Off topic not so random musings.
My bride joined me in LV for the holiday weekend. We had a great time. Her flight was delayed by 5hrs due to Houston weather delays so we lost most of our first partial day together. She ended up getting in at 10:45 PM. So.. we had a romantic dinner at Denny's then went back to my Candlewood Suite and passed out. So, no follow up to our romantic late night dinner at Denny's.
On Saturday we did an all day city tour to look at areas we may want to live. We settled on the N/NE half-ish of the city for either a home purchase (not happening in this insane market) or for a rental. On the 4th we drove out to Lake Mead and to Hover Dam and Boulder City. Very beautiful in the balmy 115F* heat. Then we headed back to LV for a nice dinner. On Monday we did some shopping. I had to replace the final things that were stolen when my care was broken into. A portfolio and a planner. I will wait on replacing my Granddad's Masonic ring and my pen.
Most of the shopping was at the designer clothing, shoes, and purse places that are on ever possible corner in LV. My DW has not done any shopping for herself for the 2+ years of my job search intermittant consulting adventure. So, now that I am once again in the ranks of the full time employed I kept pointing out her favorite stores and dropping the "I'm not done yet. Do you want to go in there?" She of course did not say no. My CPA will have to deal with the bills from that misguided effort on my part. Fortunately, I sleep with her so ....
*pardon*
At the end of the very looooong and hot day of shopping I chased her into the car and headed up to Mt Charleston lodge for our final dinner of our great weekend together. She was soaking up the alpine beauty at 77*F after a day in the oneteens.
So, now for the issue at hand. Buy in the insane LV housing market at $500K+ (not happening btw), rent a brand new but very small (680Ft^2) luxury apartment at $1900 per month plus either car ports at $25/mo per car or garages at $100/mo per car, rent a dated but nice single family home (1500Ft^2) for $2K/mo with a garage for both cars, or ..... buy a 42ft long luxury 5th wheel RV (425Ft^2) for $530/mo mortgage plus $750- $1000/mo space rent at a "luxury" RV park with no covered parking though I would put up a metal pole car port for the cars. Cars have to be covered in LV or they turn to junk in a hurry as far as any resale value is concerned.
I am actually leaning toward the RV option as a good friend of my from Military School is a high value property real estate agent and property manager in LV and as a friend has told me not buy come hell or high water for at least a year and more likely 2 years as there is a major adjustment looming due to the governor's moratorium on foreclosures and evictions due to covid and there are tens of thousands of finacially distressed properties that will start to hit the market once the moratorium is lifted once land lords evict non paying tennants and banks start foreclosing due to default on morgages.
The RV gives us a chance to get a nice place to live and a portable second home to use once we retire in a decade or so.
I think I shared this earlier, I am pleasantly surprised by how interested my DW is in the RV option. Things have changed enough in the RV market that she was impressed with how nice they are when we looked during my Memorial day WE visit home.
It would be pretty small for full timing, but.... we would at least get something for our monthly expenditure.
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Glad you had a good weekend
I'd be inclided to go for the luxury RV.
But since your DW will potentially be working remotely, what is the plan about her office space? As a CPA she's going to need plenty of space. Could she do a shared work space?
Full-time RV living is rough
Full-time RV living is rough unless you're dedicated to it. My parents have owned a couple different 5th wheels and travel trailers over the years to do long-stay "camping" in. So I'm not speaking from personal experience, but observation of personal experience.
From what I can tell, the trailers designed for living in don't travel well because they're heavy, have big windows that are easy to shatter, and take a long time to get set up at a new site. So, if you go this route, know that you CAN do weekend trips, but you're going to spend several hours on travel days just getting the thing set up.
Also, there are "camping trailers" and "living trailers", and the price difference is HUGE. The ones that are conducive to full-time living cost nearly as much as a starter home does (or should in a not-insane market). Now, part of this is subjective. However, you and your wife seem to appreciate craftsmanship and luxury, and you're not likely to find that in a lower-end price range. Sure, the trailer will look nice, but looking good and being quality isn't the same.
Finally, RV and trailer prices are also insane right now, and it's a PITA to get parts if something breaks. Perhaps it's easier to get parts in LV, but here in Anti-Canada (Midwest), it has been a b***h for my parents.
Okay, actual finally - finding year-round camping slips, especially now after COVID when people saw camping as safe vacationing, is hard. Like apartments, there tend to be waitlists, but unlike apartments the waitlists can last seasons or even years.
Keep in mind that you'll also have to shift how you do things. The toilet paper you use is different. Showers are tiny and luxury baths don't happen. They're louder than a home because of lack of insulation. You'll want to do more cooking outside because it gets so hot inside. Fridges, stoves, and ovens are smaller so you have to rethink meals and shopping.
If none of this concerns or scares you, and you have the funds to purchase a high-end, quality model to park in a high-end, quality campground with good sewer and sufficient electricity and Wi-Fi, go for it. Your trailer will retain a lot of its value, so if you do it for a year and hate it, you'll like get most of your money out of it. Buy a model year older and you'll likely retain more value.
Personally, I'd go with the outddated house for a year at $2000/mo.
Thanks for the feedback.
Thanks for the feedback.
My parents have a 5th wheel that they have had for more than 15 years and use it several months each year but rarely longer than about 8-12 weeks at a time. Theirs is a toy box model that has the "garage" set up as their utility/mud/storage room.
The unit we have chosen, if we go that route is mid range in price, certainly not the $250K range of the high end super heavy duty super lux builders. Less than half of that actually. It is nice with decor and finishing along the lines of what we tend to like. It actually reminds me very much of the home we bought in 2018, has strong reviews, and is definately a full time living set up rather than a "camping" set up. IT has a much nicer kitchen than the lux apartment we have reserved. I will tour the rental home this week. Regardless of which way we go I gotta get out of the Candlewood suites. It is fine for me but is costing us a fortune.
I am not yet sure which way we will go. I am not particularly happy about any of our current options but in this insane housing market being happy about any housing situation is not likely. Though any of the options would be fine.
We have decided to not sell our Houston home and now that I am earning again, to start doubling up on house payments to get it paid off in the 8-10 year range. If the LV market takes a shift towards sanity and this role works out to be my career swan song then we may sell the Tx house and buy here. Though I won't hold my breath.
What about a condo? Duck
What about a condo? Duck creek condos (closer to Henderson) are in the 115K-165K range now. HOA was $157 monthly last I heard. They also were VA funding approved. Covered carports, and two swimming pools.
my new favorite hotel is now the Hampton Inn south strip on giles street. Hotel is only a half a year old, workers are happy and everything is fresh and new. Not crowded, cause its actually near a residential area, not walking distance from the strip or the town, so feels safe. But the Hotel is walking distance from the "Master Harpist" Harp music at Bootleggers Italian food, the outlet malls and many restraunts.
Thanks for the recommendation
Thanks for the recommendation on the Henderson condo. We have looked at condos and will consider one when we are ready to buy.