Buying a 16 unit apartment 9 hours away.

[Greg Atwood]

Does anybody have experience in apartment buildings several hours (9) away?

There is a B-level type apartment, 16 units, all 2 bed/ 1 bath, built in 1985. New roof done in 2016 and "recently upgraded interiors". Brick exterior, pitched roof. Building square footage is 9856. Currently fully occupied at $515/mo/unit. Electric is individually metered and tenants pay their own.

Prospectus numbers listed as "Actuals":
Gross Scheduled Annual Income: 99,000
Less Vacancy (4950)
Less Expenses (36,630)
Net Operating Income $57,420

The prospectus claims that expenses include all taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, pest control, lawn care, and property management. That seemed kind of low for all that. I have requested a detailed income/expense report to verify.

Asking price is $565,000. 20 year mortgage after 20% d.p. (mortgage of 452K) at 4.75% is $2921/mo. If those numbers are accurate, this should cash flow nicely, leaving room for the inevitable bigger repairs and maintenance. I have a feeling the numbers are tweeked, but even if they are close, it still looks pretty decent.

I am just about to close on my first property (4 duplexes) on June 1, so I am a newbie at this. The challenge with this one is it is 9 hours away, so I would have to put complete trust in the property management company.

Has anyone ever done a project like this?

What should I watch out for?