Am I doing something wrong? Finding deals seems too easy...

[Shane Short]

Hi everyone,

My name is Shane, I'm not necessarily new to the investing world as I've been lurking and educating for years now, but I am yet to make the leap of buying a first investment property. However, I think I'm doing something wrong because it seems like I am finding deals (on paper) too easily... Could you please look over one of my example reports and see if I'm missing something? If I can figure out how to attach a report to this lol...

A little background: I currently live in Oregon and have an excellent job that is keeping me here. It pays a lot and requires extraordinarily little time of me each week. I know it won't last forever, and I'd like to use this time to get myself financially free. The problem is that my girlfriend, in the long-term, wants to live in Michigan, sometime over the next 5-7 years. But I know that I will lose about half my salary if I move to Michigan, and I'll work five times as hard. I'd ideally like to start investing now, to be financially free in 5+ years between my Crypto, Stocks, and Real Estate. 

For the first few years it will be out of state investing. I have a lot of family and friends in Michigan that can help and an aunt that wants to invest in real estate as well and is interested in partnering on some rental properties at first. 

I'm not really looking in a specific area in Michigan, but I do like Grand Rapids, Novi/ Farmington Hills, Auburn Hills/ Rochester, Ann Arbor, and Downtown Detroit, all epicenters for Universities or the Technology/Engineering industries. So far, I've mostly been looking at multi-family rentals. 

I've been living in an overpriced area like Portland for too long where my analysis only turns up about 3-400 dollars profit on average, and even that can be hard to find, but using the rental property calculator on here and the rent-o-meter tool I am finding homes in Michigan that can potentially return 800-1000 plus. I will admit, I am searching an ENORMOUS range of areas from lower west coast to lower east coast of Michigan, so maybe that is why. I know I'm missing certain small things like garbage collection, maybe I'm a little low on property management too, but even with an extra like 400 taken out, 700 dollars per month seems too good? Am I missing an elephant in the room or am I a god at finding rental properties?! kidding...

Link to Rent-O-Meter file:  

Link to Bigger Pockets Rental Calculator file: 

[Jay Hinrichs]

I say this facetiously but garbage in garbage out on your handy dandy calculator..  

just junk that thing..  Use 50% of rent for running costs then subtract your mortgage and use a realistic interest rate 3% is not a rate an investor will get now or probably ever in the future.. 

if you stress test it like that then you know what you got and if you do a little better fine  you could depending on whats going on have 60% in costs.. Bad tenant major cap ex early on that type of thing.. 

And not sure why you think Portland is over priced.. its willing buyer willing seller and real estate prices for risk and future returns.. Much of Detroit is HIGH risk investing that someone who does not live there can really get hurt..