5 ms·

You can absolutely afford it on two tech salaries. I was exactly the person your describing 15+ years ago, but my wife wasn’t working so we only had one tech sa

by jshen 5y ago

You can absolutely afford it on two tech salaries. I was exactly the person your describing 15+ years ago, but my wife wasn’t working so we only had one tech salary. Fast forward all that time, and the housing market you complain about will likely be a huge wealth generator for you, where as this cheap houses in the middle of no where won’t be.

ohazi 5y ago
> Fast forward all that time, and the housing market you complain about will likely be a huge wealth generator for you But this perpetuates the problem, and makes it much worse for the next generation! You do realize that this can't continue indefinitely, right? I mean, maybe this doesn't bother you, which I suppose is fine. Does it bother you? Look, you're technically right. I also own a house in California, and am far better off because of it. But it still bothers the hell out of me. I'd much rather fix the problem in the general case than adopt this "I've got mine, therefore everything is fine" sense of entitlement. Do you really want to be 90 years old in your $50 million NorCal farmhouse paying your grandfathered in $15,000/year property taxes when everyone else paying $500,000/year decide that enough is enough and torch the place? A retirement strategy that depends on screwing over a younger generation and hoping that they don't manage to get revenge before you die is a risky bet.
- jshen 5y ago
  Not buying a house doesn’t do anything to fix the problem.
  - svnt 5y ago
    This is identical to saying that cutting your carbon footprint does nothing to help the problem.
    - jshen 5y ago
      Those aren’t identical at all.
- lotsofpulp 5y ago
  > I'd much rather fix the problem in the general case than adopt this "I've got mine, therefore everything is fine" sense of entitlement. The root of the problem is California is a very desirable place to live, and adding sufficient supply would decrease what makes California so desirable (per the local voting populaces). The solution is non existent, as you’re not going to be able to come up with more Californias, but people are accepting some pieces of it by moving to various other cities in the West.
- birdyrooster 5y ago
  I don’t know if not buying a house makes any difference because you are still taking up apartments that non tech people are priced out of. To quote Skyrim NPCs “Should’ve never come here.”
- jjav 5y ago
  > But this perpetuates the problem > Look, you're technically right. Technically right is the same as right. It is extremely difficult to change all of society. It is honorable to try. But meanwhile while waiting for that change, the OP could shoot themselves in the foot by renting, or improve life by buying.
refurb 5y ago
Exactly! Housing only goes up and what happened in the last 15 years is bound to repeat itself in the next 15 years.
- jshen 5y ago
  I’m guessing this is sarcasm, and yes, it’s not a sure thing, but it’s pretty close. Also, you have to live somewhere so the investment is offset by the rent you’d otherwise be paying.
  - refurb 5y ago
    Owning is more expensive renting generally in the Bay Area. You’ll come out ahead owning if you own for 5-10 years and see appreciation. But SF housing dropped 30% in 2008. No reason it can’t happen again.
    - dragonwriter 5y ago
      If you look at SF market history, you see mostly rapid growth with short term declines from peaks which are quickly erased. Is there risk? Sure, but its hard to find a 5-10 year period where you lose even if you hit the bottom of one of the drops, which are usually only a year or two from the peak.
      - refurb 5y ago
        10 years to recover from 2006 peak, not adjusting for inflation. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SFXRSA https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SFXRSA
        jshen 5y ago
        Right, so if you pick the absolute worst moment to buy, you still make a profit in 10 years. Sounds like a good bet to me, especially considering you have to live somewhere and pay rent or a mortgage.

by jshen 5y ago

ohazi 5y ago

> Fast forward all that time, and the housing market you complain about will likely be a huge wealth generator for you But this perpetuates the problem, and makes it much worse for the next generation! You do realize that this can't continue indefinitely, right? I mean, maybe this doesn't bother you, which I suppose is fine. Does it bother you? Look, you're technically right. I also own a house in California, and am far better off because of it. But it still bothers the hell out of me. I'd much rather fix the problem in the general case than adopt this "I've got mine, therefore everything is fine" sense of entitlement. Do you really want to be 90 years old in your $50 million NorCal farmhouse paying your grandfathered in $15,000/year property taxes when everyone else paying $500,000/year decide that enough is enough and torch the place? A retirement strategy that depends on screwing over a younger generation and hoping that they don't manage to get revenge before you die is a risky bet.

jshen 5y ago
Not buying a house doesn’t do anything to fix the problem.
- svnt 5y ago
  This is identical to saying that cutting your carbon footprint does nothing to help the problem.
  - jshen 5y ago
    Those aren’t identical at all.
lotsofpulp 5y ago
> I'd much rather fix the problem in the general case than adopt this "I've got mine, therefore everything is fine" sense of entitlement. The root of the problem is California is a very desirable place to live, and adding sufficient supply would decrease what makes California so desirable (per the local voting populaces). The solution is non existent, as you’re not going to be able to come up with more Californias, but people are accepting some pieces of it by moving to various other cities in the West.
birdyrooster 5y ago
I don’t know if not buying a house makes any difference because you are still taking up apartments that non tech people are priced out of. To quote Skyrim NPCs “Should’ve never come here.”
jjav 5y ago
> But this perpetuates the problem > Look, you're technically right. Technically right is the same as right. It is extremely difficult to change all of society. It is honorable to try. But meanwhile while waiting for that change, the OP could shoot themselves in the foot by renting, or improve life by buying.

refurb 5y ago

Exactly! Housing only goes up and what happened in the last 15 years is bound to repeat itself in the next 15 years.

jshen 5y ago
I’m guessing this is sarcasm, and yes, it’s not a sure thing, but it’s pretty close. Also, you have to live somewhere so the investment is offset by the rent you’d otherwise be paying.
- refurb 5y ago
  Owning is more expensive renting generally in the Bay Area. You’ll come out ahead owning if you own for 5-10 years and see appreciation. But SF housing dropped 30% in 2008. No reason it can’t happen again.
  - dragonwriter 5y ago
    If you look at SF market history, you see mostly rapid growth with short term declines from peaks which are quickly erased. Is there risk? Sure, but its hard to find a 5-10 year period where you lose even if you hit the bottom of one of the drops, which are usually only a year or two from the peak.
    - refurb 5y ago
      10 years to recover from 2006 peak, not adjusting for inflation. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SFXRSA https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SFXRSA
      - jshen 5y ago
        Right, so if you pick the absolute worst moment to buy, you still make a profit in 10 years. Sounds like a good bet to me, especially considering you have to live somewhere and pay rent or a mortgage.