Rental property (first) in Houston, TX?

[Joe Nguyen]

Hi all,

I'm a newbie investor and interested in some upcoming areas in Houston. I'm most interested in Katy, then Richmond, Cypress, Pearland and Sugar Land. As we all might have seen the crazy spike in home prices recently. I'm wondering if it still makes sense to buy now and rent for future equity appreciation and little cash flow? 

I also wanted to ask what are other alternative areas that are good for rental income? My budget is around 235k (max) and my target monthly rental income is $1600 to $1700. These numbers are tight to crunch all in right now as I understand. 

Thank you all and I look forward to receive some inputs from members on BP.

[Matthew Rolf]

@Joe Nguyen in Katy if you're patient, South of I-10 Katy Creek Ranch and Parkway Oaks would be great for what you are targeting.  Also neighborhoods like Cimarron, West Memorial, Memorial Parkway, Silverstones, Cornerstones would work.  North of I-10 if you could find something in Williamsburg Settlement or Barkers Ridge (both long shots in this market) you would do well also.

Prices are high like you said, but interest rates are low.  I think you can still find deals that work if you're patient.  Katy rents will continue to rise as its a high demand place to be, especially because of Katy ISD.