Is some US real estate becoming cheap enough to buy?

http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=agHKrNT9dvAw

If those stats are true, and this place isn't in a ghetto, then the guy is paying $585 a month in interest (assuming no deposit, in reality he probably put down 10-20%) and another $205 in principal vs $1400 on rent. That's a pretty attractive free cashflow return.

3-4 years after the top in real estate, are some of the former bubble areas now actually good value? I'd like to know what the replacement cost of a 2000 sq ft 4 bed house with pool & decent yard is in that part of Arizona, anyone connected to the building trade here who might know that stuff?

Even if the market hasn't hit bottom, which IMO it hasn't, it looks like some areas are getting cheap. Might be worth digging around a bit and looking at buys in the next few years.

Anyone got these rent vs mortgage figures for other former bubble spots like Miami, Vegas etc? I know both crashed hard but haven't visited for a while.

 

Yes in South Florida, if you have a job there are some nice condos in Ft. Lauderdale for 50% on the ocean. It's cheaper than Panama.

 

Make sure you get good title insurance, especially in Florida. It's a judicial foreclosure state, unlike Arizona, and there has been a shit load of fraud in the foreclosure process. You may buy a house and find someone suing you years later for possession, claiming they were defrauded by the bank that foreclosed on them.

 

It's been good for the last year or so in parts of SoCal.

 

Thanks good point.

 

Now is a very good time to buy in certain parts. If you've seen declines north of 40%, you probably can't go wrong over time. As someone else mentioned, the Florida coast has nice condos on the water or very close to it, that once sold for $500k, and are now selling for $150k. Obviously they were never worth $500k, but they are certainly not a bad investment at $150.

 

Last summer helping out my dear Mom in Costa Mesa there were some good deal 40-50% of high.

 

Yeah I heard about that. And being insured doesn't always help, insurance companies can weasel out of claims, legal expenses add up, the hassle is a nightmare etc.

 

Any areas you think look particularly good?

Anyone in Miami, Vegas, or Phoenix familiar with price to rent ratios at the moment?

 

You should also check crime rates. Your're about twice as likely to be the victim of a crime in Phoenix compared to the national average.