Urban VS Suburban VS Rural

[Charles Lambert]

I don't see any recent posts on this, so just wondering what people's takes are on buying investment properties in an urban, suburban or rural area. There was some discussion five years ago, but that was pre-pandemic and I'm wondering if that has changed things.

For myself, I've been trying to decide between urban, suburban and rural, and a while ago, after weighing out the pros and cons for me, in my situation, I decided an urban area would be best for me. It was a tough choice and even harder to let go of the comforts of suburbia (I've also lived in a downtown urban area as well as rural in the past, currently in the suburbs). Now that I decided I want to house hack in small, multi-unit building in a walkable urban neighborhood, I feel it's moved me ahead in my investing journey.

Now, that's not to say I wouldn't invest in the suburbs. Ideally, for my house hacking, I'm hoping to find my first building in a downtown area with a very walkable neighborhood in a mid size city with a lower cost of living. But, if the best deal happens to be in the suburbs (or a small town, maybe rural), so be it, as long as the numbers work and there's a good positive cash flow. 

Most of the multi-unit buildings seem to be in older or historic districts and downtown due to zoning bylaws most areas have. I'll most likely end up with a generic, flat roof, red brick quadplex built between 1920 and 1960, give or take. The nice SFH seem to be in the suburbs, but I've seen it the other way around too. Personally, I like the character of older homes, especially mid century modern, but this is all about business, so I'm willing to look at other properties. I have to say, the idea of a new construction SFH or duplex in the suburbs with (hopefully) no maintenance for a while sounds appealing. I don't like the idea of an HOA, I had one once and saw why so many people hated them. HOAs seem to be mostly in the suburbs, occasionally rural areas.

But, for those with a few, or lots of properties, where do you prefer buying and investing? Urban, suburban or rural? And what are the reasons? Maybe better ROI, easier to find quality tenants, maybe the profile of a tenant (family with parents working, driving a respectable car and renting a respectable suburban home), or something else? Or is it just personal preference? I get the impression many of the rentals here are in suburban areas, nothing wrong with that, just wondering why you chose the area or type of property you did?