15,000 saved.... What would you do?????

[Jay Styles]

Hello guys,

I'm having a hard time deciding if I should invest in an expensive LA market or look towards out of state as a first time investor. After some research, I'm considering markets that are #1 Landlord friendly and #2 would only cost me no more than 200.00 bucks round trip when flying in. Wyoming and Idaho are two markets that meet this criteria, however I'm also considering Colorado and Nevada although they're tenant friendly markets. My #1 goal right now is to generate a good amount of cash flow and to sit on properties as they appreciate over time. I have about 15,000 saved and would love to hear your advice or scenario's on what you would do under the current situation.

Thank you all in advance for your time!!

[Mike Wadsley]

$15k isn't a whole lot to get you started in the metropolitan markets of Colorado. Inexpensive condos & townhomes in the Denver suburbs are going to start north of $125k and will needs some capital outlay to get it to rent ready status. The opposite side of that coin, however is that Colorado is a strong market for appreciation. Even through the big crash of '08, we still held on to a lot of value and recovered quickly. Cap rates in Colorado aren't great, but if you're in it for the long haul, it's a great place to invest for future equity. 

With $15k I'd be looking to find a partner or private lender that would be the money and you do the work. That much would show a potential partner that you have some skin in the game.

You can find some more price friendly areas outside of the metro area, but then you're also looking at lower rent rates and lower demand.