Looking for first property in Dallas, Texas. $30k available

[Jared Isaacson]

Hello all,

New to BP here. I was hoping to get some advice from all the knowledgable investors out there. 

I am looking for my first investment property and I believe Dallas is a good place to invest for a cash flow property (city population projected to double in next 10 years). I am looking for cash flow, and generally would like to maintain cash flow and find an investment that will stay rented. I have lived in Uptown, Dallas for the past 3 years and am acquainted with and familiar with the part of the city around Uptown.

I will have 30k to deploy and I was wondering if anyone could advise me on how best to source a  buy and hold deal and what to look for. I will be hiring a management company and will have the property managed remotely. I do not have contracting experience so a rehab or flip is not really what I'm looking for. Turnkey properties that are almost ready to rent are more of what I was thinking.

I believe that location is everything, but I understand that in the current market environment there is often a high premium on location. Any advice on I should deal with this? 

I will have a month or two to source a deal and I know the Dallas market has really run up (40% increases in past 3 years), should I just wait it out and travel back to Dallas once the market has declined to look for an investment? Should I continue to save hard cash in a savings account (or stock market)? I have no idea how people save when they are waiting for prices to decline, and I am very interested to hear ideas on this.

I recently did some basic information gathering on commercial real estate investing, how to calculate cap rate, NOI, etc. but I'm not sure if it's for me if I need to have a property company manage remotely...any thoughts on commercial in the current real estate environment or if it would make sense?

I am looking forward to advice and guidance!