So, You Want A Place In Oxford

You went to school years ago at the school up north, located in a town called Oxford.  Every fall you make the Saturday trips to Mecca, better known as "The Grove".  You pay your dues so you will have a place under the oaks to call your home along with your fellow tailgaters. if only for less than 24 hours.  Then its pack it up time, haul it all off, and then do it all again repeatedly all fall.  Thankfully the "tent set up guy" handles the heavy stuff, and he pretty much guarantees you your same spot week after week, year after year!

Then, if you're like us, you have the car all packed up, and you are in your own bed by 2 or 3 in the wee hours of the morning.  This is easy in the early years, you are young, you bounce back strong.  Later in life, your eyes open, but nothing else is moving.  If you're lucky, you can get a room in town on a nonconference game weekend.  During SEC game weekends, the room rates are out the roof!  Some locals are now renting out their homes on those big SEC weekends.

By now, your kids are out of the house, out of college, and hopefully off the payroll!  Let's buy a condo!  No more late night travel, a place to call your own, and friends will always be welcome!  We've got plenty of extra money now, let's do it!

Well guess what, you are now behind in the game.  All the old apartment complexes built in the 70's to 90's have already gone condo, and they are all owned by investors, retirees, and weekenders, just like you.  If you are lucky, and your timing is just right, you might catch one on the resale market, as kids graduate, and the parents lose interest, or they are now selling to "move on up"!

Condos selling below $90,000 are nonexistent.  Those going for $91,000 to $115,000 are far and few between.  The pickings become more plentiful once you get into the $125,000 to $250,000 range.  And don't forget the HOA fees, which on the low end are $300 to $600 per quarter.  Some have a pool and club house, while on others the fees only cover the building structure.

The housing market is not any better.  Houses going in the $150,000 to $250,000 range are receiving 3-6 offers within days of going on the market.  The builders are pre-selling their developments, attracting the higher income sector and the retirees looking to relocate to Oxford.

The Spousal Unit and I ventured into this land of OZ yesterday.  Our price range limited us to five units to look at.  Two of these were townhouses, with upstairs and downstairs, and one sold pending the day before our tour.  Two of the others were the same floor plan, 2 bdr, 2 bathrooms, at one complex, and were 1100 square feet.  The last one was 840 square feet and was in one of the oldest apartment complexes in town and was 2bdr with one bath.

I had viewed pictures of the 840 sq. ft. unit on the internet the day before.  When we stepped into it, it was like OMG!  this is one of those tiny houses we've seen on TV, but bigger.  Apparently I had a pre-conceived mental picture of the dimensions in my head, but that was quickly blown away once I stepped in!

After touring all the units, we had to narrow our choices down.  That was easy, all the townhouses were marked off the list quickly.  The days of falling down stairs are long gone and the days of having to crawl up stairs are fast approaching.  The 840 sq. ft. unit had location going for it but nothing else.  That left us with two units at the same complex, with one being upstairs, and the other down.  These were two units of five that an investor bought up less than two years ago, and he was now cashing in.  The downstairs unit it will be!

None of these units have been "flipped" and as the realtor kept saying, some just need some "lipstick".  The same units flipped were going for $140,000 up.  Fortunately the old saying that "you can put lipstick on a pig, but its still a pig" doesn't apply to Condos.  A fresh coat of paint, new carpet or floors and some work on the kitchen, and you've got yourself a weekender!

An offer has been made.  Now the waiting begins.......