Will mortgage rates continue to drop?

[jamesKirk]

All I got to say. You will regret a place with high HOA later on.

What?s high for Irvine?

We?ve been looking at areas built around 2000-2017. Some of the older ones are a bit lower and have lower MR.

For us it?s the monthly payment. If the house we want is a bit cheaper, but has higher MR and/or HOA we?d be fine. So if a place had high MR or HOA our budget wouldn?t be 775k, but more like 730-750k.

We have a certain cushion of money we want after the monthly costs of the house are paid for savings, extra spending, etc. I do get the perspective though that it?s not going into the house so it?s a waste, I agree, but it?s something we are perfectly happy to deal with if the right home is available.

 

[Mety]

All I got to say. You will regret a place with high HOA later on.

What?s high for Irvine?

We?ve been looking at areas built around 2000-2017. Some of the older ones are a bit lower and have lower MR.

For us it?s the monthly payment. If the house we want is a bit cheaper, but has higher MR and/or HOA we?d be fine. So if a place had high MR or HOA our budget wouldn?t be 775k, but more like 730-750k.

We have a certain cushion of money we want after the monthly costs of the house are paid for savings, extra spending, etc. I do get the perspective though that it?s not going into the house so it?s a waste, I agree, but it?s something we are perfectly happy to deal with if the right home is available.

I guess above $300 is pretty high for HOA fees. Most attached condos are around $350 in Irvine though. Detached ones will give you from around $100-$250. Older SFRs in WestPark are like less than $50.

If you don't mind the location of PS, then go for it. Once you live closer to things then it's kinda hard to go further away, but if you start with PS, then you might not mind as much. It's closer than Baker Ranch so I guess it's a little better.

Check out this condo in PS3. It's backing Modjeska, but it's detached and I think you can ask for around $750k for sure.https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/119-Excursion-92618/home/143915118

I personally would choose Delano or Stonegate attached over this, but since you said you don't mind PS...

 

[irvinehomeowner]

@jameskirk:

While this is off topic, you can rent a space in any of the many Irvine community centers to host a party. Irvine residents get a discount but it can be pricey depending on which space you rent.

 

[jamesKirk]

All I got to say. You will regret a place with high HOA later on.

What?s high for Irvine?

We?ve been looking at areas built around 2000-2017. Some of the older ones are a bit lower and have lower MR.

For us it?s the monthly payment. If the house we want is a bit cheaper, but has higher MR and/or HOA we?d be fine. So if a place had high MR or HOA our budget wouldn?t be 775k, but more like 730-750k.

We have a certain cushion of money we want after the monthly costs of the house are paid for savings, extra spending, etc. I do get the perspective though that it?s not going into the house so it?s a waste, I agree, but it?s something we are perfectly happy to deal with if the right home is available.

I guess above $300 is pretty high for HOA fees. Most attached condos are around $350 in Irvine though. Detached ones will give you from around $100-$250. Older SFRs in WestPark are like less than $50.

If you don't mind the location of PS, then go for it. Once you live closer to things then it's kinda hard to go further away, but if you start with PS, then you might not mind as much. It's closer than Baker Ranch so I guess it's a little better.

Check out this condo in PS3. It's backing Modjeska, but it's detached and I think you can ask for around $750k for sure.https://www.redfin.com/CA/Irvine/119-Excursion-92618/home/143915118

I personally would choose Delano or Stonegate attached over this, but since you said you don't mind PS...

One thing I did not know about attached condos is they often include hazard/fire insurance. So the cost of an attached vs detached was the same when we got quotes from our insurance since on the attached we only needed personal insurance which was around $20/month.

The thing is in PS were ONLY interested in an end unit model, no interior ones. For interior ones we can fine better like you mentioned elsewhere. It?s specifically the end units. None are left in the current phase though. I attached a street view image of Brisa, we?d likely go with Carissa since it?s closer to Irvine Blvd/freeway. We haven?t found many condos that felt open and like a home.

We saw those detached condos and didn?t like them, same plans as another currently being constructed community in PS. They felt so cramped, your front door is behind someone?s house and you still get that condo style u-shaped parking. Insides we liked, nice patio. Some have a nice loft area as well. We liked the street side model, but was out of our price range.

 

[irvinehomeowner]

Get detached if you can afford it.

 

[usctrojancpa]

Get detached if you can afford it.

+1  Detached condos appreciate and retain value much better than attached condos.

 

[Mety]

I agree that detached are better mostly (not all the time), but it's not like people don't want detached. It's the budget issue that people end up choosing attached. I understand detached tends to appreciate better in term of ROI, but don't attached homes in Irvine perform pretty well also? They tend to appreciate at the same pace as detached.

Besides ROI, what other benefits are there? I could list a few myself first.
1. No shared walls means less noise issue.
2. Less HOA fees
3. You get to say "I bought a house" (even though it's a detached condo).

Cons of detached would be -
1. More insurance fees
2. You have to pay for the roof, exterior paint, etc. in times of maintenance.
3. Sometimes (many times in Irvine), smaller square ft. than attached.

 

[eyephone]

I agree that detached are better mostly (not all the time), but it's not like people don't want detached. It's the budget issue that people end up choosing attached. I understand detached tends to appreciate better in term of ROI, but don't attached homes in Irvine perform pretty well also? They tend to appreciate at the same pace as detached.

Besides ROI, what other benefits are there? I could list a few myself first.
1. No shared walls means less noise issue.
2. Less HOA fees
3. You get to say "I bought a house" (even though it's a detached condo).

Cons of detached would be -
1. More insurance fees
2. You have to pay for the roof, exterior paint, etc. in times of maintenance.
3. Sometimes (many times in Irvine), smaller square ft. than attached.

Neighbor water leaks, noise from neighbors

 

[jamesKirk]

I agree that detached are better mostly (not all the time), but it's not like people don't want detached. It's the budget issue that people end up choosing attached. I understand detached tends to appreciate better in term of ROI, but don't attached homes in Irvine perform pretty well also? They tend to appreciate at the same pace as detached.

Besides ROI, what other benefits are there? I could list a few myself first.
1. No shared walls means less noise issue.
2. Less HOA fees
3. You get to say "I bought a house" (even though it's a detached condo).

Cons of detached would be -
1. More insurance fees
2. You have to pay for the roof, exterior paint, etc. in times of maintenance.
3. Sometimes (many times in Irvine), smaller square ft. than attached.

Neighbor water leaks, noise from neighbors

This is one reason we wouldn?t want to buy an older attached condo. Our options in our budget are a small detached condo if we stretch our budget a bit built 1995-2017, older units with a thorough inspection.

Or a much more recently built attached condo and would prefer new or as new as possible if attached due to issues with attached including what mety said above.

The prices balanced out and made sense to us once we factored in everything.

- Higher long term maintenance costs for detached
- Higher HOA for attached, but higher insurance costs for detached.
- Better appreciation for detached, but higher $/sqft.
- Lower mortgage rate of detached resale vs attached resale. Builders/lenders are offering us detached rate on new attached homes.

So in the end I don?t feel that either option is ?better?. Each type of home is right for everyone. If you don?t want to stretch your budget, but want to get into owning a home in Irvine there are a lot of options available both new and resale for attached homes. Not all attached condos are alike. Many only have one shared wall for instance or are end units.

I feel like we could separate the condos we?ve looked at with prices ranging from 550k to 820k into 4 tiers.

1. Older attached, built before 2000. Shows it?s age, may need money put in before move in, but lowest $/sqft and no MR. Often had lower HOA as well. More 2 story options. Floor plans/ design can feel dated in many cases.
2. Interior newer attached units. Often 3 stories, min 2 shared walls, possibly 2 walls + ceiling/floor shared as well. Can have tandem garage and usually no patio, only a balcony.
3. Attached newer end units, one shared wall with no one above/below. Can find 2 stories often for end units. Premium price, but we found not a ton more than interior units. Often has patio vs balcony.
4. Detached condos. Newer designs felt tightly packed, feel similar to attached condos inside,  but with air gap between buildings so you get more windows. Sometimes a yard and not a patio. Can find some with driveways. I?d lean toward a bit older for detached because the design of the communities felt closer to SFR.

 

[eyephone]

I agree that detached are better mostly (not all the time), but it's not like people don't want detached. It's the budget issue that people end up choosing attached. I understand detached tends to appreciate better in term of ROI, but don't attached homes in Irvine perform pretty well also? They tend to appreciate at the same pace as detached.

Besides ROI, what other benefits are there? I could list a few myself first.
1. No shared walls means less noise issue.
2. Less HOA fees
3. You get to say "I bought a house" (even though it's a detached condo).

Cons of detached would be -
1. More insurance fees
2. You have to pay for the roof, exterior paint, etc. in times of maintenance.
3. Sometimes (many times in Irvine), smaller square ft. than attached.

Neighbor water leaks, noise from neighbors

This is one reason we wouldn?t want to buy an older attached condo. Our options in our budget are a small detached condo if we stretch our budget a bit built 1995-2017, older units with a thorough inspection.

Or a much more recently built attached condo and would prefer new or as new as possible if attached due to issues with attached including what mety said above.

The prices balanced out and made sense to us once we factored in everything.

- Higher long term maintenance costs for detached
- Higher HOA for attached, but higher insurance costs for detached.
- Better appreciation for detached, but higher $/sqft.
- Lower mortgage rate of detached resale vs attached resale. Builders/lenders are offering us detached rate on new attached homes.

So in the end I don?t feel that either option is ?better?. Each type of home is right for everyone. If you don?t want to stretch your budget, but want to get into owning a home in Irvine there are a lot of options available both new and resale for attached homes. Not all attached condos are alike. Many only have one shared wall for instance or are end units.

I feel like we could separate the condos we?ve looked at with prices ranging from 550k to 820k into 4 tiers.

1. Older attached, built before 2000. Shows it?s age, may need money put in before move in, but lowest $/sqft and no MR. Often had lower HOA as well. More 2 story options. Floor plans/ design can feel dated in many cases.
2. Interior newer attached units. Often 3 stories, min 2 shared walls, possibly 2 walls + ceiling/floor shared as well. Can have tandem garage and usually no patio, only a balcony.
3. Attached newer end units, one shared wall with no one above/below. Can find 2 stories often for end units. Premium price, but we found not a ton more than interior units. Often has patio vs balcony.
4. Detached condos. Newer designs felt tightly packed, feel similar to attached condos inside,  but with air gap between buildings so you get more windows. Sometimes a yard and not a patio. Can find some with driveways. I?d lean toward a bit older for detached because the design of the communities felt closer to SFR.

Attached: you can potentially feel and hear the garage open, doors being slammed,  potential HOA regulation installing hardwood, music, loud conversations

(Note: results may vary)

 

[jamesKirk]

Definitely true eyephone, but also YMMV situation. You could end up with terrible neighbors in any situation, but issues can be increased with attached for sure, especially if you share multiple walls with multiple people.

I will say that when we?ve spoken to people in the newer condo neighborhoods they?ve typically been friendly and responsible. Houses are kept nice. I guess you?d expect that from people buying condos that are 700k or renting at $2500+/month. You get some annoying people who they complain about and we do notice when he go to see homes like washing cars in the alley/garage roadway when it?s against HOA rules. Getting soap and water everywhere so you have to drive through it and get your garage wet/soapy. Or one person selling a detached who complained that their neighbor constantly was washing/spraying with a hose his windows so it splattered and got on his windows leaving water spots.

That?s why we are choosing between an end unit or a detached. We?ve been ignoring interior attached for a while now even if it seems like a good price. At least with an end unit you?re minimizing the risk of a bad neighbor.