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Updated over 8 years ago,
Buying a house in hot area with no driveway and limited parking
Recently looked at a house out of state ( lived in area for 7 years and have lots of family there ) in a great area with a college. House is 2 mins walking distance to a great downtown, This city is very very walking/bike friendly. House is in great shape and move in ready, the main issue is that it has no driveway and no room to add one, also only parking is on opposite side of street. Pretty sure the house next door was originally a double lot and this was squeezed in. ( the backyard is basically shared with neighbor, I can add a fence though)
My concerns are:
*I am very limited to who I could rent to (talked to some other renters and they all said NO to a house with no parking)
*Renters would always be looking for a house to come up that had a driveway in same neighborhood and jump ship.
*No exit plan to sell the house because it has been on the market awhile and finding someone to buy a house with no parking seems very hard.
*This city has many things going on (festivals, parties, etc) and people park on the streets so I can foresee renters having to park a couple streets over during busy times.
* From online data it looks like previous landlord had 1 renter for 3 years back in 05 but then the house gets listed for rent on average about every 9 months. My rent would be about $200 less than what he rented it for though.
* This city and neighborhood are booming and I know speculating is bad but this area is rising very fast but not sure if this house will follow because of the lack of parking or any option to add in future, I don't think I can't count on any appreciation or any gains on the back end.
With the offer I am comfortable with I would get about 12 ROI and about 300-350 cash flow a month. (about 30k less than other houses on street) I would also be about $200 less rent than other houses on the street with a driveway ( this house is also nicer and closer to downtown)
So do I just look at this as strictly a cash flow property? or should I move on and try to find a cash flow property with more room for appreciation?
Any thoughts are very appreciated!! THANKS!