All Forum Posts by: Ahmed Moussa

Thanks @J. MartinOther Interests

• Travel
• Running and Biking
• Reading 
• Apathy for soccer all year round, becoming a fanatic once every four years during World Cup, and then returning to indifference...rinse and repeat :)
• Meeting cool folks and getting outdoors together if/when possible!

Thanks @Rob Becker @William Robison @Ray Orellano This has been a really helpful thread. My gut is not very comfortable with the area, especially having college students as most likely tenants. Too much turnover to make it worth it. Would like to stick to mostly owner occupied neighborhoods with families or professional couples. This was a great quick due diligence thread on the neighborhood. Thanks you guys!!

@Brandon Laughridge I just read that same article! Sad, but really helpful background. 

@Ray Orellano I do think that most of the potential renters will be college students. Will be chatting with the PM tomorrow to scope that out. 

Thanks Engelo. I didn't know that "don't go East of Troost" was an established saying until now! This would be at the corner of East 49th/The Paseo. Don't know if this end of Troost by the campus would be any safer. Thanks for that insight. 

Hey Fellow BP'ers, 

I'm looking at a 2/2 duplex on 49th Street near UMKC. The numbers look great ($75k purchase, $1050 total rents), but I wanted to get folks take on the area. Like, would you let kid live there if they were going to school nearby? Would you rent there if you were looking in that area? Is the rent reasonable? 

Thanks for any insights local KC'ers!!

@Amit M. 100% with you that the appreciation here in the Bay Area is definitely worth the time it takes to find a good deal. That said, the price point is a major barrier for entry for me to get started. I don't mind experimenting with <$20k of my own cash on an out of state deal and learning the ropes so to speak. Hunkering down a larger chunk on a first time deal locally though is risky in my eyes. I'm pretty conservative in that regard...despite being open to an out of state deal! Hoping that it makes sense in the near future to invest here, will probably take a while until I get to that comfort level or build a network locally. That said, hope we can connect and see if a deal can work here in CA!

@J. Martin 

I think you nailed it there going a bit deeper with the real estate is local saying. I'm definitely going to be looking at other cities in the same way I would my own neighborhood when looking for a home - schools, jobs, industry, outlook, incomes, etc. I think it comes in handy to have friends or even coworkers who are homeowners in that prospective city. 

Wow, this has been a great thread for learning on my end so far. Keep the thoughts coming! 

@Account Closed I'm leaning towards out of state. Any cities/states you are investing in which have been worth the effort? Sounds like Milwaukee, WI has some buzz right now and the numbers look good. Also see a lot of Chicago, Philly, Indy, Houston,...as the numbers look good there as well. 

I was talking to my wife last night about how the old adage in real estate was that it's all about being local. I think that's a great notion for the obvious reasons of being down the street from your properties. But, it's a dated notion imho. Now there's Zillow, Google Maps, Rentometer, and a whole ton of tools that cut the barrier drastically. I don't see the difference in catching a flight if I have to drive 2+ hours. 

Anywho, a lot of good food for thought right now. I'm staying the course on acquiring a lower purchase price place out of state if need be. Forcing myself to stay the course and commit to the first purchase. Hope to have updates as I go along!

Thanks @Eric Black and @Jason Flynn . I think this is what we're finding. Wanted to see if there were any areas I'm missing in my search...but man, it's tough to find a deal that makes sense in CA for buy and hold. 

Hope your property has appreciated nicely since 09!

Hey Fellow BP'ers,

I've started working with a RE agent in the Sacramento area to help identify possible buy and hold properties <$150k to be rented out. I've even expanded the search to condos with lower HOA fees <$150/month as the cash flow doesn't seem to be there at all. Our search has been primarily around the Natomas - Downtown areas, but there just don't seem to be any properties that make sense...like 2% cap rate kind of deals are what I'm seeing after crunching the numbers :(

My question is - are there any investors out there in the Sacramento area seeing deals over a 5% cap rate? What neighborhoods seem to make sense if a low cap rate is incurred...meaning is that a growing/great neighborhood with values expected to rise? 

I'm willing to take a hit on cap rate if there are undervalued neighborhoods worth looking at that can grow in the next few years...or are being gentrified. 

Thanks in advance for any insights from locals!!