buying condo vs. house?

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newbuyer168_IHB

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<p>Hi all! this is my first time visiting. I found lots of good discussions and advice here so i thought i'ld post my question here. Basically I am renting now in Fountain valley but looking to buy this year or next year. As i have read from the other threads, its better to rent and wait it out to see how the market goes. </p>

<p>Still, i thought that right now i should start doing my research. I have a few questions now. My first question is, would i be better off buying a condo in Irvine, or a house down south in aliso viejo..or further? i am looking at homes in the 500-600k range. Also, how do i determine which cities to buy a home in? what should be the most important factor to consider? price, school district, timing??? so far i am considering a condo in irvine because the school district is very good , and the location is great for both of us, but would i be better off driving further south and owning a single family home? I am really having a hard time picking a location. So far I made a list of cities by distance near both my husband and my work but i dont know much about the houses, school districts, and housing prices history since iam a new housebuyer and iam not in the real estate industry. Cities i am considering: HB, FV, Costa Mesa, Tustin, Irvine, lake forest, Aliso Viejo. </p>

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It depends on what you're looking for, and what makes you happy.





I'm happy with a townhome in a HOA that takes care of everything outside. A side yard with space for a dwarf lemon tree and couple of small gardening projects would be nice too. It saves me the trouble of maintaining the roof, paint, yard, etc. I used to live in a single family house and did not like spending weekends doing yard work.





However that's not to say condos are always better than single famiy homes. For example if you bought an old house with a large lot (10,000-12,000 sq ft), you might have the option of tearing down the house in 20 years and replacing it with 3-4 houses on a sub-divided lot, and sell them for a profit to fund your retirement. You couldn't do that with a condo. Also, many home improvement/addition projects that would increase the value of your home, such as adding a bathroom, is also not an option for condos.
 
<em>It depends on what you're looking for, and what makes you happy.</em>





I want to echo momopi on this. It seems to me that you have to prioritize what you want most out of your home in order to make your decision. If price/sq ft. or home size is your biggest factor, you'll probably be looking for a sfh outside of Irvine. If school district or traffic is the most important to you, you'll probably be more open to a condo in Irvine.
 
<p>k. this is what i think. first of all, you need to determine where you want to live. if the coast is your thing, you woud either want to live Newport or Huntington. If want clean, safe, and suburban - you should go for Irvine or Fountain Valley. And if you want more of a mix, you might go for Tustin or Costa Mesa. In any case, proximity to family, friends, and foood are always important. </p>

<p>personally, i live in a small, yet new condo on the Irvine side of Tustin. i guess we chose it because we place a high priority on low maintenance. and since we don't have any kids yet, we won't have to worry about the school district for another 10 years. we actually would prefer fountain valley, but nothing was new AND affordable there. and since we don't mind living in an apartment, we figure there'll be no problem adjusting to a condo.</p>

<p>also, being Viet, I can never live to far from Little Saigon. Seriously, regardless of where the Viets move to, they always come back to Westminster on the weekends for the food. It's like, we wouldn't want to live there because it's too congested, yet we always come back to add to the congestion.</p>
 
hs_teacher - Have you ever eaten at Viet hole in the wall at Walnut and McFadden? The bar-b-que pork is wonderful, but my wife always knows when I walk in the door that I have eaten it. What is your fav Viet sandwich shop? I like the one on the corner of Edinger and Euclid, but Lee's will do in a pinch.
 
not sure, i might've tried the pho there - but i think i could've gone to the place on newport. as for the sandwich shop, i like the one on bolsa/magnolia for its meats. but just for the sake of the bread, i think banh mi cali is best - it's so moist and buttery when it's newly baked. and lastly, the one on Edinger and Euclid makes awesome egg sandwiches - especially a good value when you buy the 2 1/2 foot long one. but no, i'm not a fan of Lee's.
 
<p>a good pho place in westminster. oh let me tell you. there's one on the south-east side of bolsa/bushard called PHO THANG LONG. it's new (they changed locations), it's clean, it's quick, it's cheap, and it's good. personally, i prefer eating pho with the filet mignon beef. it's a dollar more than the regular beef, but it's so worth it! the filet comes on a side dish and you simply put them in the boiling pho to cook it. this way, it doesn't dry up like the other beef. as for the other items on the menu, they were really blah. btw, and they open til 1am.</p>
 
ivc - LOL. I have some Korean friends who have said they want to take me out to some clubs/bars in k-town and afterwards they want to take me to "What the Pho?". We drove by it and I said WTF the name is "What the Pho?". I still haven't been there but I have heard it is good.
 
<p>hs_teacher,</p>

<p>What is the name of the two places you speak of? On Euclid and Edinger and the one on Bolsa and Magnolia. The sandwich place on Bolsa and Magnolia, is it a small shop at the end but not exactly at the corner of the intersection>?</p>
 
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