family or Multi Unit Homes

[Miguel Anaya]

Good Evening BiggerPockets Family! My name is Miguel Anaya I’m currently residing in Los Angeles . I’m finally looking to dive into my real estate journey . I’m focusing all my energy into out of state investing . Due to higher cost of living in Los Angeles . I wanted to see if I can get a little bit of input from the more experience crowds here at bigger pockets . I am currently planning a trip to Florida (Orlando) to visit some property’s I’m would like some advice about this journey . I’m a new bee at real estate but Ive been doing my due diligence on the area I would like to focus on . I am currently debating between rehab and long-term investment on single-family homes or duplex . Properties I am going to take a look at would be between $20.000- $120.000. Since this is going to be my first time hopefully stepping into the real estate world I wanted to see if somebody had past experience in this area and if they would urge me to invest or not invest out of state?

[Ryan Ingram]

Hey Miguel!

I know a decent amount of people that are in the Los Angeles area and are investing out of state. They are all doing a pretty solid job. I live within a 10 mile radius of all of my rental properties, so I can't speak to the pros and cons of out of state investing. But, I've seen several of my clients do it successfully for quite some time now. 

I wouldn't be fearful of the out of state investing. Just like you are doing your due diligence on the properties, I'd just make sure that you are also doing that with all of the people critical to helping you make it work: contractors, realtors, property managers, insurance, etc. I'd also go above and beyond to try and form solid relationships with other investors that are local to the area you are interested in. That way, when discussing your daily operations with them, they can offer immediate feedback on contractors, pricing, areas, and that may allow you to know if you have someone that is attempting to take advantage of you. 

Have tons of fun in your investing!