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Updated over 7 years ago, 04/05/2017
New investor looking in the greater Milwaukee area
Hi there fellow BP'ers. My name is Steve and I have been interested in real estate for a while but only recently have been positioned to get active in it. My wife and I are looking for small multi-family buildings in the greater Milwuakee area in the neighborhoods of Bay View, West Alias, Wauwatosa and a few other neighborhoods around those. Here is the kicker though, we live in California. My wife is from Wisconsin and her father is a real estate attorney and owns several cash flow buildings in Milwaukee. We are using him as our area expert as he knows pretty much everything about real estate in Milwaukee. Looking forward to make connections and become an active member of BP. Will probably go pro soon ;) Look forward to talking to everyone as we figure this thing out!
@Steven Story welcome to the site! There are several investors on the site from Milwaukee and there is a growing number of California (and other state) investors flocking to Milwaukee to buy here. So watch out, prices are going up!
Thanks Dawn! Yes I have found a lot of potential opportunities in Milwaukee. Definitely a better opportunity to cash flow in Milwaukee than in Southern California. Doing my due diligence right now but I'm hoping to buy something by the end of the year. Thanks for the reply!
Welcome to biggerpockets
Bay View, West Alias, Wauwatosa : are 1% cashflow rule properties
My preference would go in this order
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1.) Wauwatosa
2.) Bay View ( mostly off market deals )
3.) West Allis ( watch out for the city permit patrol )
You already have one leg up with a relative with access to probate properties.
BP is full of useful resources such as forums and blogs. Welcome to the Bigger Pockets community-be sure to check out all the awesome BP blogs under “Learn.”
Thanks @Jenkins Ramon. Yes "Tosa" is nice and would defiantly be my first choice as well. What did you mean by 1% cashflow rule? (Forgive my ignorance)
@Steven Story two biggerpockets threads regarding 1% versus 2%
cashflow rule 1 and cashflow rule 2
Private message me, if need.
@Ramon Jenkins thank you!
@Steven Story welcome to BP! I currently invest right next to Wauwatosa "Tosa" as the city of is a bit rich for my blood. What type of properties are you looking for? Duplexes, 4 plexus, or something larger like an 8-plex etc?
@Dave Carpenter yeah "Tosa" is definitely on the high side of my price point. I'm looking for a Duplex and nothing bigger than a 4-Plex. I've found a lot of properties in the 60-80,000 dollar range that cash flow when I do an analysis. I'm just trying to do my due diligence right now and get the right deal in the right location. How long have you been investing in real estate in Wisco for? Thanks for the reply by the way, it's pretty exciting to talk to someone who is doing what I want to do!
#1 New Member Introductions Contributor
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#1 New Member Introductions Contributor
- Solo 401k Expert
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Welcome to BP family @Steven Story You came to the right place to learn about various aspects of real estate and more!
All the best to you!
- Dmitriy Fomichenko
- (949) 228-9393
@Steven Storyare you finding the 60-80k houses in tosa? are they rehabbed? We primarily work around the border of Tosa to the Northeast where it's cheaper and still nice. With rehabbed houses in the 1.5% to 1.8% rent to price ratios. Anyway, welcome to BP! Tons of great resources here and others who invest in Milwaukee like me.
@Steven Story I bought my first duplex in 2011 and 2 more in the last few months. Now need to either find investors or save my pennies for a few months.
Don't get too excited about talking to me. I would still consider myself a newbie, but I'm trying to keep moving forward. Feel free and let me know if you have questions about a certain area or are ever in town. It would be great to meet up!
welcome @Steven Story you have chosen some nice areas of Milwaukee to consider investing in. Those are good choices where you should get a mix of cash flow and some icing on the cake with appreciation. Specifically tosa market. Best wishes! FYI I have been looking in the tosa proper area on MLS and hard to make those deals cash flow. If you get on the perimeters of tosa like @Mark Shaffar and @dan carpenter shared you will see better cash flow returns. Best wishes!
@Pat Parrillo Hi and thank you! The outskirts of Tosa are definitely nice and I seem to find deals that cash flow very well. I am planning on trying to get a 20% discount on price and put 25% down so finding a seller that will meet my terms to make my math work will probably be the hard part, but I figure it takes work to make it work! If you have any advice or areas I should be looking at I'd love to hear about them. How may properties do you currently own? Do you manage them yourself? Have a great day!
@Steven Story If you need help beyond your father-in-law, message me. I'm very active in the West Allis, Wauwatosa, and Northwest Milwaukee areas. Deals happen all the time that never make it to MLS, Loopnet, etc. Good luck to you either way!!
-Troy
@Brie Schmidt you mentioned on twitter that MKE was a "high touch" market when referring to finding a good PM. Does "high touch" mean "high maintenance" as far as maintenance of the building as well as the tenants? Could you elaborate? I know you're not busy buying half of Milwaukee or anything ;) (JOKE) Thanks in advance for all your help here on BP!!!
So everything is going along smoothly, you have your property criteria, your analyzing your head off and finding potential deals on the 2-4 unit multi-familys you are so comfortable with now...and then...you come across a property that throws a wrench in everything. I came across a 8 unit apartment complex...in my target price range...and now I don't know what to do. Do I change up my criteria and investigate this bigger property. 8 units means more tenants, more expenses, and more labor intensive property management but it also means more rents. Has this ever happened to anyone else (I'm sure it has) and what has been your experience when you have come across a potential deal that you weren't looking for? I don't want to get fancy but opportunity is opportunity.
@Steven Story Know your numbers and make sure you can absorb some additional expenses for unforeseen problems. If you handle this financially, great. If this project is too big for your first investment, just remember there will be more deals. It's unlikely this is a once in a lifetime deal. Any of us can give you advice on this deal but at the end of the day none of us know your personal financial situation. If you need any help (i.e. determining if your income and expenses are realistic) feel free to message me.
-Troy
