Is anyone turned off by "cold" areas?

Question

Was looking into investing out of state, no problem there. Looking into a northern area, which obviously deals with pretty brutal winters (cold, snow.) Do these conditions make or break deals for anyone? Aren't these conditions putting a lot more stress on the properties affecting Capex, mon. Expenses, etc?

Anyone with experience in this have any truths or stories about this type of thinking?

TIA!

Anyone with experience in this have any truths or stories about this type of thinking?

TIA!

Anson Young · Answer

Cold...  it comes with a few issues, some can be mitigated though some diligence, and some just might be too much to handle for some.  Freezing: obvious one for sure.  Can be dealt with by having a smart thermostat monitor inside temps and notify you if something is wrong.  When a furnace goes out, and the entire plumbing is at risk of freezing and bursting, you want to know ASAP.  Believe me, its not fun to deal with.  You can also put water sensors in the property, by the hot water heater, etc. to notify you as well.Furnace/boiler/electric baseboard heat: In warm climates, obviously this is not something you need to deal with.  My friend moved to FL from CO, and I didnt even know they built houses without furnaces...  would be nice at times to not have to deal with the $1500-3000 piece of equipment that always goes out at the worst possible times it seems.  Boiler systems can get really expensive to replace, and electric baseboard is expensive on the electricity bill.Deferred maintenance: Freezing/thawing is hard on driveways, foundations and concrete in general.  Snow removal: In most cities, you are liable if someone slips and falls on your sidewalk if you did not remove the snow or ice on it after a certain amount of reasonable time (24 hours for us...).  Are your tenants going to shovel the walk every time it snows?  Do you have to write it into the lease?  What if they dont and someone falls and sues you, the owner?  Do you pay for professional snow removal to make sure its done?  Lots of variables here.Hope this helps!