Amazon HQ2 - Buying in/around Arlington, VA

[Victor Tran]

I'm interested in buying a rental investment property around Arlington, VA due to the announcement of HQ2. Although I'm a bit hesitant because this would be my first real estate purchase ever (I don't own anything right now) I have first hand experience of the Amazon effect on a city as I have lived in Seattle for the past 4 years.

How does everyone feel about buying now? Is it wrong to buy rentals now right after the annoucement? I know that I should buy not based on speculation but cash-flow or at least that's what I've been reading but I'm supremely confident in property appreciation due to Amazon coming in.

Note:

I recently created my BiggerPockets account a month ago and have been reading and researching to build my wealth through long term buy/hold out-of-state investment properties. I live in Seattle, WA and don't feel like spending all of my Amazon stock on properties around me

[Russell Brazil]

Originally posted by @Victor Tran:

I recognize that Arlington is already expensive and was not planning to buy directly there, but rather around it. Something maybe like Brandon was suggesting. But I believe that "strong appreciation also comes strong rent growth" and therefore makes the property eventually positively cash flowing. Like I said, I live in the original Amazon HQ area and the appreciation has been insane. I don't see any reason to believe that it will be any different around Arlington.

That being said, should I buy a place closer to Arlington which will probably appreciate faster or pick something more outside the area like Fredericksburg (I think 40 mins is reasonable, especially given that residents in the Seattle area make commutes like this all the time from Bellevue and Redmond)

P.S. thanks for your feedback on my first post everyone :)

 I said this on another thread. I expect somewhere in the range of Amazon employees to be at 30% on the Maryland side of the border, 25% on the DC side, and 45% on the Virginia side of the border. I expect Arlington and DC to absorb most of the younger employees.  The employees that have families I think are likely to end up in good school districts in Arlington, parts of Alexandria, Springfield, Rockville, Bethesda, Potomac (primarily west of 355 in Maryland except where the Walter Johnson district stretches east of 355), Fairfax, Falls Church, a bit into Reston/Herndon.