Great deal; Schools/crime aren't great...

[Dawn Roof]

Hi all!!

First timer here, so bear with me if my math/logic is flawed. I found a condo/duplex, where each unit is for sale separately (2 bed, 1 bath, 800 sqft) in Charlotte, NC for $60,000 (each). I ran some numbers and am getting a cap rate of 9.34%, a cash on cash of 23.45%, and a ROI (w/o appreciation) of 30.34%. My cash flow is looking like $214 on one unit, so double that if I grab both. That includes P&I, tax, HOA, Maintenance, Prop Manager, AND all utilities, which I would transfer to the tenant. Oh and both units are currently occupied at $750/month per unit. They have had new AC units, refinished floors, new paint, new counters, and new tile in the baths. So it SEEMS like a great investment to me. My hesitation comes from the fact that the schools are pretty bad, and the crime rate is 25% higher than the rest of Charlotte. But I was thinking that these units aren't going to be attractive to families anyway, and they are pretty close to uptown Charlotte. Oh my strategy is to buy and hold, and get a decent cash flow every month, and hopefully sell for a profit in 20 years or so (think college fund). :)

So what would you do??? I don't want to mess this up! Thanks so much for your thoughts!

[Marcia Maynard]

If you are a community player, buy in and partner with law enforcement to make the neighborhood safer. It is amazing what a landlord can do to improve quality of life for residents and deter crime. I recently took a full day workshop on that very topic and was amazed by how much is possible from landscaping to tenant management.