Hagerstown, MD 21740

[Winston Alejo]

Hi

Anyone familiar with the Hagerstown, MD 21740 marketplace? If so, can you describe the area. Thanks in advance.

[Cristhian Huamani]

I own a couple of properties in Hagerstown. In my opinion, Here are the pros and cons when buying and holding in Hagerstown.

PROS:

1. Demand for rentals: Quick fact, more than 50% of household units in Hagerstown are rental units! This means that if you have a rental and advertise it, you will be getting a lot of multiple calls which increase your ability to find the ideal tenant that will provide you with consistency of income and make your real estate investing extremely passive!

2. Low initial Investment capital: There is no other market in Maryland that offers investors the ability to start buying and holding under $40,000 with a predictable level of risk. When investing in Hagerstown, you will find multiple multi-family apartment buildings that range anywhere from $30,000 to $55,000 per unit! Hagerstown is a phenomenal market for investors in the areas of Baltimore, Frederick, DC, Northern VA and more!

3. Location: Hagerstown is called the hub city because of the connectivity and ability to travel within 1-hour range to multiple states and districts such as West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Virginia. The fact that Hagerstown is 30 minutes from Frederick. As Frederick grows, the price of real estate in Frederick rises and the more people start moving to Hagerstown, real estate prices are close to half as affordable as Frederick.

CONS:

1. City taxes: When you buy and hold an investment property you are paying county and city taxes which can reduce your cash flow, make sure you analyze your holding cost carefully.

2. City rental inspections: You have to do a city inspection every 4 years. This can be pricey particularly when having a turnover with a long term tenant. Make sure you have cash reserves for future turn over expenses.

3. Low household income: There are a lot of people in Hagerstown that have been renting for many years, Their income is limited. Some are great tenants and some are not. Just like any other market place, your ability to screen tenants are EXTREMELY important. Particularly in Hagerstown. If you have 0 experience and wish not to bother learning how to manage a property correctly. It is VERY important to hire a competent property management company.

In summary, If your focus is to buy and hold for cash flow. Hagerstown is the best market to explore. Keep in mind that there are multiple successful real estate investors in Hagerstown. There are also investors that absolutely hate the thought of investing in Hagerstown. In my opinion, if you do your due diligence when selecting a tenant, you will be successful.

If you have any other questions about investing in Hagerstown, feel free to reach out.