Lower Income neighborhood 4 plex

[Kevin B.]

As a complete newbie, I really need some advice. I am going through the education process using the guide here on this forum and various real estate books. I'm learning as fast as I can read.

I am interested in making multi family properties my niche area. I noticed a fourplex in a lower income neighborhood for sale. Using the 50% rule rental property calculator on this site, I came up with a positive cash flow of $900. Asking price is 250,000. One unit is rented at 1000.

I'm worried about it being in a high crime area, and fear that I may have rent payment problems with some tenants. Right now only one unit is rented. The rest have been empty for some time. The property has been sold several times in the past 5 years. This is also a big red flag. What do you guys think.