Tips & Tricks To Researching An Unknown Market Online

[Lucas Bernard]

Hey BP community! I've been trying to learn more about a specific market (Tampa), and feel like at times I am going in circles. Taking notes on each neighborhood + suburb gets tedious. I still don't have as pointed questions to ask agents as I would like. What are some efficient tips or tricks (or websites other than BP, MLS, & Propstream) you know of that helps an investor familiarize themselves with an area? Thank you!

[Joshua Janus]

Quote from @Lucas Bernard:

Hey BP community! I've been trying to learn more about a specific market (Tampa), and feel like at times I am going in circles. Taking notes on each neighborhood + suburb gets tedious. I still don't have as pointed questions to ask agents as I would like. What are some efficient tips or tricks (or websites other than BP, MLS, & Propstream) you know of that helps an investor familiarize themselves with an area? Thank you!

When researching a market, it is important to pay attention to the factors you highlighted above as well as what brings people to the city and what will continue to do so. If the price is relatively low/sqft and the city has a growing population and job market, the demand for homes will increase which leads to home appreciation. Also see how the specific market handles STR as that brings in a large section of rei investors and can drive prices up. Here is a quick analysis of my market. Paying attention to recent and upcoming capital investments by the city can also give you a good idea of where the money is flowing in the city and you can see if it is recovering or growing. Columbus, Ohio is a great market to invest in. The population has been growing here year over year over the last decade, it is home to The Ohio State University which has over 50,000 students that live here along with those that visit, and it also holds a diverse range of young professionals and traveling nurses to fill the demand of the multiple business corporations and hospitals stationed here. Tech companies are continuously moving here and establishing a footprint in Columbus as well. Intel is a great example, who is building the largest chip manufacturing plant in the US right here, and it will be a $20 billion dollar investment that brings a few new thousand jobs. https://www.dispatch.com/story... 

Here are a few more recent investments

https://www.10tv.com/article/money/business/hydrogen-power-company-hyperion-bringing-700-jobs-to-columbus/530-25907aab-5517-4661-a9f3-d2ed2d5be6b0

https://columbusunderground.com/kaufman-development-purchasing-franklintons-idea-foundry-sp1/

https://highlandcountypress.com/Content/In-The-News/Headlines/Article/Development-projects-will-support-1-4-billion-in-investments-in-Ohio-communities/2/73/77342