Rent vs Own (in ghetto)

Two or three years ago I had to move from my beloved apartment on the river. Since then, I have not felt at home. Currently and for the last few months, I rent 1/2 of a duplex in the middle of socoolhipsterville, USA. I love my next door neighbors, who are friends, and they make this place for me. I currently pay $1000 for rent, which is goodgoodgood in this area of town. However, I have yet to unpack all, including my clothing, because I am unsure I will stay here for various reasons (1 being the Big Dog lives 4 blocks away).

Now, I have the opportunity to take a place that would cost me $2500 annually, thats right!, $2500 a year, in a west coast suburban "ghetto", and it would be mine. I would own it outright, for next to nothing, and I would live there for the rest of my life or I could rent it. The place is truly charming and the immediate locale is private and just fab! But, if you go 1 block, in any direction, out of the subdivision sort of thing, you are in the "ghetto", meaning, according to the newspaper and other Google search sources, admist gang activities, domestic violence, meth parks, and so forth.

I understand neighborhoods change, especially with community activism, and this would be my hope. The neighborhood association appears strong and determined to be seen at this time, although I did read that there was some confrontation re graffiti in one of the parks. It appears to me that with 3 old growth city parks and 3 schools within a 1 mile radius, there should be activity toward getting people involved and betterment for all. What could be problematic for this, as usual, is lack of human involvement, ie lots of apartment buildings with very low rent,that are rented by transient people, with less investment in their community. I dont see that these buildings would be sold and residential built, and who knows what might happen with all the vacated buildings and land?! The neighborhoods to the east and south have been gentrified, for better or worse (in this case better), where there are residents in homes they own, who may be in it for the long haul.

This is a tough one for me. What would you do?

 

Rent, there is much less liability.

And have good renter's insurance.

 

I lived in the Chicago ghetto just blocks from the old projects.
Ghettos are not just about graffiti or meth labs. There is a more pervasive, insidious undercurrent running through them. It is hard to explain to an outsider, but it gets under your skin and the despair bleeds into your head.
I commute 4 hours a day now instead of 1 hour just to be able to find an affordable way to break free of it.

So no, no no no no.

 

$2,500 for a property?

I'd go for it simply as a long-term investment. Who knows where the neighbourhood will be in 15-20 years, and it is a truly tiny amount for owning your own property.

Are there any responsibilities you take on by becoming a landlord for such a small sum? Would you be required to rent the place out if you don't live in it? For the rent you'd probably get from it, it really isn't worth the hassle of dealing with potentially troublesome tenants.

As for living in the ghetto, I'm with everyone above: Fuck no.

 

Cyn and Remixer both had good ideas. The other thing that crossed my mind is that you seem uncomfortable staying at your current place partly because the "Big Dog" lives 4 blocks away. I have no idea who this is, but that sentence stuck with me. So if I had the extra money, I would be inclined to buy it, maybe stay there as a second residence, maybe a couple of days each week. It would be a back up plan to stay there temporarily if I ever felt the need to leave my current residence, while I looked for longer term housing. If you did rent it out, I agree with Cyn about hiring a property manager to do repairs and screen tenants so the people causing trouble a block away don't move into your investment and ruin it.

 

No ghetto, no thank you. Yeah, $2500 might not be a lot of money for a property, but it doesn't sound like a solid investment. If you can afford to throw around that kind of money and not expect anything in return, I guess that's different. But there doesn't really seem to be a good reason to do so.

 

It would be tempting to me to rent and see what happens, esp. if I didn't have kids at home. Low, low monthly payments for a home is pretty seductive. You can put some of what you save into a security system. And a well-trained pit bull. I totally get what monkie is saying, though.

 

Charles Bronson would have no difficulties maintaining this property.

 

If you did move into the "hood" property, how quickly & easily could you move out if things didn't work out?

We live a decent neighborhood, housing prices have stayed high enough to keep the number of rentals to a minimum. The surrounding areas, however, aren't that great. Living in a "hood" affects a person. I'm not a bigot, but I admit that years of seeing certain behavior from certain racial groups has caused me to view them in a neagative way. I have to remind myself not to prejudge people.

 

Thank you cyn, but I think Ive mapped the thing out to the extreme!

In re "certain racial groups", the neighborhood race stats include a majority white, next popular is black, and third is a growing hispanic pop. Ive probably got all of these, and more, somewhere in the family. Whats with you Noyb, limited to only one perspective?
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I could rent this sucker, if I choose to buy it, but I would be more inclined to live there. I would save oodles of dough, and I could travel with that dough. What continues to throw me is the location. It is set off of a thoroughfare, back behind other places. It is nestled privately beside a creek, with large trees, with every window view trees. Being there is not like being in the middle of a gangbang, it is beautiful and peaceful.

 

I'm not sure how to take your comment. Are you wanting more info, or are you just taking a shot at me? If you will explain your "limited to only one perspective" comment I'll try to provide a better response. Perhaps my being honest about my experience wasn't and isn't a good idea.

 

I've known a number of people who have lived in "the ghetto" and other areas with bad reputations, and many of them came to the same conclusion: if you live like you're been dropped into a hostile environment, you're going to want out; if you treat it as your neighborhood and get to know your neighbors, it's just a neighborhood that makes uptight white suburbanites clench their purses and lock their doors if they have to drive through. That's not to say that there aren't genuinely bad or dangerous areas, but the popular perception may not be accurate.

 

OK. I think Im going to go with it. There is no walkability, but Im 10 min from my girl, who says, "You can drive 10 minutes and be in our hood, which can be your hood, too." Ill pay cash and have only the $2500 to pay annually (the savings!), and thanks mm, I will take your suggestion and install a security system (it never occurred to me!). If I hate it, Ill sell it.

Heaven, and possibly Hell, await me!
OMG! Ill have to be an adult and a real person, on my own.

Im scared and excited! Rum, here I come!