WHERE SHOULD I NOT BUY?

[Matt Lyons]

I see a lot of posts asking where someone SHOULD buy, for first or next property, or a certain type of return or property...I thought this might be a good place for people to tell others where they would suggest NOT to buy.  Towns that for whatever reason are not investor friendly or not a good return, lets see if we can help each other avoid mistakes others have made....I will start:

Clinton IA...I would NOT suggest buying in this town. Mid sized city just north of Quad cities. I own 20 rental doors in Fulton IL about 1/4 mile away and I have not had one issue with the city and tenants are pretty good, ROI has been great. In contract, in Clinton IA I have owned 16 doors for about the same amount of time, rental rates are similar and taxes are lower so it should be better...IT IS NOT... the city is very quick to fine any landlord or anything, while I have never received one violation or complaint from the city of Fulton I receive at least one a week from Clinton...in addition tenants are nowhere near as solid as in Fulton, lots of late payments and damage and so forth...if you look in this area do not be fooled by a better estimated ROI... I would invest more in Fulton IL any day of the week and I will NEVER invest in Clinton IA again...in fact I have a great available on a 14 unit building if anyone just needs to make a mistake