Louisville, KY - Rental Property - Bryant Grimes - Recently purchased first time investment property and looking for feedback

[Bryant Grimes]

I am a first time real estate investor and CPA in Louisville, KY and recently purchased a duplex (two unit each 1 bedroom one bath split level property) in the Highlands area which is a relatively high market value area in a prime location. I acquired the property for $175,000 and appraisal came in at $200,000.

Total PITI is $1,066 / month after putting 15% down on the property. It is currently rented for $1,450 / month and the only other fixed expense pertaining to the property is water included in rental price which is ~$100 / month. Prior to purchasing property I was not aware of the additional expenses that should be considered based on various investment rules / gut checks and having completed the purchase I am looking for feedback on the deal and am looking for opinions in regards to if this was a "good" deal or not.

Additional factors to consider is the property appreciation value based on historic sale prices between points in time [i.e. sold in 2004 sold again in 2015] for similar properties in the similar area seems to be a consistent ~4%. Also, the rent for one unit has not been raised in approximately 5 years and the other in over 2 years, therefore I anticipate the rental market value upon tenant departure would be ~$1,600. Further, the area in which the duplex is located has an extremely low turnaround for tenants and by putting a sign in the yard and posting add on craigslist, most are rented within 5 days with landlord pick of multiple potential tenants.

If there is any additional information I would need to include for readers to determine if this was a good deal or not please let me know and I can include. I am interested in continuing to invest in real estate and grow my real estate portfolio and any feedback provided would be greatly appreciated. 

[Radhika M.]

@Sean Williams

The way you are calculating NOI is wrong. NOI does not have anything to do with your mortgage payment.

NOI: is Rent - Operational expenses.

The NOI and cap rates are independent of your mortgage payment. If you pay 100% down or 0% down the NOI and cap rates will not change.