New to Community- College Rentals

[Tim Gosser]

My name is Tim and I am new to real estate investing. I am entering the world of college rental properties in Upstate NY - Utica region. It's an out of state play for me, but my immediate family is there, offering minor assistance. I don't really know what I am doing, nor does anyone in my family. I don't want to rely on them too much, I prefer to keep family and business separate. I am 4.5hr drive away, so I have to build a support team. I just feel it's hard to hire the right people with just one house on the sheets. So I am not sure where I am going to find the best support to start. Maybe I pay up for a MGMT comp at while I start out. Than long term when I own more homes, hire a dedicated guy. I have this future vision of owning 20 homes in 5 years, as they are affordable. But I have to start slow with one or two and see if I even like this venture. I am in the closing stages of my first property and have low-ball offers on a few more. I already have my first place rented to my niece who attends the local college. I figure this will help me learn the ropes. Her mother works for the athletics dept at the college as well, she speaks to athletes daily who complain of the lack of rentals available at the growing school. I feel lucky to have that connection. I will create social media outlets as well to market, free platforms i.e. Facebook and Instagram to start out. I have major contractors available, but I still need to find a 24/7 fix it kind of connection/maintenance guy. I imagine that will help me in long run for smaller line items. Where I want some more opinions, what do you fix up before your first tenants ever step foot inside. On the surface, I need to update/install fire and smoke detectors and CO2. I want to remove wall to wall carpeting and finish hardwood. Update electrical outlets to bring up to modern standards. Are there any other screaming DO's and DONT's? Any information for this is greatly appreciated. Or any knowledge of the area and experiences. Thanks for reading and sharing in advance.

[Carl C.]

@Tim Gosser I have a few college rentals in the Hudson Valley and my recommendations would be update as much as you can with resilient materials to withstand some extra abuse. I've had two issues that popped up in each of our houses that I would absolutely take care of right off the bat if we buy another college rental. One is having an oil furnace die right after we closed. Make sure your oil furnace is properly cleaned and serviced well before cold weather hits. Second is plumbing issues with drains connected to showers. Old galvanized pipes corrode on the inside and may not be an issue for a family or couple but put a bunch of college kids in there and the problem will quickly reveal itself. Next time I'll be replacing them as soon as we close. The last thing to look out for is kids just not understanding what it is like to live on their own. You'll need a bit of hand holding to make sure they put out the trash, know where circuit breakers are and how to use them. Stupid things you'd never think of. That said, they produce good money and we have found relatively few issues as college landlords. Keep in mind we are also a lot closer than you are. Good luck with your purchase!