Student Housing Vs. Cheap Single Family Homes

[Jeremy Carl]

Hey Everyone, 

Quick question for those of you that live in Florida, especially the Orlando, or Tampa areas. 

I'm wondering if it would be more sensible to buy a quadplex close to UCF and be able to get $1,000 per unit in rent a month but risk the place being destroyed every year and high tenant turn over. 

Or...

Buy a cheap single family home that needs some work, something between 25K-50K, put 10K-20K into it to make it nice and somewhere would a family would like to live, and then charge between 800-1000 for rent.....and buy multiple properties like that. Upside is hopefully lower turnover, should be lower maintenance costs depending on how well I fix them up in the first place, and more security of a family paying rent on time each month. 

What does everyone think? 

[Tom Shepard]

I would recommend getting the parents as guarantors on the lease. When my daughter got an apartment off campus we had to do this and now I am using that concept on my college rental as well. Mommy and Daddy's check don't bounce!