Savinglots$$$Renting_IHB
New member
For the past 4 years I was very luck to be living in what I considered the absolute Best Apartment plan in Irvine( at least for 1-2 people- I am single). It was in Villa Siena- Plan 33 which is a 1 Bdrm 1,100 sq ft Unit with 20 ft high ceilings,200ft patio and a 2nd Level Bdrm. Villa Sienna which I was of the nicest complex in Irvine has only 3 of this unique floor plans. It was the perfect floor plan in a Great are and at $2,300 month I estimated I was saving about $3,000 per month renting comparted to Purchasing a similar type property ( factoring in tax benefits). But I was frustrated by this unit because it had large bay windows with a wonderful view of all my neighbors,which many IAC apartments are similar.
Of course I wanted to buy a property.. but I am avid reader of the site and the news. I know that I will have to wait a while to the market crash is over to buy. But I could well afford to spend more money on rent but I wanted to get the BEST DEAL!! I spent over 3 months looking all over the OC from HB to NB and as far north as LB but I could not find a place that made me want to move. I set a budget up to $5,000 per month which I figured I could get a nice House with Ocean view in NB ( not really).. but since I was only renting although I could spend more I did not want to waste money . I finally came close to leasing a place at The Plaza in Irvine. I really liked it- it was MUCH nice then Marquis and Really liked the High Rise lifestyle with a VIEW ! The best I found for Rent at The Plaza was a 11th Floor Unit, around 1700 sq ft,2bdrm with a great Irvine city and back by view ( a little better then my neighbors!). This was going for $ 5,000 a month rent for a property for sale around $1.2 million with I think around $1,100 Association. So even at $ 5,000 a month I knew I was saving money from purchasing ( Besides saving agains the monthly deprecation of the property!!)... To me find a rental was ALL ABOUT SEEING HOW MUCH MONEY I COULD SAVE RENTING compared to Buying and HOW MUCH I CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SITUATION( My rental buying power compared to someone losing money renting to me !!) . ALthough I liked the Place at The plaza...I just couldn't Pull the trigger...so I keep looking and then I FOUND IT !!
I Moved to the 'Hood !! ( where Snoop Doggy grew up !!) I moved to Long Beach which is around 20 mins from Irvine( w/no traffic of course) and is Actually around equal distance from my business. I had seen a few different LB properties previous but nothing made me Jump- Then I saw West Ocean !! (www.westoceanlb.com)... this is the Nicest Building in LB and had Just Opened and the Poor speculators who Bought units 1-3 years ago hoping to make a killing on the Market were leasing there incredible Units out to try to at least cover some of there NUT !! Once I saw this property and the INCREDIBLE VIEW ( I am higher then the 20th floor (out of 30 floors) and In the Best UNIT-01 Side View that has 180 Degree Panoromic Ocean view and City views all the way back to the Hollywood sign in LA (on a clear day!) .. The DAY I SAW THE UNIT... I said I will take it and I SIGNED THE LEASE and paid THE SAME DAY I GOT IT ( +I got a 1 yr option at the same Rate !!)... Plus this Uhit which is 1,620 sq ft 2brm is over $1,500 a month LESS then I the $5,000 I would have paid at the Plaza in Irvine !! I wake up Every Morning to a Incredible View of the PACIFIC OCEAN and Downtown LB ( A little better view then back bay-). ACTUALLY the view is Better at NIGHT when the City is all light up. Plus the Location is Incredible- 2 blocks away from PINE Street andthe Pike ! But I do joke that it is the 'Hood- I see them handing out food to the homeless in a park a few blocks away- IT IS NOT IRVINE !! There are always some tradeoffs... But I am Enjoying the New Neighborhood especially Belmont Shore Area. I Still Love Irvine ( at leat most of it) and I enjoyed living there and who knows maybe in a few year I may buy a nice Mansion out of forclosure since its obviously a great place to raise a family. Or maybe I will just buy a Penthouse in a LB Highrise -).
For now I am VERY HAPPY TAKING ADVANTAGE of my Buying Power !! The Association in this Building ( with Concierge Service, Wince Celler,fancy common area,etc is around $800 a month- I say its like living at the Four Seasons- but a Little cheaper!) Taxes on this unit is around $ 1,200 a Month range and They are asking around $ 1.1 million or so for similar High units with this view ... Maybe one of the Many EXPERTS ( I enjoy reading all the anlysis!!)... Can figure out roughly how much Money I am Saving EVERY MONTH RENTING !! I think my landlord bought the property 2/3 years ago when it first went on sale so he may paid only 900-950k on the prebuy ( the RE agent swears hes finacially ok eventhough I am paying him basicially less then $1,500 a month against a 1.1 million dollar property(taxes+assoc are 2k month)... I think I am saving around $4,000 a month after factoring tax benefits..( plus not losing 50-100k a yr as the property goes down?).. But then again I think This Property especially this Floor Plan ( there are 4 different and this one BY FAR has the BEST VIEW)... it may hold its value better then other floor plans and other Building in the area since its the Nicest ( not like Aqua down the street which is foreclosure central). Also there are still a LOT OF UNITS left in this property - there are 2 Buildings ( I am in the 1st taller one ) and between the 2 I would GUESS that they only sold 1/3 of all the units ( if you ask them they will say its 2/3 of course)... Also I was one of the first to lease in this building a few months ago and I do see that the Prices especially for higher floors are leasing Higher then I paid.. .but if you are intersted in living in a High Rise you might want to check out the 'Hood !!
***One more note on the OC economy that I thought many of the Experts on this site might find of interest. I own a fast growing company with 12 employees in the OC and 5 years ago when I started I was Near IMPOSSIBLE to hire people even to get people to Interview. Now the market is totally different.. the last ad we ran on web site hiring for a entry level Position we recieved over 120 Resumes in 2 days ! The most sad part about it was many were Overqualified.. Now we are able to pick the Cream of the crop... the Market is really getting tough for a lot of people and I can only assume this will GREATLY impact the housing market in the OC. Also we work with a company Out of state that handles our intial hiring process and they were STUNNED with the response we got.. ..the market is a lot worse in the OC then many parts of the Country and I can only assume because the OC was the Center of the housing market and all the Ripple effect this has.
***Update- I Embraced the Paragraph ( thanks Ipoplaya- I ALWAYS enjoy your posts!!).. but I am too tired to run spell check and fix the grammer( I hate doing that anyway).. but its probably MORE FUN to read with all the horrible spelling and grammer mistakes anyway. Besides I am going hang out with Snoop Doggy on his tour bus we are getting ready to the Long Beach Grand Prix Parties!
Of course I wanted to buy a property.. but I am avid reader of the site and the news. I know that I will have to wait a while to the market crash is over to buy. But I could well afford to spend more money on rent but I wanted to get the BEST DEAL!! I spent over 3 months looking all over the OC from HB to NB and as far north as LB but I could not find a place that made me want to move. I set a budget up to $5,000 per month which I figured I could get a nice House with Ocean view in NB ( not really).. but since I was only renting although I could spend more I did not want to waste money . I finally came close to leasing a place at The Plaza in Irvine. I really liked it- it was MUCH nice then Marquis and Really liked the High Rise lifestyle with a VIEW ! The best I found for Rent at The Plaza was a 11th Floor Unit, around 1700 sq ft,2bdrm with a great Irvine city and back by view ( a little better then my neighbors!). This was going for $ 5,000 a month rent for a property for sale around $1.2 million with I think around $1,100 Association. So even at $ 5,000 a month I knew I was saving money from purchasing ( Besides saving agains the monthly deprecation of the property!!)... To me find a rental was ALL ABOUT SEEING HOW MUCH MONEY I COULD SAVE RENTING compared to Buying and HOW MUCH I CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SITUATION( My rental buying power compared to someone losing money renting to me !!) . ALthough I liked the Place at The plaza...I just couldn't Pull the trigger...so I keep looking and then I FOUND IT !!
I Moved to the 'Hood !! ( where Snoop Doggy grew up !!) I moved to Long Beach which is around 20 mins from Irvine( w/no traffic of course) and is Actually around equal distance from my business. I had seen a few different LB properties previous but nothing made me Jump- Then I saw West Ocean !! (www.westoceanlb.com)... this is the Nicest Building in LB and had Just Opened and the Poor speculators who Bought units 1-3 years ago hoping to make a killing on the Market were leasing there incredible Units out to try to at least cover some of there NUT !! Once I saw this property and the INCREDIBLE VIEW ( I am higher then the 20th floor (out of 30 floors) and In the Best UNIT-01 Side View that has 180 Degree Panoromic Ocean view and City views all the way back to the Hollywood sign in LA (on a clear day!) .. The DAY I SAW THE UNIT... I said I will take it and I SIGNED THE LEASE and paid THE SAME DAY I GOT IT ( +I got a 1 yr option at the same Rate !!)... Plus this Uhit which is 1,620 sq ft 2brm is over $1,500 a month LESS then I the $5,000 I would have paid at the Plaza in Irvine !! I wake up Every Morning to a Incredible View of the PACIFIC OCEAN and Downtown LB ( A little better view then back bay-). ACTUALLY the view is Better at NIGHT when the City is all light up. Plus the Location is Incredible- 2 blocks away from PINE Street andthe Pike ! But I do joke that it is the 'Hood- I see them handing out food to the homeless in a park a few blocks away- IT IS NOT IRVINE !! There are always some tradeoffs... But I am Enjoying the New Neighborhood especially Belmont Shore Area. I Still Love Irvine ( at leat most of it) and I enjoyed living there and who knows maybe in a few year I may buy a nice Mansion out of forclosure since its obviously a great place to raise a family. Or maybe I will just buy a Penthouse in a LB Highrise -).
For now I am VERY HAPPY TAKING ADVANTAGE of my Buying Power !! The Association in this Building ( with Concierge Service, Wince Celler,fancy common area,etc is around $800 a month- I say its like living at the Four Seasons- but a Little cheaper!) Taxes on this unit is around $ 1,200 a Month range and They are asking around $ 1.1 million or so for similar High units with this view ... Maybe one of the Many EXPERTS ( I enjoy reading all the anlysis!!)... Can figure out roughly how much Money I am Saving EVERY MONTH RENTING !! I think my landlord bought the property 2/3 years ago when it first went on sale so he may paid only 900-950k on the prebuy ( the RE agent swears hes finacially ok eventhough I am paying him basicially less then $1,500 a month against a 1.1 million dollar property(taxes+assoc are 2k month)... I think I am saving around $4,000 a month after factoring tax benefits..( plus not losing 50-100k a yr as the property goes down?).. But then again I think This Property especially this Floor Plan ( there are 4 different and this one BY FAR has the BEST VIEW)... it may hold its value better then other floor plans and other Building in the area since its the Nicest ( not like Aqua down the street which is foreclosure central). Also there are still a LOT OF UNITS left in this property - there are 2 Buildings ( I am in the 1st taller one ) and between the 2 I would GUESS that they only sold 1/3 of all the units ( if you ask them they will say its 2/3 of course)... Also I was one of the first to lease in this building a few months ago and I do see that the Prices especially for higher floors are leasing Higher then I paid.. .but if you are intersted in living in a High Rise you might want to check out the 'Hood !!
***One more note on the OC economy that I thought many of the Experts on this site might find of interest. I own a fast growing company with 12 employees in the OC and 5 years ago when I started I was Near IMPOSSIBLE to hire people even to get people to Interview. Now the market is totally different.. the last ad we ran on web site hiring for a entry level Position we recieved over 120 Resumes in 2 days ! The most sad part about it was many were Overqualified.. Now we are able to pick the Cream of the crop... the Market is really getting tough for a lot of people and I can only assume this will GREATLY impact the housing market in the OC. Also we work with a company Out of state that handles our intial hiring process and they were STUNNED with the response we got.. ..the market is a lot worse in the OC then many parts of the Country and I can only assume because the OC was the Center of the housing market and all the Ripple effect this has.
***Update- I Embraced the Paragraph ( thanks Ipoplaya- I ALWAYS enjoy your posts!!).. but I am too tired to run spell check and fix the grammer( I hate doing that anyway).. but its probably MORE FUN to read with all the horrible spelling and grammer mistakes anyway. Besides I am going hang out with Snoop Doggy on his tour bus we are getting ready to the Long Beach Grand Prix Parties!
