Mill Valley Disconnect
Here's a sorry Mill Valley POS (3 br 2 ba, 1216 sq ft, built in 1953) that is described by the realtor as "a fixer" and that will cost you $825,000:
Here's what you get for a similarly located house near Seattle, WA (3 br 2 ba, 3205 sq ft, built in 2006) that comes with all the lifestyle upgrades that you could possibly imagine for $819,500:
Duh!
Here's what you get for a similarly located house near Seattle, WA (3 br 2 ba, 3205 sq ft, built in 2006) that comes with all the lifestyle upgrades that you could possibly imagine for $819,500:
Duh!
posted by Marinite at 4/29/2006 01:06:00 PM
14 Comments:
Alex, I'll take door number two for $819k....
I lost money on a Marin POS in 1990. No desire to go back. Had a neighbor who got red tagged and fined for puting a few nails in his deck to keep from falling through. Moved out to the desert and loved it till I lost that home to the crash of 91. I should have rented in San Anselmo before buying. That way I would have known that people from So Cal. are concidered undesirable and unwanted. Fool me, I should have sued the town for discrimination. Im geting ready to retire and going back to the desert.
Yes, if you want to alienate yourself in Marin just tell your neighbors that you moved from SoCal. You will be treated like you have the plague. And if you really want to put people off, just tell them that there are some things that SoCal does right that Marin (or NorCal in general) still doesn't get.
the compare and contrast is awesome. I think this is the first one that you have done like this...
Don't forget that "rainy" seattle has almost the same annual precipitation as Mill Valley (I have looked it up in the past, don't feel like it now...I think it was somewhere between 35 and 43 in per year).
It is the first one and I think I will continue to do it off and on.
I am extremely familiar with the Seattle area. Yes, the amount of precipitation is about the same. I think reskeptic can confirm since he has said he lived there too.
The second photo looks kind of doctored.
here's the problem:
The 800K Seattle home will be 500K in a couple years.
The compare/contrast is starling. But I would recommend waiting no matter WHERE you want to buy.
yeah, if you wanted to rent instead of buying in mill valley or outside of seattle, we all know the benefits.
1. you can rent a bigger home for less, or the same if you want.
2. better schools, probably.
3. shorter commute because you'd have to move far out to afford a home. this saves lots of time and gas $. what good is a house if you aren't there to see it?
4. you can live closer to a desirable area
5. you can use some of you equity to pay off CC, cars or college.
Yes, the amount of precipitation is about the same. I think reskeptic can confirm since he has said he lived there too.
Surprisingly, my locale in Marin has 50% more rain than downtown Seattle. And that's a normal year. It's not the rain as much as the winter darkness.
The second photo looks kind of doctored.
That's a computer rendering. I'm guessing the house is still under construction.
Seattle: 38 inches/year
Kentfield-Tam area. 48-55"/year depending on dataset (this is a local wet spot)
Agreed...it's the cloud cover and hours of daylight in Seattle, but some people still manage without Prozac.
Let's see, that WA house would be at least double in price in Marin. So, is the weather in WA so extremely different to be worth holding an additional $800,000 of debt or to live in that tiny Mill Valley house? Frankly, I would find that MV house more depressing to live in than WA's weather.
So in 2003 I did just that - cashed out & sold my 2100 sq ft. 81 yr old Mill Valley House & bought a brand new 4000+ sq. ft. house in Bellevue, about 12 miles from downtown Seattle. Mortgage went down $800 a month. I can tell you - eight months of the year the weather is gray, dark, rainy & miserable in general. Summers are spectacular - far better than the fog covered summers here. Came back to MV & paid a fortune to do so. A big house up there is nice - but you will spend most of the year inside it. Lifestyle in MV is FAR SUPERIOR to Seattle - sorry, no contest in my book.
Yeah, right
you will spend most of the year inside it
Well, if you expect California weather up north, you won't find it. Yeah, the winters can suck up there, but that's why people buy Gortex and get out anyway. Bellevue's a nice town, especially along the lakes. I spent a week on Lake Sammamish last fall. I'd take that anyday over LA or the crackling-hot Southwest. I'm sort of glad the NW isn't for everyone.
Post a Comment
<< Home