Is RWC nice place to live? I’ve only been to that old theater years ago before they did all the renovation. RWC seems close enough to San Mateo which also has those Bay Meadows community - commute would suck but can be a nice trade off for living so close to SF and that mall nearby.
I’ve never lived there, but I used to go to downtown RWC quite often - it’s nice with shopping and restaurants. I brought it up because it seems like a good midpoint between SF and PA/MV, so if you ever do switch employers you have lots of options without killing your commute.
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Prefer this one. Love the flexibility and what manch said.
What? Don’t like HDBs and Condos anymore?
OMG, Dr. @Terri, you are needed in the ER…
RWC is da bomb!!! My lil sister lives off Farm Hill, coming down off 280. Very nice homes. Quiet as heck. Expensive now. Homes go quickly. Nearing or about 2M…
Check out mt carmel and edgewood park. If you’re not worried about schools they are some of the best neighborhoods on the peninsula.
Yes they are the best part of RWC IMO, but I didn’t see any condos and THs there when I passed by. Condos and THs are mostly near the downtown area.
Yes and no. Parts of RWC are beautiful. RWC is close to Palo Alto and jobs there. It is equadistant from Fremont, San Jose and SF, so physical location can’t be beat. Parts of it border Atherton which is great for strolling, jogging, dog walking, and biking. The motto is “Climate best by government test”. I don’t know how they tested, but it’s pretty darn great. Not too foggy like SF, not too hot like SJ.
It is not a bike-friendly community.
It is a community that is gentrifying, and that is stressing the hell out of the residents. I had to give up reading Nextdoor and need to give up the RWC FB page because it is full of angry unhappy renters who are worried (legitimately) that they will have their rents double and be forced to leave. They aren’t necessarily angry at Techies (unlike SF), but they are angry at landlords.
But if you go take a walk, everyone smiles and says hi. I guess the grumpy ones stay inside on social media.
People (who have lived here all their lives) complain that the traffic is horrible. They complain that downtown is too hard to drive to. I don’t think it’s that bad personally, but I guess I’m used to it… There are also some drug issues around the town. People have been finding needles near RWC’s Caltrain station, and at least when I researched it 10 years ago, most of the cocaine that enters the US does so through RWC and Oakland. Probably the North Fair Oaks part of RWC. There are gangs (Nortenos and Surenos). If you are Hispanic, I would keep that in mind for your children’s sake. I don’t worry about my kids getting pressured to join a gang, but apparently there have been Hispanic kids who refused and were killed 
There is a system for getting into schools you’re not zoned for which is pretty nice. No guarantees, but at least it’s available. And we have a dedicated GATE school for kids 85%ile and up grades 3-8. I think the high schools are pretty good (can elaborate if necessary).
Elt1 says that the RWC incorporated permitting process is smooth and quick. Unincorporated is apparently a nightmare.
Also, some of the residents are trying to get all of Mt. Carmel declared a historical neighborhood, so buyer beware.
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How long have you owned the one condo/TH already? I’d probably lean toward #2 unless you have a high desire to want a yard or good schools. Since you mentioned no kids then probably even more reason for #2. More flexibility as @hanera mentioned.
Wow this is a little scary. I guess all the towns in BA have quirky stories like this to an extent.
We’ll definitely check out the downtown RWC this week. We haven’t been there last few years, but people tell me it’s gentrified quite a bit. 
A little less than 5 years. The PITI works out well under the rent now, so it’s pretty self-sustaining. Plus the low prop tax. As much as hassle it is to maintain this (I’ve just signed 3rd tenants so the turnover has been terrible), it’ll be hard to find something like this anytime soon.
OTOH, with the increased equity (from appreciation), the CAP rate is meh. I’d probably be better off putting it all in CD or something. With reduced chance of appreciation from now, I’m wondering if now is a good time to take the profit and get out.
Do us a favor. Use your SWE skills to run some simulation. When (holding for how long) might be a good idea to sell? My intuition is should not hold for 30 years because of the increased equity (from appreciation and P of PITI). Of course need to take into account prop 13, taxes, commissions, selling costs, buying costs (need to buy new ones), etc. Also account for new house or newly re-modeled house don’t have big-ticket item for replacement or repaired.
Yes, but not as scary as SF. If you stay to the west of El Camino, you’re much less likely to see problems.
I did this calculation and it looks like a function of appreciation (i.e. equity amount). When we bought, we put down 20%, and after a year we refinanced with putting down another 20%. At that time it started breaking even (cash flow wise & on paper), and CAP was around 3~4%. Now that the place has appreciated 100%, that dropped to ~1%, due to the increase in equity. Unless another round of appreciation is on the near horizon, I think we’ll liquidate that property and use for down payment for next primary.
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There are four developemnt site in MTV now ( Classics, Lennar, 6Sixty, radius)and with current market slowdown and many of them slashed the price. They have many ready move in townhouse. Might anticipate more pressure to drop the price to move off the pipeline. I think the lennar one has better location, close to Castro city and away from 101. Not sure whether it’s a good time to buy.
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A function of increased equity (appreciation + down payment + P) or invested amount & appreciation (ditto + ITI + asset replacement/repair/maintenance)?
Past repair/maintenance etc doesn’t matter since they’re all calculated in current appraisal. You’re right that I didn’t calculate future cost (need to replace water heater etc.), because I think appreciation washes away most of those cost. Unless you need to remodel the entire kitchen, 2% appreciation would offset any repairs/maintenance since properties cost so much in BA. Re: appreciation, I’m bearish in short term appreciation…
Condos are a litigation target
3rd tenant in 5 years doesn’t seem too bad.
That 2% is not market appreciation is due to you fixing stuffs. Don’t think we are in the same frequency. I refer to appreciation as that due to market (or should I say inflation?) that is applicable to all houses. For house specific, you add in those asset replacement/ repair/ maintenance. Have to distinguish the difference because without that distinguish, a house with re-modeling/ maintenance would be worth the same as a house in original condition after 30 years In a short time frame of less than a few years, you may ignore re-modeling and updating but for longer timeframe have to be accounted for. Otherwise, a breakeven situation can be seen as 20x (can’t recall the number that I worked out somewhere in this forum to illustrate) return. It is the need to do a few major renovation over 30 years that I think it might not be wise to hold on for too long. Market appreciation would shorten the right time to sell and market price decline would lengthen the right time to sell. It is a fairly complex simulation, ignore too many factors would get the wrong conclusion.
I see. The tricky part is what are the reinvestment strategy with the proceeds from the property sale. If you’re going back into another RE rental, it’ll be even more complex. If you’re going to put the money into SP500, it’s quite a bit simpler. If you’re going to put it in CD, it’s dead simpler.
I guess the strategy I’m optimizing for is to keep 2 properties (primary and 2nd), in both desirable areas in which I want to live. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a SFH in Palo Alto for weekdays (if you work in Souh Bay), and have a smaller condo in SF to spend the weekend? Or vice versa if you work in SF. So when you paid off both properties, you can just enjoy them. For retirement, I don’t want to be managing properties - that’s still work, and I’d much rather to be coding than fixing someone else’s bathroom for example. 
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