Is this a good deal?

[Christian I Presant]

What do you guys think of this deal I'm looking at. it's a 4/2 Duplex.

he's asking 90,000. ARV probably around 125,000. It needs an octopus furnace with asbestos to be removed and replaced. new hot water tank, new fridge, new paint, new flooring on one floor. some minor exterior work. The metal roof is 3 years old. does this sound good to you? we want to rent it out to college students. prob can get 3000 a semester from 4 students each. mortgage payments will be like 750 plus utilities. probably needs like 25k-32K worth of work.

[Carl Millsap]

Christian, 

1. Get a certified professional to quote replacing that furnace. There are specific laws for asbestos, and you don't want to cross those boundaries.

2. Do your due diligence. Know your numbers inside out. Get the HVAC quote, hot water heater purchase / install quote etc. In some areas a master plumber has to install a hot water heater. That could mean a $1500 bill; since you plan to rent this out you don't want to take a chance of it being installed wrong or the temperature being set too high.

3. Who is currently renting it? Is it students? I had a broker send a multifamily offering to me advertising it as student housing. I called a friend who grew up near and worked on that college campus. He said students wouldn't live in that complex although it was 2 miles from campus. 

Due diligence can save you a lot of time and money...just because it glitters doesn't make it gold. 

4. Let's say the numbers are close, and you can rent it to students. Ask the seller for some concessions. $ towards the HVAC / Hot water heater replacement etc. You don't know until you ask. All they can say is no.

5. No deal is better than a bad deal.  

Good luck.