I’m sitting in the BMW dealership, waiting for my car to be serviced after realizing the sound in it meant too much camber and that I’d have to take it in. As always I strolled about the showroom and ran across this beauty:
That would be a 2010 BMW 650i convertible. List price = $95,070.
Being a real estate broker, the first thing that popped into my head was along the lines of, “Holy crap, you could buy a house for the price of that thing!”
Really?
Yeah, really”¦
At this moment in time, there are 583 homes listed for sale in the Phoenix Metro area in an “Active” status that are priced between $94,000 – $96,000.
Five hundred and eighty three.
Now some of those homes aren’t realistically priced. Many will be short sales where the listing agent is throwing out a price that the lender will never accept. But 320 of those 583 listings are NOT short sales. In fact, 166 are “traditional” sales ”“ listings with a real owner that are neither short sales or bank owned homes.
In other words, there are a ton of homes in the Phoenix area to pick from that are listed between $94K and $96K.
Shown below are the most recently listed homes in the 94 ”“ 96K price range.
Granted, none of these will do 140+MPH down Loop 202, but then again that BMW doesn’t include bathrooms or a pool”¦
[idx-listings linkid=”98142″ count=”10″ showlargerphotos=”true”]
The Phoenix Real Estate Guy was started by Jay Thompson, and I have a little blogging problem... he liked to say...
What you can buy in Phoenix for $95,000 — A new BMW, or a house.: I’m sitting in the BMW dealership, waiting for m… http://bit.ly/ccF35p
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Wow that seems so decent for homes in Pheonix, are these homes in "ok" areas? Or are they maybe not that desirable?
My recent post Calgary Home Buyers Sitting on the fence
What you can buy in Phoenix for 95K – A new BMW or a house. New on TPREG: http://tpreg.com/bX0pD7
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
There is no question you have to take the home. In this market with prices as low as they currently are. It only makes sense to purchase a home that is going to go up in value verses something that is going to depreciate 10% as soon as you drive it off the lot. Buy buy buy right now, that makes the most sense. I would love to see these homes in San Diego for those prices!
Alex – you should have seen what some of these cost in 2005/2006….
Reading this on PhxREGuy.com: http://t.co/IDKqZHW via @PhxREguy …. hey that is a SWEEEET looking car!
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Chances are, if you can afford a 95k BMW… you probably will have a home that's worth more than 100k. So if you're looking at 100k homes, might want to stay away from a car thats equal to that amount.
When you first said there where that many homes under 100k the first thought that came into my mind was that the homes are probably run down, etc. Surprisingly the homes you listed at the end of the post are really nice!
Chris – the average home price in Phoenix metro is $162K. The median price is $119K. There are some very nice homes available in the $100K range. There are some very trashed out ones as well….
72 minutes from clicking “publish” to new client calling. I’m glad real estate blogging is dead… http://tpreg.com/bX0pD7
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Wow is all I can say Jay. Wow to the car and wow to ALL those homes in the same price range. Every market is good for someone. The person who called you 72 minutes after posting this is clearly someone who will profit from what's happening in the Phoenix real estate market right now.
Which one will be worth more in 10 years and can generate a monthly income stream. I think only the show off type would choose the BMW over those homes.
In Phoenix, $95K can buy you a home. Our average detached home in Vancouver is ~$800K. Wake up, YVR. http://bit.ly/cqlpR1
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Jay,
The BMW sure does look tempting for an easy 95K you'd look really good in that car doing your local Phoenix Video Tours!
I love Arizona and seeing how many actually decent homes there are for 100K and under is pretty amazing. You must be able to get a pretty nice shack for 175-250k.
Love the theme of this post you'll generate a boatload of good relevant buyers across your site 🙂
Buy the BMW…life is short!
Reading this on PhxREGuy.com: http://t.co/8zDcrHD via @PhxREguy
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Great comparison… although the obvious choice would be the house… im a sucker for a nice BMW 😀
Ha! That's awesome, I actually just bought a couple homes earlier this year that fit that price range. Great rental properties…
So you got a call on a home in 72 min. I wonder how long did it take before someone called the dealer about the BMW… 🙂
I'll take the house for now. But why not get the owner to throw in a car to sweeten the deal?!?!
Wow…..I wish we had livable homes in Baltimore, Maryland selling for those prices. In the 90-100k range you are lucky to get a house with a roof around here. Maybe that just means that my area is similar to a Ferarri 458 Italia? Sticker is 185-200k, which would get you an average townhouse in Maryland. Just my 2 cents 🙂
Buy the house today and the car tomorrow. Use the cash flow from the house to pay for the new car payment. Best of both worlds. Then, when the market appreciates in 5 years, sell it and buy the new model cash.
I guess it depends on what you want… A long term appreciating investment or a depreciating asset… I'd opt for the investment
My recent post New Options Realty
Got to take the investment… You rack up a few homes it can be your retirement fund in 10 years if managed correctly.. Another car will come out every year and be faster, bigger and better, 90K homes wont be here tomorrow!
I’d probably take the house as an investment. But that’s assuming people want to live in these neighbourhoods and the streets aren’t like ghost towns. Also I’d want to make sure I can get decent financing on these homes. If I have to put in too much cash, then the cash on cash return may not be enticing enough.
The house is a much wiser decision, especially with market prices and interest rates as low as they are right now. I can imagine the equity rising on the house, while rapidly decreasing on the BMW. That car will be worth thousands less as soon as someone drives it off the lot because it is suddenly considered used.