Older Property Question

[Scott Royer]

My wife and I recently started our real estate investment journey together.  We bought our first property out of state because we live in New Jersey, where cash flowing is difficult.  We do want to buy a multi-family property close by, to get the full experience of managing a property on our own.  That being said, most of the properties for sale in New Jersey were built in the 1800's or early 1900's.  My wife is dead set against purchasing these properties because she worries that the maintenance will not be worth the investment.  My argument is, if the house has been properly maintained, and the bigger cap ex items are taken care of regularly, then maintenance will not be much of an issue.  

Where do you fall on this argument?  I found a property within an hour of us and has a good opportunity for equity growth and cash flow, but my wife is not on board because the house was built in 1920.  Would love to hear both sides of the argument.

[Alex Deacon]

@Scott Royer I live and invest in the city Of Pittsburgh which is also a very old community. If I eliminated anything older from my portfolio I would have a very small portfolio.

As long as the property has been well maintained and you perform the proper inspections prior to closing there should not be any surprises when buying an older home.

Your partners need to have the same vision so that will be something you both need to discuss. If you dont want older homes then research communities that are not as old as Pittsburgh (as an example)