Seeking Advice for First-Time Multifamily Real Estate Investors in Dallas

[Hemant Jain]

Hey Bigger Pockets Community!

I'm a newbie real estate investor eyeing Texas multifamily properties, partnering with a friend. Seeking guidance on:

• - Filter Criteria: Key factors for evaluating multifamily properties in Texas?
• - Learning Resources: Recommendations for learning materials focused on Texas real estate?
• - Location Focus: Promising cities/neighborhoods for multifamily investments in Texas?
• - Investing with a Friend: Tips on structuring partnership and legal/financial considerations?
• - Loan Type and Liability: Implications of personal vs. LLC loans on liability?

Grateful for any insights to kickstart our journey into Texas multifamily real estate investing. Thanks for your support!

[Brian Adams]

Per @Bruce Lynn, 2-4 units are actually pretty rare in DFW, despite the size of the metro. 

For context, there are nearly half as many active fourplexes in the Killeen, TX market (pop 250,000) as there are in all of DFW area (pop 6M). (20 in Killeen, 44 in all of DFW as of this moment). 

FILTER CRITERIA

Obviously depends if you want to do a value add or not. If looking for stability, I would look at buildings built in the 1980s or newer, ideally townhome style instead of apartment style if a 4-plex, minimum 2 bedroom units.

LEARNING RESOURCES

I am going to try to keep up my blog here on Bigger Pockets specifically with 2-4 family units in mind. I've published my guide to Killeen-Temple MSA and am working on my DFW one.

I'm not sure if there is another good resource that focuses specifically on 2-4 family units (most people are talking about apartments when they say multi-family. 2-4 unit buildings are a different category because you can use conforming owner-occupant financing on such buildings). 

LOCATION FOCUS

Most fourplexes are in Fort Worth. Duplexes are more scattered but also relatively scarce. There are a few new construction duplex areas if you are looking for something stable but low returns. 

INVESTING WITH A FRIEND and LOAN TYPE AND LIABILITY

I am not an expert or helpful on either of these questions.