New(ish) Investor from Northern NJ

[Julien Chamoun]

Hello all,

Names Julien and a good friend an I have been interested in rental property investment for about a year now.  

In the past year we have had offers on 2 multifamily homes in Northern NJ that fell through for different reasons.  The first home was a newbie mistake and the house was located in a flood zone.  Luckily the inspector notified us of all the mold growing in the basement so we got out of there quick.  The 2nd home was appraised for much lower than it was being sold for and the sellers wouldn't budge, so we walked away from that deal.   

It's been a frustrating year, but that's why I'm here.  The Northern NJ market can be quite annoying with the high taxes, and it seems like you can only invest in multifamily homes to make it worth your while.  I've been reading a bit about turnkey properties out of state, but I also don't want to give up on my local market as well.

Thanks in advance

[Ray Reed]

Julien,

I have heard Paterson is good for cash flow but you have to know the areas that are not war zones.  You are not too far from essex county so you may want to think there also. In my experience, with the exception of showing the unit, there are not too many reasons that i have to drop what i am doing to go to the property. Once you have a good and reliable set of contractors, you should be okay. Most calls i get is probably heating and plumbing.  When i get those calls i text or call my plumber.  I also text my tenant with the plumber's number so they can reach him directly and they can set the appointment as opposed to me going back and forth and trying to coordinate a time that works best for both of them. The same with electrical issues even though those are much fewer.