All Forum Posts by: Sue T.

Curtis,

Thanks for your help. I guess I should have tried googling before asking my question about the traffic counts :)
Unfortunately, on loopnet, you can only narrow search down to the nearest zipcode. Do market rents vary by much within a zipcode?

Thanks.

Hi,
How can I find out what the market rent for a commercial property is? Is that something I can only find out from speaking to leasing brokers or something I can find online. Also, how can I find out what the traffic count for a street is?

Thanks.

Thanks. I will give contacting a real estate agent a try. Thank you to all that took the time to respond.

Don,

Thank you for your thoughtful response; it is really helpful to get perspective from someone who has experience investing in both.

Michael S- I live about 2500 miles from the rental properties.

Jon- I don't think the homes are unrentable; they were previously rented to section 8 tenants and when I advertised the homes, there were some interested parties...the problem is I have no one there to show the properties...and since I can't find property management for them; I'm trying to decide whether or not I should try to manage it myself somehow or sell it. Right now, I'm leaning towards selling. Well, thank you for your time and advice.

1) Would it be illegal if he doesn't do the actual leasing? What if I just hired him to post some for rent signs and be there to show the property..whereas I will be doing the advertising and credit checks?

I have pretty much spoken to all the property management companies there(about 12 companies) ..and there were only 2 who managed single family homes and both did not service the area.
I actually have never seen the homes in person, but I've googled it..and the area looks decent to me. I don't see any obvious reasons why the mgmt companies passed them over.
I've also contacted the agent that sold me the homes and he has not responded.
Suppose I visit and the homes are in a war zone, should I sell it at a loss? How much of a loss should I be willing to accept?

Thanks.

Hi,
I am a new investor trying to figure out if I should focus on investing in apartment properties or commercial real estate (retail prop., strip centers,etc).
Suppose you can make a true 14% cap rate (includes 50% maintence + property mgmt expense) on a apartment; why or is there a reason to invest in commercial real estate when most commercial cap rate is less than 10%? Not only that, aren't interest rates for commercial real estate higher than interest rates for apartments?
I often hear that one advantage of investing in commercial re vs. apartments is less management; but doesn't that advantage seem moot if you can hire property management and still have a higher cap rate?
Another thing I hear is that commercial re appreciates faster than apartments? Is that true?
Also, with apartments the leases are generally shorter term so you can take advantage of market pricing..but I guess that can go both ways.
Having said all that, a part of me still wants to invest in commercial real estate...don't know why? :) Hoping someone can convince me one way or the other.

Appreciate your thoughts. Thanks.

Hi,
I am an out-of-state investor with a few single family homes in Cleveland, OH. I've been trying to obtain property management services for them, but all the property managers I've spoken to have passed on the properties; either b/c it's not in an area they service or they don't manage single family homes. Since I can't seem to find property mgmt for these properties, I'm not sure what I should do:

1)Try to find a handyman that is willing to help me rent out the place?
2)Try to rent the place out myself by flying out there as needed?
3)Sell the homes (possibly at a loss)
4)Other suggestions?

Thanks.