What city is the best for buying real estate (houses) and than renting it?

[Chen Co]

I am looking to buy houses for investment in the us.
What city is the best for buying real estate (houses) and than renting it?
I am looking for:
Good cap rate (more then 10%).
Easy renting (low rental vacancy)
Good potential for prices to raise.
Thanks
chen

[Harrison Painter]

I love the Indianapolis market. (Of course, I live here and am a little biased!) Houses are cheap, tenants are good, and the market is as solid as can be given the current climate.

I also 100% agree with Will. Las Vegas is a market that will pay off very nicely over the long haul. If you can keep the place rented, and ride out the storm, this is a market I feel will pay off very well.

Every strategy you look at needs to be a 5 year plan at this point. The market will be worse in 2010, and 2011 will probably see a slight recovery, but nothing to get excited about. It will probably be over sensationalized for political purposes too.

If you are investing for appreciation returns in less than 5 years, don't invest and put your money in the mattress.

My advice to people is to STOP buying slum properties. They might have better cash flow on paper, but are crap when it comes to real life. Buy a few pay grades up and attract tenants that are a better class of people.

I have lost a lot of clients to pie in the sky deals that were in these sub-par neighborhoods. Amateurs whine that my properties are too expensive when they have markets like Detroit where you can buy a home for the price of a cheeseburger. My philosophy is if I can't collect the rent at night without carrying a gun, I don't want my families future leveraged there.

In full disclosure, slums can be profitable for a do-it-yourself investor that has the stomach for it. However, if you are investing over long distance, there is too much reliance on a property manager that is probably slumming too. Sorry to the good PM's out there, but most of you are the worst business people I have ever met. As an investor, do you really want a failed Realtor in control of your financial future? Come on......

To best answer your question, there are deals in EVERY market right now. It comes down to price point, cash, and a good team to support you. This is your road to wealth, and with this knowledge it becomes less bumpy.

Just my 2 cents!

LOVE IT!

Harrison