Starting Out in South Florida

[Alex Banyasz]

Hey all,

Been lurking here for a while, but ready to make a move.

Some context: I am in a high cost of living suburb of New York City (Nassau County), where I am currently renting for well below market rate. Fortunately, that has afforded me the opportunity to save up for an investment.

Not sure if anyone can relate to this feeling when starting out, but I feel like I've talked to a million people who've pointed be in a million different directions to the point where it makes you just not want to do anything.

I've toyed with the idea of investing out of state (random places like Cincy, Houston, etc...), but I just don't really have a level of comfort to do that for my first property. Maybe that's dumb and I'm leaving great deals on the table, but so be it. 

With all of that said, I plan on moving to Florida (Boca/Delray/Lake Worth/Boynton) in the next couple of years, so I would really like to focus there. Or something within a few hours of there like the Tampa/St. Pete area.

Any tips on what I can do to educate myself so that I can actually make a move by Spring/Summer? I know cash flow is hard to come by, and while that's important to me, I am willing to bypass that now if the asset appreciates and will likely cash flow in the near future.

Thanks and all advice is welcome!

-Alex