Here are 5 Tips for Finding a Starter Home.
We spoke to Wendy Kandasamy, a Pacific Union agent in Palo Alto, where a single family home with three bedrooms, two baths and a modest yard can easily cost $2 million.
1. Think creatively about what kind of property you can afford to get into -- and what you are willing to accept. Your starter home may turn out to be a condo or townhouse, rather than the single-family home that you had envisioned.
2. Prioritize what you want. If it's location, compromise on everything else: Forget about pristine condition, square footage and the floor plan that you love. If you must have something new and spacious, look in Gilroy or the East Bay suburbs where better deals are to be found.
3. Think strategically: Look for properties that will draw less competition. Most people want two bathrooms. Go after a property with one bathroom. You can improve and expand later.
4. Buy a duplex with a partner: Find a friend, find a relative, someone who's like-minded and wants to remain in the area. You can live in one of the units. When the property appreciates, sell it. Then buy the starter home you had dreamed about.
5. Work up to what you want. If you can't afford a condo here, buy a single family home in Texas. Rent it, watch it appreciate or flip it and use the funds to buy your Bay Area home. You'll be generating income from another part of the country in order to be able to afford to live here.
Source: Mercury News, Richard Scheinin
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_29500345/5-tips-finding-bay-area-starter-home
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