Condo market in East side of Providence?

[Jojo Pembridge]

Hi everyone, we currently moved from WNY and live in a 2nd floor apartment of a 3 unit multi-family house on the east side of Providence (near Hope Village). We're looking to invest in real estate and it so happens, my landlord is looking to sell the unit that we're currently renting. The apartment definitely needs work - mold/mildew smell in bathroom, old kitchen appliances, old water heater, zero closet space, minor flooding in the basement, etc. It's a 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 1,200 sqft unit at $389,000. We've bought and sold two houses before, and this would be our first time buying a condo. I'm curious about the condo market in this part of Providence. In general, is this a good BRRR investment opportunity?

We really want to stay in this part of town, but buying a multi-family or single residence home is so expensive. I'm curious if it's a better decision to look for a live-in flip or multi-family home than to buy this condo. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and expertise! 

[David Sisson]

@Jojo Pembridge I'm very familiar with the East side of Providence & the Hope Village area. In my opinion one of the nicest locations in RI. You certainly won't have any issues with the location, and value will hold well. HOWEVER, I personally always prefer to own the entire property. Of course, owning an entire house or multi on the East Side is almost impossible - they are very expensive and rarely on the market. Talk to a local realtor about value (I can refer if you need help). I've done the "live in flip" before and it's challenging (my wife and I did it, and it wasn't that much fun LOL). You have to run the numbers - at $389K plus costs for the rehab, is it worth it? Can you do the work you need to do (especially plumbing) being in the middle of the house? If you were to rent it - right now maybe $2500/month - does that pay for your expenses + profit?