Newbie investing out of state: looking for advice

[Niraj R.]

Hi there,

I am new to rental property investing. I came to a realization that it doesn't make financial sense to buy a home in the city I am in due to high prices here. I am considering investing in rental properties in cities with positive cash flows instead. I came up with the following list of potential cities to invest in - Atlanta, Houston, Austin, Dallas, Raleigh, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Orlando. Could you folks provide insights on whether the cities I am considering are feasible candidates for positive cash flow + potential appreciation? I'd appreciate any guidance on things I should keep in mind as I get started on this path. Thank you very much for your time.  

[James Wise]

Originally posted by @Niraj R.:

Hi there,

I am new to rental property investing. I came to a realization that it doesn't make financial sense to buy a home in the city I am in due to high prices here. I am considering investing in rental properties in cities with positive cash flows instead. I came up with the following list of potential cities to invest in - Atlanta, Houston, Austin, Dallas, Raleigh, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Orlando. Could you folks provide insights on whether the cities I am considering are feasible candidates for positive cash flow + potential appreciation? I'd appreciate any guidance on things I should keep in mind as I get started on this path. Thank you very much for your time.  

Welcome aboard. As KC was on the short list in this thread I figured I'd drop you a link to The Ultimate Guide to Grading Kansas City Missouri Neighborhoods. Also have similar guides for Cleveland, Ohio and Birmingham, Alabama.

In addition there are tons of other turnkey markets out there besides Cleveland. Many of these markets are very well represented by sellers & turnkey operators here on BiggerPockets. In no particular order I have listed some of the most popular markets for out of state investors

• Cincinnati, Ohio
• Dayton, Ohio
• Toledo, Ohio
• Youngstown, Ohio
• Cincinnati, Ohio
• Memphis, Tennessee
• Saint Louis, Missouri
• Indianapolis, Indiana
• Detroit, Michigan
• Erie, Pennsylvania
• Louisville, Kentucky
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Jackson, Mississippi

Each of these markets is popular with turnkey investors because of the low barrier to entry, high rental demand & high rent to price ratio. I recommend setting up keyword alerts for each area as they are discussed in the forums daily with advertisements posted in the BiggerPockets marketplace hourly.

One thing to note when looking at the individual markets, you can make or lose money in any market. Don't think that one particular out of state market will shoot you to success or abject failure. It's not really that complicated to buy out of state. It only becomes complicated when investors try to over complicate or over think everything. Whenever you are buying a property out of state you should do a few things to ensure it's as smooth as possible.

• Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core. Pick a solid B-Class suburban area. Perhaps a nice 1950's built bungalow.
• Always hire a 3rd party property inspector to give you an unbiased feel for the home. The reports are 40-90 pages long and go through the entire house in great detail.
• Get an appraisal. If your using financing the bank requires this. This is good. The bank isn't going to let you blow their money. They have more skin in the game then you do.
• Make sure you get clear title. If using a lender this is a non issue. They will make you do this. It's those maniacs that buy homes cash via quit claim deed off of craigslist that really get screwed.
• Make sure your property manager is a licensed real estate brokerage.
• Google Clayton Morris and/or Morris Invest for a cautionary tale of what not to do when buying turnkey real estate
• Understand you can not eliminate all risk, only mitigate it. If you are risk averse, real estate, (especially out of state) is not for you.