Rental Properties / Multifamily Wichita Falls Texas

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Hello ! I need urgent help/your opinion......... anyone from Wichita Falls or experience in that Market? it seens a very quiet place and not much population growth... Anyone owning a multifamily there or can say something about the rental market, Where do you see Wichita Falls in 10 years with growth of dallas and fort worth? Best M

[Josh James]

Wichita Falls has been, and always will be, flat. I have lived here most of my life, and can say with confidence that the local population does not want growth. The new mayor said that 2% growth is his target, but he doesn't expect to hit it. That is from the mouth of the leader, that is what got him elected, and that is what the city is targeting.

I own several rentals here in WF, not multifamily. However, in the past, I have managed up to 40 units at once. The largest section of the rental market is low income. The Sec 8 Office is always asking landlords for more units. After that, it is college and if you are close to the base, air force. There are some nicer multifamily units, but not many.

If you are considering multifamily here, also consider the town and region are heavily dependent on the oil and gas sector. 

The city publishes an apartment statistics page, found here: http://www.wichitafallstx.gov/DocumentCenter/View/24175
That publication was during the high oil prices of 2014, but also during a regional 5 year severe drought. 

I would look for a very attractive cap rate before considering an investment here given the above-stated market factors. Theses are some of the reasons you can find 8-cap multifamily properties listed here. My personal purchase criteria is a 10-cap minimum, targeting about 20k a unit. Less if they have significant deferred maintenance or will be needing large capital improvements soon. I am currently shopping for a 40-ish unit multifamily here.