Where do I research emerging markets?

[Danielle Friberg]

Hi. We are fairly new investors (house hacking in San Diego and single family in Palm Desert) and are interested in investing outside of California. We do not have family in other towns. How did you choose your market? Any tips on how to research emerging markets? Danielle

[Chris Tracy]

There's more to it than this, but these resources will point you in the right direction:

1. Go to City-data.com.  Look for markets that have good population growth, increasing median household income and increasing median home value.  Check out the crime rate table.  Is the crime rate increasing or decreasing?  My team will often call the police station of an area, to get more granular with how safe an area is once we have an interest.
2. Check out Zillow.com.  Does the market have a positive or negative forcast predicted for home values?
3. Find out which states are "Landlord Friendly" w/ a simple Google search.
4. Any jobs?  Check out www.deptofnumbers.com/employment/metros
5. Use Google Maps and check out the area.  How does the neighborhood look?  Attractive?
6. The above resources as mentioned are good and others include The Milken Report & Yardi Monthly Reports at yardimatrix.com

Good luck!