Off base in Laguna?

We're hoping your weekend went as well as ours did. Sometimes it's those homemade family meals that taste best of all. Today's property in Laguna Beach is both for rent and for sale, so the question is: Would you like to buy or rent?

2175 Hillview, 92651

Beds:	4
Baths:	3
Sq. Ft.:	-
Lot Size:	7,000 Sq. Ft.
Property Type:	Single Family Residence
Style:	Contemporary
Stories:	3+
View:	Canyon, Catalina Island, City Lights, Coastline, Hills, Ocean
Year Built:	1975
Community:	Laguna Village
County:	Orange
MLS#:	L29639
Source:	SoCalMLS
Status:	Active
On Redfin:	101 days

From description: Great Catalina and Oceanviews! Beautiful, multi-level 4 bedroom home with all the extras. Family room, dining room, detached den office with a private entrance. Living room opens to a large oceanview deck and overlooks a large professionally landscaped yard with room for a swimming pool or spa. Quiet cul-de-sac street, walking distance to Thurston Middle School,the community park and hiking trails. Owner will consider a Lease Option or a 12 month lease, property is now vacant.

This property last sold for $1,317,500 in early 2004. Now, it's up for sale for $1,775,999 after originally being listed for the crazy wishing price of $1,849,000.The current price is about $73,000 below the original asking price.

If you like the property but aren't sure you'd like to drop all that dough, you could instead rent it. It's also up for rent on the MLS asking $5,975 per month. Here's the listing description: "Beautiful 4 bedroom oceanview home with catalina and hillside views. Multi-level home with all the extras,living room, family room, dining room, detached home office with a private entrance.Living room opens to a large oceanview deck overlooking a large, professionally landscaped yard. Quiet, cul-de-sac street, walking distance to thurston middle school, alta laguna park and hiking trails.Tremendous inside, outside living surrounded by beautiful hawaiian garden landscaping.Property is now vacant."

We're not going to assume that an owner-occupant would necessarily target a 160 GRM to own this property, because this type of home would naturally have a premium over renting. So, if we were instead going to estimate value based on a GRM of 185, the rental asking price would dictate the owner-occupant would try to get this for $1,105,375. That's about $670,624 above our target price.

Based on that math, we'll rent the place for a year and enjoy those same ocean views for a lot less dough. What would you do?