Seeking Advice on Rental Investment and Property Appreciation in Massachusetts

[Arpan V.]

I'm new to real estate investment and looking for advice on rental investments in Massachusetts. I currently own a townhouse in Natick with a low mortgage rate and am considering buying another home to move into for 2-3 years, then probably renting it out. However, given the current home prices and mortgage rates in areas like Natick and Framingham, I'm uncertain if rental income will cover costs like PMI or if these areas offer good potential for appreciation and equity growth.

Any suggestions on areas that meet the 1% rent rule or have strong appreciation potential would be greatly appreciated!

[Tory Keith]

Hi there! I'm based in Natick (broker & investor) and have owned in both Natick and Framingham. Unless you're buying under market value or with all/mostly cash, it can be tough to be cash flow positive on a rental property here, and extremely unlikely to find any that meet the 1% rule as a LTR. That said, appreciation is very strong in both towns and there are often a lot of tax advantages that sometimes make it worthwhile to buy even without cash flow.