Newbie from Brown County, Indiana

[Karen Avery]

Hello BP Members,

I'm just introducing myself. My name is Karen Avery. I'm a PR professional in the Indianapolis area. My husband and I have owned two homes that we use(d) for our primary residence. We have talked for years about investing in income properties and believe now is the time. 

We are considering for our first purchase the house next door which is currently owned by the bank. However, after running the numbers on the BP calculator I'm a little leery about starting with this property. It's not the best looking property in a lakes community, has high taxes, long commutes, no lake frontage and is a small 3 bed/1 bath house that lacks in curb appeal due to the slope of the land and how the house sits. My husband worries about the property value of our primary residence being affected by the continued decay of the distressed property next door, but after my quick study of the BP site and forums, I'm more worried about investing in a property that won't produce good cash flow, especially for our first buy-and-hold. We are learning and always appreciate any advice. :)

Kind regards,

Karen