Apartment Advice

[aka_red]

I'm looking for an apartment online. I've been looking at apartment ratings dot com and I'm having problems trying to decipher what reviews are crazy people and what are legitimate concerns. For all those apartment pros out there what do you look for in apartments?

[ZwiFT]

@ first i look at the pictures, is it a pussy magnet? worth checking out then

[DropTheBanana]

Renting an apartment is pretty much punting ~9K a year out the window. IMO the only half decent time to rent is when leasing a car during a recession.

If you're credit is decent, you should BUY a townhouse or a nice apartment (if there are apt. buying options where you live).

Bachelor pad that shit up just like an apartment and then when you're ready to buy a house or whatever rent it out to a grad student, young couple, yadda yadda. Investing in residential property is almost always +EV.

I realize this doesn't answer your question, but just a suggestion if you havent considered it already.

[flomo]

-location, distance to subway, distance to work/school/whatever
-always try to get nearest to the top of the building as you can, toilet flushing uses gravity

[boost]

Investing in residential property is almost always +EV.

lol.


Really though, I'd def turn on the shower. Does it get good pressure? A year of shitty showers would be aids. Also +1 on what Zwift and Flomo said.

[spoonitnow]

Renting an apartment is pretty much punting ~9K a year out the window. IMO the only half decent time to rent is when leasing a car during a recession.

If you're credit is decent, you should BUY a townhouse or a nice apartment (if there are apt. buying options where you live).

Bachelor pad that shit up just like an apartment and then when you're ready to buy a house or whatever rent it out to a grad student, young couple, yadda yadda. Investing in residential property is almost always +EV.

I realize this doesn't answer your question, but just a suggestion if you havent considered it already.

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

[ensign_lee]

Renting an apartment is pretty much punting ~9K a year out the window. IMO the only half decent time to rent is when leasing a car during a recession.

If you're credit is decent, you should BUY a townhouse or a nice apartment (if there are apt. buying options where you live).

Bachelor pad that shit up just like an apartment and then when you're ready to buy a house or whatever rent it out to a grad student, young couple, yadda yadda. Investing in residential property is almost always +EV.

I realize this doesn't answer your question, but just a suggestion if you havent considered it already.

lololol. Right, because it's not like you're paying for a place to live or anything...

and all your interest on your loan isn't being "punted out the window"



Back on topic,

honestly, the most important thing that you'll want to know, nobody will answer for you. How many attractive women live in the building. You're just going to have to go look for yourself.

[BennyLaRue]

Too cheap to pay the 5 cents, hmmm?

[bigred]

@ first i look at the pictures, is it a pussy magnet? worth checking out then

Why the hell would we want to draw a lot of cats?

[dsmrolla06]

In my area we have a company that owns a bunch of apartment complexes that include free gas. So your heat, cooking and water heat are all free. The only thin you pay for is electric, so I always looked for those. Perhaps you have something like that in your area.

[bigred]

Just be sure to make sure there isn't a cat problem. Could get ugly.

[BennyLaRue]

In my area we have a company that owns a bunch of apartment complexes that include free gas.

What, is this some kind of chili company?

[bigred]

That cat is gonna give me nightmares

[DropTheBanana]

lololol. Right, because it's not like you're paying for a place to live or anything...

and all your interest on your loan isn't being "punted out the window"

It's simple Financial Accounting 101.

Since houses (or any other residential property you buy) are an appreciating asset, you're going to see that money again in the form of tax deductions, equity, and your personal net worth. Unless, you're a deadbeat with a 540 score and an astronomical shitty interest rate. On the other hand, rent money is just gone forever. But, I've read some of your posts and realize you're a pretty smart guy, so you probably already knew that.

I'm just saying, renting is a band-aid and a short term solution. Sometimes, for someone's current situation, it's the right solution. But, I figured I would toss the idea out there for him, and it's definately something he should look into and decide for himself according to his situation.





As for Spoonitnow. Last time I was in IRC you were asking for a $200 loan from the kids in the chatroom for IRL bills or something. Not to openly chastise you, but you don't seem to be of sound financial advice and the fact of how you can criticize someone's opinion on anything involving finances or investments is fucking beyond me. On a sidenote, I talk to people who know (or knew) you IRL (don't forget my gf went to Forbush) and you should really give up this stupid fucking tough guy persona you try to portray to make 18 year old internet kids think your the shit.



Sorry for the derail. GO ON WITH THE CLOROPHYLL!!!

[aka_red]

yo ensign lee im in austin right now u wanna get lunch?

[ensign_lee]

ReDZill4 - DAMMIT I'm in Houston now.

Banana - you're right; I'm came off more harsh there than I should have. What I should have said is that owning residential property is not a slam dunk, no brainer kind of decision to be taken in a vacuum, and certainly not as general advice;

it just irritates me to no end whenever I see people in effect saying "zomg, renting is throwing money out the window; own your property. It can only go UP UP UP."

I mean, didn't we just narrowly avert a HUGE depression based on that line of thinking?

Realistically, for an individual's situation, you have to factor in costs like maintenance, taxes,insurance, etc that you're "throwing away" since you'll paying it and will never get it back. And that's BEFORE you factor in the fact that by taking the mortgage deduction, you give up $5700 in a standard deduction, so you don't save THAT much in taxes until you're buying property valued at > $250k.

[aka_red]

if you could pm me where you lived here and how you liked it would be appreciated... ill try to find you on fbook and add you. should be pretty obv who i am.

[Micro2Macro]

It's simple Financial Accounting 101.

Since houses (or any other residential property you buy) are an appreciating asset, you're going to see that money again in the form of tax deductions, equity, and your personal net worth. Unless, you're a deadbeat with a 540 score and an astronomical shitty interest rate. On the other hand, rent money is just gone forever. But, I've read some of your posts and realize you're a pretty smart guy, so you probably already knew that.

I'm just saying, renting is a band-aid and a short term solution. Sometimes, for someone's current situation, it's the right solution. But, I figured I would toss the idea out there for him, and it's definately something he should look into and decide for himself according to his situation.





As for Spoonitnow. Last time I was in IRC you were asking for a $200 loan from the kids in the chatroom for IRL bills or something. Not to openly chastise you, but you don't seem to be of sound financial advice and the fact of how you can criticize someone's opinion on anything involving finances or investments is fucking beyond me. On a sidenote, I talk to people who know (or knew) you IRL (don't forget my gf went to Forbush) and you should really give up this stupid fucking tough guy persona you try to portray to make 18 year old internet kids think your the shit.



Sorry for the derail. GO ON WITH THE CLOROPHYLL!!!

Q: are you dwarfman?

you seem to have missed out on taking FIN300 which covers the decision to lease or buy. as I recall, redzill recently had to leave washingston due to the poker law thing so he's most certainly looking for a place to live in the short term (1-2 years...) buying a home does NOT suit short term stays. if he wants to get up and leave in 1-2 years its not going to be nearly as easy had he have rented out a place.

do more research on the pro's of renting because you clearly haven't and im not wasting my time writing a 4 paragraph summary of the two. maybe wufwugy will read this thread. im pretty sure given his situation he is best of renting but that's really for op to decide.

as far as rental advice goes just make sure you view the place in person before going with it. take a walk around the neighbourhood and see if it feels like somewhere you'd be comfortable living.

[ZwiFT]

My sister and her boyfriend bought an apartment for $455k and sold it for $820k two years later, was def +ev for them =)

[BennyLaRue]

it just irritates me to no end whenever I see people in effect saying "zomg, renting is throwing money out the window; own your property. It can only go UP UP UP."

I mean, didn't we just narrowly avert a HUGE depression based on that line of thinking?

Yeah, the blanket real estate = insta-success was and still is troublesome but I don't think that is what Mr. Banana is advocating. The underlying principle of real estate being a sound investment isn't wrong, provided good opportunities are targeted. Renting isn't right or wrong, buying isn't right or wrong, it's all situational. But his advice that looking to buy now and turn it into a rental property later is solid if good buying opportunities exist in your region. The rental market is VERY strong right now in many regions precisely because of the downturn as it has forced owners to become renters again.

My sister and her boyfriend bought an apartment for $455k and sold it for $820k two years later, was def +ev for them =)

This is what most ppl think but looking at real estate in this way is misleading. You have to consider how your relative buying power has changed. What I mean by that is it's irrelevant if the value of the property has gone up 80% in two years if every other property in your region has increased by a similar amount as well and you still need to purchase a place to live. You haven't freed up any cash. It's only an amazing return if you're moving from an up-market to a down-market (that down-market being another property in a depressed market or a different investment altogether).

[Monty3038]

My sister and her boyfriend bought an apartment for $455k and sold it for $820k two years later, was def +ev for them =)

You can't 'buy' an apartment... you buy a condo. The people who have twisted the words so much that now they call everything everything else are....

Oh well fuck it, congrats to them.

[bigred]

You can't 'buy' an apartment... you buy a condo. The people who have twisted the words so much that now they call everything everything else are....

Oh well fuck it, congrats to them.

Ever been to a city?

[Monty3038]

Ever been to a city?

Yes, and the terms are still fucked up there.

The suburbs are doing that shit now. And it is fucked up. You rent an apartment, you buy a condo. They can be built exactly the fucking same.

Yes, I am feeling like a language nazi today.

[Monty3038]

And you fucking drive on a parkway and park on a driveway, I know.

[BennyLaRue]

GO ON WITH THE CLOROPHYLL!!!

By the way, I really appreciated this ref.

[Penneywize]

so we're agreed banana's an idiot?

[kiwiMark]

You can't 'buy' an apartment... you buy a condo. The people who have twisted the words so much that now they call everything everything else are....

Oh well fuck it, congrats to them.

ever been to the internet where english isn't everyone's first language?

[flomo]

i rented a condo once.

[KoRnholio]

Renting an apartment is pretty much punting ~9K a year out the window. etc etc

There's a lot more cons to buying than you mention/think. Property taxes. Time/fees for buying and then selling. Money spent on renos/maintenance. Interest on your loan.

Probably a good rule of thumb is: If you don't plan on living in that same place/city for more than 3 years, its probably better to rent. Obviously this isnt the be all end all, and depends on many other things such that that city/area's current real estate market.

[oskar]

If you live in a moderate climate: heating/isolation is worth a closer look. I have a couple of friends who had to pay considerable amounts to get isolation fixed, heaters installed or just generally huge energy bills because of bad isolation and old gas central heating.

Buying can be a good idea. My mother started renting an apartement about ten years back. She knew that there was a major revamp in infrastructure in the area but she was unsure about buying. If she had bought she could sell for considerably more right now. I haven't looked into buying much cos I don't have the liquidity and I'm not taking loans as a principle, but it might be worth thinking about strategical buying options.

Things to look for in the contract are if you have the right to rent yourself (in case you want to travel for a year or whatever) or charge the next tennant for whatever you put into the place - usually you can, but there should also be a cap on that... so if you plan on tiling everything with marble and gold then you better check the fine print.

Whenever I was looking I found that the best deals by far were appartement buildings where you half buy/ half rent where you get the money you put in back at about -1% depreciation p.A. idk how that's called... even after potential interests and everything those were a lot cheaper than pure rental options. Maybe that's just a local thing. I don't know how common that is.

[d0zer]

Probably a good rule of thumb is: If you don't plan on living in that same place/city for more than 3 years, its probably better to rent. Obviously this isnt the be all end all, and depends on many other things such that that city/area's current real estate market.

I've seen different analysis that puts the breakeven point at around 5-6 years in many cases, but like you said: there's a lot of variables.

lol @ banana making blanket statements about renting knowing nothing about zilla's situation.

[Lukie]

somewhat related response that doesn't immediately answer your question:

when it comes to furnishing your place, I wouldn't go overboard with getting excessively nice stuff. just decent, reliable stuff works, also recognizing that eventually you will have to move it out or sell it. so if you have stairs to climb or what not, that should be taken into consideration when deciding what you will ultimately have to move in and out.

[boost]

somewhat related response that doesn't immediately answer your question:

when it comes to furnishing your place, I wouldn't go overboard with getting excessively nice stuff. just decent, reliable stuff works, also recognizing that eventually you will have to move it out or sell it. so if you have stairs to climb or what not, that should be taken into consideration when deciding what you will ultimately have to move in and out.

def good advice... I know a few people who were renting, dropped tens of thousands outfitting the place and ended up moving out of state in less than 2 years...

[KoRnholio]

somewhat related response that doesn't immediately answer your question:

when it comes to furnishing your place, I wouldn't go overboard with getting excessively nice stuff. just decent, reliable stuff works, also recognizing that eventually you will have to move it out or sell it. so if you have stairs to climb or what not, that should be taken into consideration when deciding what you will ultimately have to move in and out.

Good point. It's why IKEA is so popular. People buy their stuff knowing it won't survive even a single move, but it's so cheap that you can just go buy more new stuff for your new place.

[aka_red]

good call gents, was going to get nice stuff but with the current legal climate makes it seem like a bad idea.

[daven]

i rented a condo once.

i rented a bungalow in thailand in sept/oct
$4/night. Probably better than buying

@ red. Best to go take a look at places if you can. Renting is gonna be a lot less hassle than buying for you given that there's a good chance you'll want to be moving on again within a year or three.

[bigred]

somewhat related response that doesn't immediately answer your question:

when it comes to furnishing your place, I wouldn't go overboard with getting excessively nice stuff. just decent, reliable stuff works, also recognizing that eventually you will have to move it out or sell it. so if you have stairs to climb or what not, that should be taken into consideration when deciding what you will ultimately have to move in and out.

Make sure to have a nice watch though!

[Monty3038]

ever been to the internet where english isn't everyone's first language?

The Internet is for porn.

[bigred]

DONT RENT TONIGHT BECAUSE ...ITS....CATURDAY

[Renton]

Renting an apartment is pretty much punting ~9K a year out the window. IMO the only half decent time to rent is when leasing a car during a recession.

If you're credit is decent, you should BUY a townhouse or a nice apartment (if there are apt. buying options where you live).

Bachelor pad that shit up just like an apartment and then when you're ready to buy a house or whatever rent it out to a grad student, young couple, yadda yadda. Investing in residential property is almost always +EV.

I realize this doesn't answer your question, but just a suggestion if you havent considered it already.

Shameless exhibition of the irrational american obsession with taking on massive debt whenever possible.

[DropTheBanana]

Not whenever possible....I'd say, whenever suitable.

That first post is pretty opinion based on my part. But, that's based on my own situation/experience and advice from family and friends through the years. I could go on talking about taking on low risk, non liquid assets, but it was just a suggestion if he hadn't considered it.

Honestly, if I could go back and rewrite that post, I would have just said: "Get a ground level in a complex where hot girls work in the office"

[Renton]

To me suitable is when I have a job/city that I'm planning on staying at for the next 20+ years and a person I'm staying with for the next 20+ years.

I feel like 90% of people who choose to buy would be way better off renting. It's well known that home ownership (through credit) was a major propaganda driven initiative in the 40s-50s to make workers debt incumbent and therefore less likely to go on strike. People make 35k a year and buy a 250,000 home. But what do you expect, when you consider the role model the United States itself is with its sordid finances?

[swiggidy]

Unless you're living somewhere for 10+ years, or you can afford the mortgage after you move out (before collecting rent) buying a house is probably a bad idea. (assuming single with no family, blah blah)

Like Renton said, any disagreements are based on old thoughts which used to be accepted as correct, but now generally accepted as wrong.

[mcatdog]

Also, "investing in a residential property is +EV" is a pretty meaningless statement. Compared to putting your money in a cardboard box, it's +EV. Compared to investing that money in whatever else you would have spent it on, it may not be.

[Hawk]

Rent-to-own. Good/Bad? Drawbacks/Benefits?

[ensign_lee]

Usually costs more. You're going to give up any equity that you put into the place if you ever miss a payment / decide to leave.

ONly good if your credit is gawdawful.

[badandy519]

Rent-to-own. Good/Bad? Drawbacks/Benefits?

Look up rentacenter or aarons for household goods - same thing, basically. If you're going to live there for absolutely forever and have terriible credit and want to get into a particular place or area RIGHT now, lease to own is not the worst option. Just know going in that 90% ish or more of your payment is going towards nothing. It would lock you into a lower purchase price if the market is booming like 5 years ago, but that's def not the case now. Land contracts are another thing to look into if you can find something financed by the owner of a property. Same principle as lease or rent to own, but more of a one-off kind of deal instead of dealing with a real estate company or whatever.