Am I overestimating my expenses on the Rental Calculator?

[Anthony Rullo]

Hello BP Community! 

Long-time lurker, First-time poster. I'm looking to make my first Multi-Family purchase to rent out. When I plug all the numbers into the BP Rental Property calculator, every property I check is operating at a loss (Negative ROI). I live in Los Angeles, and things are currently priced above what I'm willing to pay for my first investment property. Therefore, I have looked into out of state options, knowing full well I'm not familiar with the areas. However, I want to see what my options are. I've looked in AZ, OR, WA, and NV. Almost every property I have checked will lose me money unless it's under $100k purchase price. I have currently run reports on around 25 properties. I put in 20% Down Payment on all properties. I research how much rent I can get in those areas if the listing doesn't state how much rent the apartments are pulling in. Then I check the property taxes and the average insurance for the city. I'm putting Vacancy and Repairs at 5% each. I'm inputting Capital Expenditures and Property Management at 10% each. Then I'm putting all of my Future Assumptions at 1%. I'm currently using LoopNet, MLS, and Zillow to research the properties. If you're still with me after all that information, Thanks! So, onto my questions. Am I overestimating my expenses or have I legitimately not been able to find a decent deal yet? Should I shift my focus to Single Family? Should I look into a different strategy? Or should I just give all of my money to this very credible Nigerian Prince that keeps emailing me? Looking forward to your guidance and wisdom. Thanks!