There's one home in the older (60's built?) adjacent neighborhood left, that's unoccupied. I could tell an older fellow lived there, probably the original owner. I saw relations went to visit, but no more. 3 cars in the driveway, all deeply covered in fir needles and moss, handicap plate still on one, small side window smashed in on another.
There was a windstorm, blew a big tree over which crashed through the roof; a tarp covers the gaping hole, which is still intact after at least a year. Wood bars nailed across the door and front windows, no trespassing sign. A sole porch light was on 24/7, until it burned out.
I cant even imagine what it looks like inside, with no heat, basically wide open to the PNW atmosphere. It must be legally "tied up" as no one is doing a thing, beyond cutting the tree away and off the roof, throwing a tarp over the damage. To whomever it has value, its sure losing that fast. So too bad.
There was a windstorm, blew a big tree over which crashed through the roof; a tarp covers the gaping hole, which is still intact after at least a year. Wood bars nailed across the door and front windows, no trespassing sign. A sole porch light was on 24/7, until it burned out.
I cant even imagine what it looks like inside, with no heat, basically wide open to the PNW atmosphere. It must be legally "tied up" as no one is doing a thing, beyond cutting the tree away and off the roof, throwing a tarp over the damage. To whomever it has value, its sure losing that fast. So too bad.
It makes me wonder what caused "houses" (homes actually) to become commodities for the average person.
This chronic Buy & Flip industry in the states is rapidly starting to unwind....Interest rates to purchase such "restored" jacked up priced homes, has jumped so significantly that many so-called Mom & Pop flippers have bank notes piling up so as to stall these crazy "businesses". Any of these flippers who are merely swapping bank notes, and do not not have cash reserves are going "out-of-business" at a quick pace.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rick...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rick...
Doesn't matter. Major paradigm shift. Again..Blackstone. It's cousin, "Blackrock" virtually owns the world. They're on the board of directors on just about every major player. But most importantly typically the largest shareholder. IOW, the "boss".
Good question, but owning a home is instrumental in building wealth, hedging inflation, and transferring wealth to the next generation.
Rent paid is money lost forever. I've been taught for as long as I can remember that paying your mortgage is paying yourself.
My father bought the house I grew up in for $12,500 in 1955. He sold it for $96,000 in 1997. According to the Zillow gods it's worth just shy of $300,000 now. Call it a what you will but that was a good bet for every player; a win-win for every transaction.
It defines classes here in the US. If the real estate market falls out, there is going to be a big recession with pain for everyone. It all of course relies on debt so a lot can go wrong. Real estate may be ridiculously overpriced now, but unlike money it always retains some intrinsic value.
You're probably right. It's just in time to keep my whole neighborhood from being painted grey and white and black.
It defines classes and is only a "win-win" for certain classes, a "win" especially for those who don't necessarily care about the fabric of society as a whole
Last edited:
Blackrock ain't all that...they are only at number 192 on the top companies of Fortune 500, and real estate as a whole is barely in the double digits as a percentage. Who's number one on Fortune 500?...Walmart, lots & lots of money there.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rick...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rick...
If you don't play, you can never win. The issue with class, now more than ever, is getting into the game.
The alternative is no middle class and banana republic status. Pick your poison.
Having been homeless in the past for well over 7 years.
Any home has extreme value, most taking the simplest of things for granted.
In less drastic answer, is always simple.
The things all humans love the most
= Money
If available to the average folk.
all the better.
Otherwise being that " flipping" is glamorized on TV and the media.
I see the usual promotion and conditioning to support
= bank debt
money is backed by debt.
otherwise real work it guarantees
Yeah, up there with (I wont say it)...
An ugly side of capitalism where its ugly claws reach, until every possible thing there is becomes like a root-bound pot. Including the fundamentals such as health, education, shelter.
check out this "fixer upper" its a couple of doors down from my sons place. Only $449,000. My son was going to look at it as he is renting now. I told him he would need $150 to $200,000 to get it liveable. No idea who was there before. The dumpster out front is full of junk from the house.
Flipping storage lockers or buying lockers full of goods was glorified in the media as well.
You buy a locker and it is magically full of guns, jewelry, cash and gold.
Only to find, those are the things people remove before they default on the storage bill.
The housing crash destroyed so many lives, the amount of abandoned lockers full
of junk and common household items was so bad.
Lets glamorize it so we can sell junk, and get them to clean out the lockers for us too.
Far as flipping houses, you wont make much money if the bank is involved.
All the extremely successful flippers buy the houses for cash and remove a lot of problems
and profit losses , time restraints, restrictions, inspections and regulation you can expect otherwise.
Its getting harder to do, but buying government auction houses from tax defaults
is a better way to get a low cost house to flip.
And yes buy it cash.
Far as flipping lockers, you need inside info. Only lockers owned by deceased people
have goods in them. Otherwise I guarantee at auction your buying lockers full of
abandoned junk. And basically giving the storage facility money , for cleaning
their locker for free.
You buy a locker and it is magically full of guns, jewelry, cash and gold.
Only to find, those are the things people remove before they default on the storage bill.
The housing crash destroyed so many lives, the amount of abandoned lockers full
of junk and common household items was so bad.
Lets glamorize it so we can sell junk, and get them to clean out the lockers for us too.
Far as flipping houses, you wont make much money if the bank is involved.
All the extremely successful flippers buy the houses for cash and remove a lot of problems
and profit losses , time restraints, restrictions, inspections and regulation you can expect otherwise.
Its getting harder to do, but buying government auction houses from tax defaults
is a better way to get a low cost house to flip.
And yes buy it cash.
Far as flipping lockers, you need inside info. Only lockers owned by deceased people
have goods in them. Otherwise I guarantee at auction your buying lockers full of
abandoned junk. And basically giving the storage facility money , for cleaning
their locker for free.
Depends
If you dont remodel the bathroom and kitchen, like the TV glamorizes and claims is essential.
Its done the same way it is always done.
You basically paint all the walls one color and re carpet the whole house.
Wood flooring is the trend.
But actual flippers or renters that make money know.
Cheap weave carpet and paint change the whole house.
Basically what I did around 2003 when " Tan" was the new trendy color.
We tear out the carpet, spray the house in one day, all one color.
Trim and cabinets, all painted one color.
Carpet guys come in a re carpet the house in 2 days.
all done.
Only thing that gets you is bad roof.
The 90's we painted all the walls =white.
2000 everything was = Tan
2015 everything now = Grey
You carpet so paint overspray can go anywhere.
To seal away pet odor you paint the sub floor too.
you can use "organic" super fancy treatment products.
aka =alcohol is dumped on the pee spots.
Then " seal" with magical products sold for 3x higher price.
Aka = Paint
Personally I preferred white since you can blast
the ceiling floor and walls. Also easier when people didnt
insist on scraping away acoustic ceiling spray/ popcorn.
Last edited:
If you do the vinyl / linoleum / engineered wood last, you could probably do the same thing with "wood" floors vice carpet.
That click and lay stuff isn't even nailed or glued.
That click and lay stuff isn't even nailed or glued.
Agree and good point.
Usally labor is what makes the cheap vinyl or engineered wood
still higher. Also molding or trim is changed with engineered.
Just a lot of hiding cost in footage and labor.
Also the issue is wholesale prices are hardly seen on carpet
Most people buy from retail.
Wholesale carpet significantly lowers price.
Why the cheap weave carpet rules.
I saying " cheap" means the middle range expensive stuff
people actually buy at retail.
Also most mainly pay a lot out in labor.
If you really want to flip you have to learn paint and carpet
and need to know where to buy wholesale.
People think it is cheap at the box stores.
It is unbelievable how marked up it is.
Then labor is pure loses
I liked the empty slate concept.
The buyer can paint and put in whatever they want.
You just provide a clean slate.
Most imagine immediately changing the floors.
When buyers tend to keep the carpet 3 years or more.
You basically did them a favor and handed them something
clean and ready to go.
Usally labor is what makes the cheap vinyl or engineered wood
still higher. Also molding or trim is changed with engineered.
Just a lot of hiding cost in footage and labor.
Also the issue is wholesale prices are hardly seen on carpet
Most people buy from retail.
Wholesale carpet significantly lowers price.
Why the cheap weave carpet rules.
I saying " cheap" means the middle range expensive stuff
people actually buy at retail.
Also most mainly pay a lot out in labor.
If you really want to flip you have to learn paint and carpet
and need to know where to buy wholesale.
People think it is cheap at the box stores.
It is unbelievable how marked up it is.
Then labor is pure loses
I liked the empty slate concept.
The buyer can paint and put in whatever they want.
You just provide a clean slate.
Most imagine immediately changing the floors.
When buyers tend to keep the carpet 3 years or more.
You basically did them a favor and handed them something
clean and ready to go.
Agreed about the money and interest rates.
Houses get fixed and flipped here because there's money to be made. There are areas in Chicago (some suburbs too) where the housing stock sorely needs refurbishing, yet there is little to no activity. In neighborhoods like the notorious Englewood, your house won't be worth a whole lot no matter what you do to it. In fact, it's only in the last few years that homeowners there have even realized a return on their investment; for 50 years the prices did not even keep up with inflation.
A lot of real estate is going up in spite of increasing interest rates. Chicago is growing by leaps and bounds in spite of the sky high crime, ever increasing taxes, and other issues. Even marginal areas are priced sky high. Englewood is growing in population for the first time since 1950. Big box stores are opening up there, unheard of since 1970 or so when Sears was the last to leave.
Englewood is my barometer for Chicago. Englewood was devastated by white flight, redligning, predatory lending practices, race riots, gang activity, crime, etc. If Englewood comes back it's a done deal. And it's coming back. My father said in the 1990s "Englewood is never coming back. " He grew up there and saw it go from the Irish Gold Coast to a neighborhood served only by liquor stores and storefront churches. ALL the businesses left and none replaced them.
Houses get fixed and flipped here because there's money to be made. There are areas in Chicago (some suburbs too) where the housing stock sorely needs refurbishing, yet there is little to no activity. In neighborhoods like the notorious Englewood, your house won't be worth a whole lot no matter what you do to it. In fact, it's only in the last few years that homeowners there have even realized a return on their investment; for 50 years the prices did not even keep up with inflation.
A lot of real estate is going up in spite of increasing interest rates. Chicago is growing by leaps and bounds in spite of the sky high crime, ever increasing taxes, and other issues. Even marginal areas are priced sky high. Englewood is growing in population for the first time since 1950. Big box stores are opening up there, unheard of since 1970 or so when Sears was the last to leave.
Englewood is my barometer for Chicago. Englewood was devastated by white flight, redligning, predatory lending practices, race riots, gang activity, crime, etc. If Englewood comes back it's a done deal. And it's coming back. My father said in the 1990s "Englewood is never coming back. " He grew up there and saw it go from the Irish Gold Coast to a neighborhood served only by liquor stores and storefront churches. ALL the businesses left and none replaced them.
Last edited:
Usually depends on the local main business, money source.
If the fall of local industry is the major cause for the initial downfall.
Might be right, may never come back.
Otherwise in " booming" neighborhoods from local economy.
Flippers look at the middle class or high end areas for flips.
Where the real diamond low cost, quick flips are often in the
junk neighbor hoods people ignore.
People wanna sell to the office princesses, but the poor
labor force are buyers as well. Usually less picky, ready to buy
If a roof does get you, gotta love the old cheap asphalt roofs
in the junk neighborhood. Still cheaper and quicker than the
fancy roofs. Fancy roof leaks, you pay fancy roof price.
If the fall of local industry is the major cause for the initial downfall.
Might be right, may never come back.
Otherwise in " booming" neighborhoods from local economy.
Flippers look at the middle class or high end areas for flips.
Where the real diamond low cost, quick flips are often in the
junk neighbor hoods people ignore.
People wanna sell to the office princesses, but the poor
labor force are buyers as well. Usually less picky, ready to buy
If a roof does get you, gotta love the old cheap asphalt roofs
in the junk neighborhood. Still cheaper and quicker than the
fancy roofs. Fancy roof leaks, you pay fancy roof price.