Any Military Posts No Go

[Jennifer Santana]

For the most part I usually hear that military posts are great places to invest at. I plan on PCS'ing back to the states next year and the goal is to use my VA loan to buy my first place and to have it become a rental when I pcs again. Are there some posts that tend to be harder to find a good rental investment property in?

[Kerry Baird]

We've purchased houses in the communities that surround bases, but we've most often been posted in places that have substantial economies, outside of the base.  Before you get boots on the ground, you can email your Housing Office and inquire as to ares that are in demand.  The housing rates, as you probably know, are posted online.  We've chosen brick houses (no repair of siding, no painting), at least 3 bedroom, 2 bath (best for new families), at an E-5/O-1 and above housing cap.  There is usually only one General, Admiral, Colonel, etc. but a wide tier of more stable new family formation folks, and it is similar on the civilian side.  We don't only serve military, just prepare a house that would work for military.  I like the stable paycheck, no matter what the employer base is.  

A benefit to you when you occupy a property for any 2 out of 10 years, is that the property increases in value over time, and you can exclude the capital gains from taxation.  Civilians have 2 out of 5 years.  It is a fine way to grow slowly and steadily.  Even 5 or 6 houses, paid off, will replace the part of our salary that we lose upon retirement from the military.  

All the best~

[G. Brian Davis]

Hi Jennifer, 

One thing you might consider if it's a long-term investment is how heavily the local town relies on the base for its economy.  It's not uncommon for military bases to downsize personnel or even shut down entirely, so you ideally want an investment property that won't lose much value if the base closes.

Just a thought!

Brian

SparkRental.com

[Jennifer Santana]

Thanks for the info! I never thought about that, but definitely something to keep in mind!

[Kerry Baird]

We've purchased houses in the communities that surround bases, but we've most often been posted in places that have substantial economies, outside of the base.  Before you get boots on the ground, you can email your Housing Office and inquire as to ares that are in demand.  The housing rates, as you probably know, are posted online.  We've chosen brick houses (no repair of siding, no painting), at least 3 bedroom, 2 bath (best for new families), at an E-5/O-1 and above housing cap.  There is usually only one General, Admiral, Colonel, etc. but a wide tier of more stable new family formation folks, and it is similar on the civilian side.  We don't only serve military, just prepare a house that would work for military.  I like the stable paycheck, no matter what the employer base is.  

A benefit to you when you occupy a property for any 2 out of 10 years, is that the property increases in value over time, and you can exclude the capital gains from taxation.  Civilians have 2 out of 5 years.  It is a fine way to grow slowly and steadily.  Even 5 or 6 houses, paid off, will replace the part of our salary that we lose upon retirement from the military.  

All the best~

[Daniel Lehman]

Not sure - BUT - look into multi-unit. Use your VA eligibility to purchase a 4-plex instead of a single family and you will have an AMAZING asset on your hands down the road...

Daniel Lehman

VA Expert

[Abraham Saldana]

@Jennifer Santana  I invest solely around military posts.  The biggest thing that I have found to help me out with keeping vacancy's and management time low is to know not only WHERE around a base, but WHO you want to rent to.  We cater exclusively to higher ranking NCO's and Officers and have had zero issues with our tenants the last 5 years.  Here is what we do:

1.  Ask on post housing where the best schools and where the majority of the officers/senior NCO's live.

2. Drive those areas, and remember where you liked the most and save those areas for search alerts on zillow/realtor.com, etc.

3.  Do NOT BUY during PCS season, housing is usually tight, with multiple offers and good deals are harder to find.  Wait for the time frame (around OCT-DEC) when people get orders to move out, but not a lot of people are moving in.  This is how I was able to find a few deals at about 80%-85% of value that was turn key ready.

4.  Know your market.  Whenever we do have to renovate, we do it with high end appliances and price at the upper end of BAH rates so that only senior NCO's and mid-senior officers are looking at our properties.  Even though this makes our potential pool smaller, when we do get a renter, they are usually very quality renters

5.  When putting a property up for rent, the BEST time to do it around a military town is in March-Late April.  That is when the majority of people moving to the area start to look for houses/rentals.

I hope this helps!  If you have any other questions let me know, ill be glad to answer!