Strategy for my first RE investment during COVID

[John Williams]

Hey all - I've been thinking about real estate investments for several months now and learning a lot from this forum. I'm interested in finding a SFH property to cash-flow. I'm too nervous to buy an out-of-state property as my first investment, so I want to stay local (Raleigh/Durham, NC area). The problem is - this area is a seller's market and I haven't been able to find any properties that meet my criteria. (I could make a nice return on a fix-and-flip, but my full-time job keeps me very busy, and I can't invest the time in a rehab.)

So in a nutshell, I've been waiting for a market correction so I can find properties at better prices. Do you all expect that COVID will result in a reduction in home values? With 30m+ people out of work, it seems there will be a wave of foreclosures in late summer (after the 90-day mortgage forbearances have come and gone).

So how do I play the market? Should I wait until the summer/fall and begin looking at foreclosures? Or are there other strategies you'd suggest?