Estimating Repair Costs

[Nate Estelle]

Hi all! My wife and I are looking at perhaps purchasing our first investment. It's a triplex in our area. This would strictly be a buy and hold, not a purchase for us to live in. We are currently renting and are not sure we will purchase for ourselves because we are not sure we want to stay in the area for the next 5 years. It currently has 2 of the 3 units rented. Our realtor is going to walk us through the property this week.

Anyhow, I am writing up cost estimates to see if this is a good deal. How do you typically estimate repair costs in your annual budget?

Thanks!