Need advice on hassle free rental investment

[Nawab I.]

Hi there

While I have lived on the Westcoast for a good part of my life, I am out of US for past few years. Recently I discovered cheaper houses in Pittsburgh (compared to the west coast cities), and I am thinking to put my cash toward a hassle free rental investment either in sfh or a duplex, in that area . 

Hassle free means a turnkey property which will likely not require any maintenance for next few years. 
In a good neighborhood, where I wont have a challenge in finding good renters as I won't have time to evict anyone or chase someone if they damage the property. 
With the above two constraints , what are my options? My budget is ~ 225k (including downpayment and financing).

Does anyone think it is a bad idea to remotely do this? I am ok to visit for a couple of weeks while doing the transaction. 

Thank you in advance. 

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Nawab I., if investing was like that don't you think EVERYONE would be doing it?

1) Yes, you can buy a turnkey property, BUT that doesn't mean there won't be any maintenance. Appliances break, sewer lines get clogged, water splashing from the tub/shower gets under the LVP floor damaging the wood underneath. Lots of things happen to property in turnkey condition and that isn't even addressing issues caused by the tenant's themselves.

2) Buying a nice well maintained property in a good neighborhood generally gives a LOWER return than a more marginal working class neighborhood for a variety of reasons. For one, increased owner occupancy adds another layer of competition driving up the purchase prices because an owner occupant isn't trying to make a profit, just offset their living costs by living in a multi-family.

3) Managing from a distance is more expensive. In much of Pennsylvania municipalities have adopted rental ordinances requiring local property managers because of all the issues they have had with absentee landlords.

Even if you can get away without a local property manager, you will likely need to pay someone for tenant placement which will run approximately 1 months rent. If the tenant stays 2 years on average, then you will be losing 1/2 months rent every 2 years PLUS turnover costs to prep the unit again PLUS the lost rent during the time its vacant.

4) A nicer property has more risk for tenant damage. Vetting tenants is difficult and with a nicer property damage costs more to repair. If you only own 1 property a bad tenant experience can be catastrophic.

To conclude, I'm not saying investing remotely is a bad idea, but it sounds like your expectations have too much wishful thinking baked into it. Test all your assumptions and look for where the opportunities really are. The opportunities that are a little more difficult will likely be much more lucrative.