[Calc Review] - Arlington TX - Help me analyze this deal

[Jessica Muto]

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*This link comes directly from our calculators, based on information input by the member who posted.

Hello BP,

My husband and I own a plumbing company in San Diego, CA, and are working on becoming real life real estate investors as well as business owners. Our area is a tough market, so we've been looking in other states, and Texas came up as potentially a good market. I've got a real estate agent sending us small multifamily listings as they come up, as we are looking for at least a duplex for our first investment. I've run a lot of these listings through the calculator, using information from local insurance people, property management people, the Tarrant County property tax estimator, and rentometer, and I must be doing something wrong. Even with prices that to my California eye seem really good, cash flow is barely adequate and often in the negative, mostly due to the property tax (I think.) Can you veterans see anything else I am doing wrong here?? 

Thank you in advance - Jessica 

[Danny Webber]

In Texas your search needs to be tailored some geographically by:

1. tax rate

2. muds/puds

3. lease rates

4. # beds/baths

5. school districts

6. historical neighborhood turnover ratios

+ more

The increase your monthly rents by decreasing your deposit, charging pet rent, tenant pays first $x of repairs + more....

In today's market you cannot think like a 1980's property owner.... Use the prefab calculators only as a gut check. Analyze the data thoroughly and get really familiar with a few markets and agents. So much more to say...