Advice on buying in North Omaha

[Cory Bogler]

Hello Everyone,

I am looking at buying my first rental property. I have chosen the Omaha/CB area because I am originally from the area and still have family. It only made sense that my first property be close to people I trust as I am living in San Diego, CA. I have been looking around for some time and most of the properties that work with my budget are in the North Omaha area. Growing up, North Omaha always had a bad rap and because of that I have been hesitant to purchase in that area. My question for the BP Omaha community, is North Omaha a good area to invest in? Are there any parts you would look to avoid? I saw an investor mention Benson area as his focus which is neighboring to North O. I would love to hear some opinions from investor that may know the area better.

Anyways, I have always heard BP forums are full of people willing to help so I thought I would give it a shot.

Thank you,

Cory

[Doug Todd]

I'm a Realtor, Property Manager and investor in the Omaha/CB Metro Area.  I think it's important to note that you can have a successful investment property anywhere in town, and you should always look at each opportunity on a case-by-case basis.

That being said, In most cases I personally target school districts and price segments.  Over the last 5 years, rentals in the Omaha Public School System (OPS) have a higher average time on market than areas like Elkhorn, Papillion, Bellevue, Millard, and Westside.  In some cases, time on market is almost double in OPS.  That has kept me out of the "North Omaha" area.  But I wouldn't be against a nice house in Benson if the numbers made sense.  I'm also starting to look at some condos in the midtown/downtown area that are in the $100,000-$300,000 range....so like I said, case by case basis.

As long as you keep your property nicely updated you'll enjoy shorter vacancy periods, higher rents, and a competitive advantage over 90% of our market, no matter where you are.