I have lived by these two simple real estate axioms;
- Location. Location. Location.
- It's the price, stupid.
I've been practicing real estate for seven years now. That's not a lifetime. But it's not a short time, either. Happily, I can mix in my experience with living and working in other cities as well. Those cities were Washington, DC and Tulsa, OK. Throw in
Kansas City and I think I have a fairly decent base on which to form opinions.
I lived in DC when living inside the Beltway became of paramount importance. The closer to the city's center you were the higher the price. This isn't unique to DC. But here in the Great Plains cities like KC and Tulsa living close to the city center is less magnified because there is always more, inexpensive land close by.
But you know what?
Location still matters even here in KC. In a previous post I told you that I've been working with several "regular" home buyers. And it's been great fun...and an eye opening experience.
I can safely say that on the Kansas side of the state line the closer you are to downtown Kansas City and the Missouri state line the less choice you will have when choosing a home.
All those bargains you hear about every night on the news channels? Where are they to be found? Certainly not in the $175,000 - $240,000 home price range.
Yet, when you scoot away a bit to the more distant suburbs of Kansas you still find a healthy market compared to the rest of the nation but you do find more choice and more houses priced under current market. So, even here in the Kansas City real estate market, location does matter very much.
As far as axiom #2? Well, you know it's true. You just have to remember that when pricing your own home.
Real estate investing tip: Re-read the burgundy sentences above. After proofreading my work I noticed I had just dropped a jewel on you when I wasn't even discussing real estate investing.
