All Forum Posts by: Armel Bayot

@Armel Bayot

Typically. Though I do have a condo w $3,000 rent as well. Ive got a few cheaper condos too in outlying areas.

@Armel Bayot

A Classish, B+ish. My average rent is $3,000 and my typical tenant has a household income in the $150-$225k range probably.

If I were you id crank that up to every 2 - 3 months a year. at least quarterly inspections. I've worked for a slumlord and now I work for a company managing Class A and B+ buildings. As I've said in another thread, I have never seen a building bounce back from meth being manufactured inside it. Meth will poison the entire unit and surrounding units as well. Heroin needles are a great annoyance and crackheads just steal everything from the building that they can scrap or pawn but id rather deal with that than meth. With the latter 2, you can just evict, light rehab and you are relatively fine. With meth, the financial damage can ruin you if you don't catch on right away.

Well DC is on that list, and is the richest region of the country.  I wouldnt invest in the areas of high drug violence, but I do invest in the areas that are nice as they are amongst the lowest risk real estate investments available due to the high incomes.

@Armel Bayot

If numbers work and you can get properties for pennies on the dollar I’d say why not. And also ensure you have a good property manager. Good luck

Yes, there are drugs in every city, and yes, it's definitely more prevalent in lower rent / lower income areas. The few drug-related issues we've encountered have all been in C & lesser areas, and all but one were inherited tenants (the other was a section 8 tenant that eventually found other ways to occupy her time since she didn't need to work).

It's often a matter of which came first - could they afford better before drugs became a factor? Or is the drug problem a byproduct of living in an area where drugs are more prevalent? It's not a black & white issue, and I'm not going to dive into the psychology & sociology of the matter here. As others have said, tenant screening is everything. Well, almost ... another comment mentioned the possibility of someone becoming an addict over time - presumably after the person has been living in your property. The solution to that is strict rent payment requirements, and at the first sign of trouble, inspecting the unit, which should be happening on a regular basis anyway.

I'd recommend knowing your market as well. But there is a drug problem in every city. The best thing is to have a team that screens your tenants well. But even that might not catch it if someone becomes addicted over time. I would just know the market and area you want to invest and that will help in this matter. I would not invest in an area with high drug problems personally. 

Every city in the us has some sort of drug abuse. Best advice know the area you plan on investing in. 

@Armel Bayot common sense tells me to stay away from those areas. Plenty of other places in America to invest in.