My wife and I have been looking to buy something in LA and we’ve been outbid by $100k+ twice already.
The LA market is simply insane whether you’re buying or renting. The only “deals” I’ve seen are on properties with clear flaws (e.g. poor location, bad floor plan, etc.)
I’m not sure where you’re looking exactly, but all I can do is wish you luck and say yes, LA real estate is tough.
With these prices I'd love to buy, but it takes a while to gather the deposit with a new job. If all fails, orange county it is.
Wish you luck as well :)
I grew up in OC and it’s not bad, depending on where you are exactly and what your interests are.
Honestly, I don’t blame people that get up and leave for another state. But silly me, I’m not willing to leave my friends and family (and of course the weather).
How do you determine these?
For location it’s common for a property to be in a generally desirable area, but situated right next to a freeway (noise and bad for health) or located right on a busy street (not quite as bad as a freeway, but in certain cases it could be difficult to even get out of your own driveway).
For floor plan, the biggest offenders I’ve seen are configurations that limit the usability of the space.
Narrow bathrooms and kitchens that feel almost claustrophobic. In one case I saw a bathroom that was barely wider than the toilet! I’ve seen kitchens that two people cooking would barely be able to maneuver around. I’ve seen bedrooms that are basically closet sized, which is strictly worse than just having one less bedroom. I’ve seen large lot sizes, but half the lot is on a slope and not able to be used as a backyard.
I see 1 bedroom apartments for $2k-ish everywhere. 2 bedroom apartments for less than $3500. that's just normal if not below average for a major metro.
I live in Israel near Tel Aviv. Your $2800 (I'm assuming AUD) is 10% more than my mortgage. I live 10 minutes from the beach (and downtown), 2 minutes from a forest, and have a 5+.
If your value was USD then everything I just wrote holds true fro Tel Aviv, one of the most expensive markets in the world. OPs original post would get him a fantastic place here ~15 minutes from the beach and 15 minutes from work.. on foot. But salaries also don't match that.
"Factoring income" is also a non-sensical qualifier for how expensive a metro is. Using that measure then Miami would be considered far and away the most expensive metro in the country.