are in either direction. Pull the trigger and cash out and buy another cheaper place or stay where I'm at and go with the flow. What say ye?

Thousand Oaks isn't in Arizona, dummy.

 

[HBCraig]

Yes, this is another real estate thread. Real estate has just been on fire as we all know but I just can't see it firing on all cylinders like it has the past year and in fact things have started to slow down and flatten out a bit. I've been talking with my wife and kids (Sr and Jr in high school) and although I absolutely love my house, we are thinking about putting it up for sale and moving to thousand oaks area. Our house has appreciated about 60-70% since we purchased it at the end of 2017. We want to buy something cheaper, either another house or even buy into a new townhouse development that we checked out on Saturday. We would put a side a huge chunk of cash that we can sit on or invest into other things if the opportunity arises. My wife and kids are all on board and it wouldn't affect their schools either way. It also wouldn't add much if any time to our daily drive to the office as we go the opposite of traffic.

We would still be in real estate and if prices drop, but we would take a smaller loss on this new property should prices start to drop. Of course, if market continues to go up, we would get less appreciation as well. I just don't see the market continuing this trend and with interest rates rising, inflation out of control, and the government handouts coming to a halt, we might start seeing things slow down a lot.

I still get nervous about pulling the trigger though. I just want to make sure I'm making the correct decision as any of us here would. Moving into a townhouse would be a big change but I think we can definitely adjust. My wife and kids are thankfully very low maintenance and they are saying to go for it. This would ultimately be temporary and we would most likely move to another place in the next 3-4 years and keep this purchase as a rental or sell it depending on the market.

I want to hear what your thoughts are in either direction. Pull the trigger and cash out and buy another cheaper place or stay where I'm at and go with the flow. What say ye?

Shin
My house has gone up about 800K since 2003

If my son wasn't a junior and getting recruited I would sell and do what your are talking about. I would 100%
Anything in my area here in HB is just as bad and I don't have many options. But, to answer your question, yes.

 

[BUDMAN]

Do it.

 

[78Southwind]

I don't see a problem with your plan especially since your current house doesn't fit your long-term plan. I want to do something similar but I am going to wait until I am 55 to sell my current home and buy something in a beach community probably in the same price range. I want to take my property tax rate with me since I won't be down sizing the price.

At this point, I am not sure if I will buy a Condo/Townhouse or a smaller home but what is making me think more and more about a Condo/Townhouse is the higher depreciation due to the land value being so low. The land value of my Bullhead Townhouse is $1 so it would be a much better write-off if I found something similar. But my second thought is dealing with another homeowners association.

 

[HB2Havasu]

Going from a Single Family House to a Townhome would be a deal breaker for me. Too much like apartment life for my liking.

Playing Devils Advocate here. What if the prices of homes continue to rise instead of depreciate over the next few years. Now you have a smaller stake you’ve lost money.

Just my opinion, but I never try to time the market and flip my primary residence. It’s too much stress on a marriage and family. If you want to move because you like somewhere else better then by all means go for it. That’s my .02 cents

 

[rivrrts429]

If it makes sense to you and your wife it doesn’t have to make sense to anyone else. I’d roll with your intuition and what ever goal you all have for yourselves. They’re your goals, not ours.

I did notice you’re moving farther and farther from the river. Just an observation lol

 

[Dan Lorenze]

I'm not opposed to having a baller pad. You've seen my house. That view is amazing. I just don't want to live in the Valley any more and with our oldest moving to Simi, moving to T.O. makes sense, whether we buy a house or townhouse.

I wouldn't live in the Valley either. There are some great pockets in the Valley, like West Hills, Calabasas, Woodland Hills etc... But the Valley has become a third world country. Like I have said before, I really do like living in Thousand Oaks. But also, I would never be happy living in a townhome or condo with HOA's and the folks that have a say so on how I live my life. I'm kind of surprised that a guy like you would even be interested in that kind of situation, take that as a compliment. Dump the Valley house and check out Dos Vients in NP.

 

[DWC]

I don't see a problem with your plan especially since your current house doesn't fit your long-term plan. I want to do something similar but I am going to wait until I am 55 to sell my current home and buy something in a beach community probably in the same price range. I want to take my property tax rate with me since I won't be down sizing the price.

At this point, I am not sure if I will buy a Condo/Townhouse or a smaller home but what is making me think more and more about a Condo/Townhouse is the higher depreciation due to the land value being so low. The land value of my Bullhead Townhouse is $1 so it would be a much better right-off if I found something similar. But my second thought is dealing with another homeowners association.

That’s been the plan pretty much since we got married. Sell the family home, move closer to the beach. HOA’s are a huge hurdle. Staying in CA is becoming a tougher deal every year.

 

[CarolynandBob]

I haven't read all of the reply's. so someone may have already said it.

I am always for downsizing. We had a 3300 sqft house in a master planned community. It was just the wife and I. Our cleaning lady would reclean rooms we hadn't even been in since the last time she cleaned.

We downsized to a 2400 sgft place and was much happier. Then we went down to a 1600 sqft place and was even happier. We both realized that we were just buying bigger places to have more stuff. Going smaller and getting rid of stuff made us happier. May not be for everyone, but was for us.

I would lock in the gains.

 

[Sportin' Wood]

Ultimately the plan for my wife and I has always been to have three condos or townhouses when the kids are out of the house. One close to the kids, one in Maui, and one is Miami and we would chase the sun and rent out when we're not using them.

Angie here- Sounds like this is the first step to your ultimate plan. IF the market turns south, you may have an opportunity to pick up a second one in one of your other locations of choice.

 

[DaveC]

Why don’t you keep the house and fill in the pool

 

[shintoooo]

Why don’t you keep the house and fill in the pool

I don't mind having a pool. I enjoy looking at the pool even if we don't use it.

 

[stephenkatsea]

Just down the hill from T.O. Is Camarillo. Lived there for over 20 years. Good place, good people, nice properties, good schools and good living. Usually about 10-15 degrees cooler than T.O. in the summer.

 

[shintoooo]

At the end of the day, we have a lot to think about. I do love this house and we don’t have to do anything but the idea of cashing out and simplifying a bit is appealing. We’re going to check out some places this week and see if we like the idea.

If not, I guess this is not a bad view to have every day.

 

[OCMerrill]

Trading that view for a Condo pool and some investment cash?

OK the talk you out of it reality of Condo Life. It's not for everyone.

I'm an HOA reconstruction contractor. I live in this world I would consider the Devils lair. I get sucked into meetings and after wonder if I should just drive a truck.

Condo Owners always say:

The Dues are expensive and we get nothing for our money
The BOARD makes stupid decisions
They never get anything done around here
There are people in the pool who dont live here
There is someone's car in my parking spot (constant)
There's rats in the dumpsters
The manager never return our calls
The Gardener is terrible, this place looks like shit

I for one will never own a condo again and I have owned two.

 

[Orange Juice]

Since you’ve only been in this home for less than 5 years, its probably an easy move, and by this time, youre probably thinking the bathrooms will need redone

Its going to be an expensive move. Probably close to $100k before youre comfortable again.

How much do you plan to give the Broker/real estate agent. That is what stops me from moving more than once in any 10 year cycle. At the moment, I’d give up $40k+, if I sold. I’m sure California is twice that much.

 

[shintoooo]

Since you’ve only been in this home for less than 5 years, its probably an easy move, and by this time, youre probably thinking the bathrooms will need redone

Its going to be an expensive move. Probably close to $100k before youre comfortable again.

How much do you plan to give the Broker/real estate agent. That is what stops me from moving more than once in any 10 year cycle. At the moment, I’d give up $40k+, if I sold. I’m sure California is twice that much.

We remodeled two bathrooms this year. Just finished the second one last week. The agent is my client so I get a discount but it will likely cost me 5% including all the escrow fees and all the other crap.

Here’s the bathroom. Came out nice.

 

[mbrown2]

Like the darker Schluter offset.. BR looks great!...