What are good areas to invest in Philadelphia & Pittsburgh

Question

For those looking to invest in PA, what are the best areas to start investing ?

Brendan McAllister · Answer

I can explain the general pockets in Philly for you!

Philadelphia is a great city for either flips or rentals. For flips many of my investors have found success in some of the neighborhoods in South Philly (Point Breeze, Dickinson Narrows, EPX, Newbold, Girard Estates, Melrose, West Passyunk, Passyunk Square). South Philly is cool because it is very versatile. You can find grannie style homes that just need to get updated, or get a shell that requires either additional sq footage (3rd story setback or 3 stories by right). West Philly is really good for flips that require slightly higher than a cosmetic job. Same thing goes with West Oak Ln/Mt. Airy section but at a higher retail value for the most part (Especially in Mt. Airy).  The ARV typically tops out around 250k, so it's not worth adding sq footage for the most part. Brewerytown is becoming a really hot flip market as well, where the majority of flips are shells. Norris Square, Kenso, Olde Kensington are also good spots for flips, as long as you don't go too far west. A couple of other areas are really good as well, but I don't want to write a book. For the Suburbs, really anywhere with a good school district could be a good flip area.

For rentals, really any pocket can be good it just depends on what you are looking for. You can go for really cheap rentals in North Philly, Kensington, parts of West Philly. For nicer areas you can look into neighborhoods that are mentioned above, but the returns tend to be less since it's a safer option. If you can get past the taxes, parts of delco are really good for rentals. Darby/Collingdale is a good rental pocket, even though Darby is not a great area. Collingdale will definitely appreciate over time, but the same probably can't be said about Darby at this time. However, cash flows are pretty damn good. Other neighborhoods like Sharon Hill, Lansdowne, Upper Darby are all good rental markets as well.

Victoria Pham · Answer

@Alecia Santiago, it depends on your strategy. Are you looking for a rental or for a flip? I only sell properties in Philly and the surrounding areas so I cannot speak for all places for PA. I think Philly has a lot of constructions and development going on, especially in many parts of South Philly. South Philly would be perfect for an easy flip. In terms of buying and hold. I would recommend you looking at West Philly area. There is a flux of young professionals and students moving from University City to West Philly (mostly Cobbs Creek area). The price is still pretty affordable in that area and if you have a good amount of liquidated asset, you can buy several units there, wait for a couple of years and your property will appreciate rapidly. Let me know how I can help! Best of luck!

Alex Uman · Answer

@Alecia Santiago, Port Richmond is in North East Philly, Point Breeze and Gray's Ferry are in South Philly, Cobb's Creek is West Philly. Upper Darby, Collingdale, Aldan and Glenolden are all suburban area's west of Philly in Delaware County.

Alex Uman · Answer

It all depends on what your goals are! Philadelphia and neighboring Delaware county are ripe with investment opportunity right now. In terms of particular towns and neighborhoods, I'd take a look at Port Richmond, Point Breeze, Gray's Ferry, Cobb's Creek, Upper Darby, Collingdale, Aldan and Glenolden. Feel free to reach out if you're ever interested in investing down here. I know the market has gotten a little crazy lately.

Michael Saresky · Answer

Hey I'm from Philadelphia recently a lot of hype was in the Fishtown community which has been heavily gentrified in the past years. I some of the safest bets are NE Philly, and the surrounding suburbs (Montgomery, Bucks & Delaware).

David Lee Hall, III · Answer

@Alecia Santiago

Depends on your goals but you can flip or for rentals in Garfield, Bloomfield, Stanton Heights, or following 65 to the west. There was a good discussion of where to invest about 2 months ago in the Pittsburgh forum you can look at.

Alecia Downing · Answer

@Alex Uman are these places located in west, south or north philly.

Gary Swank · Answer

@Alecia Santiago Hi Alecia, as others have stated it depends on your strategy, what your plans and goals are. What you are looking to spend, your resources. You've stated you are interested in tri and fourplexes in Pittsburgh close to schools, hospitals, malls and parks. While there are very few fourplexes in Pittsburgh, there are certainly plenty of properties to choose from here. As I'm sure you know, Pittsburgh has always been at the forefront in medicine and it's hospitals are top-notch. We are also now becoming a tech leader. Many see our area as a great place to live and/or invest in. If you are out of town, I always suggest getting with people that know the area well as properties and areas change, sometimes drastically, from street to street. I've lived here my whole and have seen an amazing transformation of Pittsburgh. Feel free to reach out further....Gary

Alecia Downing · Answer

Awesome, this is great information, I want to invest in a triplex or fourplex close to hospitals, school campuses, malls, & parks. I’m not familiar with PA, however interested in both Pittsburgh & Philadelphia.

What are good areas to invest in Philadelphia & Pittsburgh

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