Is section 8 housing a good idea?

[Eric Lewandowski]

I'm trying to figure out if section 8 housing is too risky to get into, especially for someone who is just starting out. 

[Taz Zettergren]

@Eric Lewandowski are you using leverage to purchase? There are certainly people who succeed with section 8 rentals but there is more risk with the clientele you're working with. @Jason Allen used a great analogy. Piggy backing on that there are certain condition requirements section 8 will require in order for them to pay. In my experience the residents don't take care of the property. On several occasions when section 8 does their inspections they've required me to fix several things the resident broke and if I didn't fix those items then they wouldn't pay me. That would happen time and time again so the effort involved to keep up with the property, resident and section 8 wasn't worth my time. Again there are plenty of people who succeed but if it's your first real estate investment and you're leveraging I wouldn't advise going that route. I'd focus on nicer areas where your rental clientele isn't as risky that way your experience will be much better. 

Feel free to reach out if I can be of any assistance. Best of luck investing!