Lion in Winter

See my post above. It makes sense for that building in that particular block.

Michael

I suspect a high percentage of crime in Evanston is also likely in that area much like San Jose which is the safest large city in the US but has a small area where most of the crime is committed.

Lion in Winter

Yup. It's the border street with Chicago, and there are six blocks of it that have been that way for a long time.

Pulaski

In the houses I've bought, title insurance was just part of the cost of closing, it might theoretically have been optional, but though I may have had it explained to me, usually it is just another of those myriad of line item fees and charges.

Lbjen

The safer parts of Evanston are the parts where condos cost way more than $50k. Yes everyone will tell you to move to Evanston, but they're not talking about this part. Most people recommending Evanston wouldn't even refer to this as Evanston. Obviously people do live here, but whether you want to live among them - well that's your call.

e3geek

Thanks for the comments guys. For the sake of arguments even far from the Howard street in the middle of Evanston IL there are plenty of cheap properties available.

http://www.trulia.com/property/31359...nston-IL-60202

This one seems to be in a pretty safe area. Still only $250K far cheaper than whats available in Sydney.

For condos I found other areas as well. Naperville for instance,

http://www.trulia.com/property/31376...60563#photo-21

This one is in the heart of Naperville, a walk to the station and in a great school district as well all though I don't have any kids but still. Property is way too attractive in the US.

e3geek

As Michael suggested there are some crime ridden areas on the southern border and towards northwest of Evanston I focused on the North Eastern side of Evanston and guess what, I still find a few gems

http://www.trulia.com/property/31386...60201#photo-10

This one is only 76K.

Bob

$836 a month HOA fee, that's not to bad.

Might want to see how many other units are empty though as the HOA rate might climb or drop depending on occupancy.

Lion in Winter

That would be fine. It's over on the western edge of Evanston, away from "downtown" and the more trendy area with the big houses and new condo buildings, in an area with some light industry and fairly low-cost housing.

Lbjen

Again, spend some time in the area before deciding what is good value our not.

Michael

That is very high by California standards. I suspect there must be some major repairs that need to be done causing the HOA fees to be so high which may possibly also be causing the asking price of the condos to be reduced.

In California, HOA fees of $500 per month would normally be for high end condos with a pool, fitness center, high garden/lawn maintenance, and other amenities.

Sometimes condos have fees that are too low to cover future reserves to cover maintenance for major replacements such as roofs and siding and eventually they either have to have a special assessment for the repairs or significantly increase HOA fees to cover the repairs. Sometimes a condo will eventually have to make the repairs and have to take out a loan and the payments are included in the HOA fees.

Jerseygirl

We pay more than that in Toronto...mainly because by law the management company have to have 'x' million dollars in a reserve fund to cover any major repairs/maintenance. There again we do have a pool, gym, BBQ area, party room etc.

Bob

Aye and the other likely reason being not having high occupancy numbers, so the amount goes up for the remaining folks.

But on a mortgage that low, it's not to bad.

I would never jump on a place without first knowing the area a bit before hand though.

Pulaski

Here's another thought. A lot of the units in the building may he rented, and the higher the number of rental units, the harder it is to get a mortgage, with a hard cap at 50%, when "conforming" (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHL) mortgages are no longer available at all. To buy without a regular mortgage you'd need a secured loan from a bank, which could be 1-2% higher that the 30 yr mortgage rate even if you have excellent credit, and bank loans don't amortize over 30 years, usually 20 years is the longest, AND, they only commit for five years at a time, so you have a refi and related fees to look forward to every give years.

But with $850 on monthly fees, and a loan payment of around $450, after allowing for repairs and maintenance, a landlord wouldn't be making anything until the rent reached around $1,700-$1,800. Would such a unit be worth that much?

Michael

California laws also require a HOA to have reserves to cover major repairs/maintenance but many low priced condos use untrained members to manage the condo and follow regulations. In fact my ex had a condo in a 50 unit complex that was managed by it's members with very low HOA fees and when there was a small amount of storm damage (less than $5,000), there wasn't enough reserves to repair the damage.