Townhome as first investment property?

[Chad Simmons]

Hello everyone at BP! My name is Chad Simmons and and I’m a new investor in the Orlando area. My girlfriend and I are looking at townhomes as our first investment property. Rent by room for a few years then move out and rent to a family is the plan.

Townhomes are unique because they offer lower price points that are in my budget. They are also usually move in ready and up to date. However, the dreaded uncertainty of HOA fees and their volatile nature in the market scares me a bit.

If the numbers appear to work, are townhomes a good starting investment property? Or should I stick to a SFH ?

Thanks for the advice in advance!

[Tyler Gibson]

@Chad Simmons If the numbers work then I see no reason not to. That being said you mentioned that you would rent rooms, This may be an issue due to HOA rules. Many HOA's frown on that sort of thing so be sure that you read the HOS rules very carefully before buying if that is your strategy. I own a SFH in a HOA neighborhood and my wife and I started talking about doing AirBnB with one of our empty rooms but found that the HOA did not allow it. So be aware of all the HOA rules before making the jump or you may end up with something that doesn't work anymore.