patrick.net

So, you've read all Patrick's articles, and you know it's not (yet) time to buy.
The smart thing to do is to rent, right? Yes, but can you find a rental?

We moved here (Walnut Creek) in 2006 and I thought prices were insane, so we rented.
Our landlord, who worked in real estate, owned several houses.
Fast forward a year and change, and he filed bankruptcy, meaning we were going to have to move.
It worked out well for us (we lived for around 18 months rent-free due to the bankruptcy and delays in the eventual foreclosure.
But, we had to move, and it's hard to find a place to rent when you've got 3 kids and a dog.

We lucked out, found a place and got a month to month lease since we're planning on buying very soon, whenever we find the right place (most likely at a foreclosure auction). A few things struck me as weird about our landlord so I did some digging. Turns out he owns several properties, at least two are in default and headed to auction. The house we're renting is not, yet, but odds are pretty good it's coming.

Along with the instability of landlords, a big problem in the listings I've seen is the "its only a rental" mentality. People install crap cabinets or appliances they would never live with themselves, but to them "it's only a rental" so somehow we're supposed to accept sub-standard quality when we're paying good rent.

I guess I'm just venting. If I had a stable landlord, I have no objection to continuing to rent while it makes sense. But, the way things are going, I might buy something well priced to live in for the short term, even if it's not perfect, then maybe rent it out later myself. It wouldn't be the kind of house we really want, but hey, it's only a rental, right? :)

#housing