All Forum Posts by: Andrew Morem

Thank you all for the responses! 

@John Woodrich Good point on the absolute value of cash flow rather than COC. I think I was focusing more on the COC potential before. And I certainly don't know enough about areas within the markets, at least yet. More to look into!

@David Moore Glad to hear a success story! A few people have mentioned potential resale issues which I need to spend more time analyzing. Yeah, real estate in Crystal has gone way up the last few years! We bought our first house in Crystal back in 2012 and just sold it this spring. Considered keeping it as a SFR but we needed the equity to fund a major renovation on the new place in Plymouth.

@Ryan Tuleja Thanks for the comment. Contractors have been mentioned a few times so I can see how important that part of the plan would be.

@Isaac Braun Thanks for the feedback, if we consider St. Cloud more seriously I may have to ping you about areas to avoid if you're open to that.

@Jordan Moorhead Great point. I think maybe I discounted looking around the metro because of the price appreciation over the last few years, but it sounds like the consensus is there's still value to be found around here. Now I just need to get my wife to move from considering investing to actually purchasing a property! :-) 

@Adam Widder Thank you for the advice. I agree that it could be a lot more of a time commitment to manage more distant properties, definitely something to think about. Any recommendations on investor-friendly agents? I've looked over many of the older posts in the MN forums so I have seen some names thrown around, but just thought I'd see if you had any additional thoughts.

@Dustin S. Good question. A couple of the areas I've mentioned have had some shrinkage of population in the past couple decades but looks like they're leveling out. I'll look into it more.

My wife and I are preparing to get into rental property ownership for the first time. We're considering buying an investment property (single family, duplex, or small apartment building) in greater Minnesota since the cost of properties is lower than in the twin cities. I'd probably want to keep it within a couple hours of where we live since I'd manage it myself, so places like Saint Cloud, Albert Lea, or Austin would be candidates. Does anyone have any experience investing in these areas? Are there risks that I should consider that wouldn't be a factor in the twin cities? Or, does it even make sense to focus on greater Minnesota, and instead just look for deals closer to home? 

Thank you in advance for any insight you could provide! I'm looking forward to becoming a more active member on the forums here! 

-Andrew