All Forum Posts by: Brian Hourigan

Thanks for the recommendation Brian, I'll be sure to reach out to him!

Hi everyone,

My name is Brian, and I'm an aspiring investor based out of Nashville, TN. I currently own one rental property here in Nashville that used to be my primary residence, and I'm looking to expand into markets where the numbers are more investor friendly. 

I've been researching real estate for a while now, and I've finally decided to go outside of my market, landing on Birmingham, AL. I have chosen this market because it's relatively close, the numbers seem to line up, it appears to be a growing market, and I know a few local people who I can reach out to for general advice or questions. I've also been working on building a team there. I'm working with a real estate agent, and I've reached out to a few property managers and lenders, although I haven't landed on one just yet.

My main problem right now is pulling the first trigger. I have some neighborhoods identified but I find myself questioning if they're the right ones, and if my strategy is sound. I feel like I've done the research, but I still find myself freezing up a bit when it comes time to make an offer. I'm mostly looking for someone who has done it before successfully that I can bounce thoughts off of and maybe answer some questions when I'm having doubts. 

So you may ask, what's in it for you? Great question. In addition to simply being motivated, I'm also a project manager in my professional role, so I'm very good at facilitating efficient communication and ensuring work gets done. Need someone to help track down your contractor or coordinate showings while you focus on other things? I'm your guy. I'll gladly trade my time and skills in exchange for advice to help me make this final push and get off the ground. 

If this sounds at all interesting to you, please reach out and let's chat! I'm excited to be a member of this community and looking forward to meeting more of you! 

-Brian 

@Damon Ryals Just stumbled on this thread while doing some research of my own, thank you for the insight! East Lake and Woodlawn are two areas that have jumped out to me as well, as well as North Birmingham. Not being local it's hard for me to gauge fully though as all I really have to go off of is word of mouth and some internet searches. For example, the crime rate stats I'm seeing in those three areas all seem rather high, but it's hard to tell how accurate it is. I'd love to hear your thoughts on those areas for long term buy & hold properties, especially with things like the new stadium under construction.

Jumping on the bandwaggon here. I'm looking to start investing in the Birmingham area as well, although I'm currently trying to narrow down specific neighborhoods to target. Areas like North Birmingham and East Lake jump out to me based on numbers (and a recommendation from a real estate agent I spoke to recently) but as I research them more, the crime and vacancy rates are pretty concerning.

I'd be interested in connecting with someone who's investing in the area to bounce ideas off each other if anyone is interested!

 Thanks or the response Luka! I won't be able to sell regardless as I'm looking to rent for now. But yes, I'm almost certainly looking for a 2 bedroom, just because having a roommate drastically cuts down on costs. The main debate I'm having is if I should do it at all or just deal with my current living situation since it may be risky to rent out my house given the numbers I outlined above.

Anyone have any thoughts? Happy to provide more details if it helps!

To start out, I want to openly admit that part of the decision I'm trying to make is based on emotion/QoL, but I just want to get the opinions of the BP community because you can tell me if I'm being crazy and making a huge mistake! Here's my situation:

Last year I decided "I'm sick of wasting money on rent, I'm going to buy a house so I'm not throwing away money anymore!" (this was before I discovered BP). So, I moved out of my downtown apartment, where I was paying $1,400/month in rent and bought a house about 20 minutes outside of town with 3.5% down using an FHA loan. It's in a good neighborhood/area outside of Nashville that I expect to grow quite a bit (speculation, I know but worth mentioning nonetheless).

I've been in the house for a little over the year now, but I find myself REALLY missing living downtown for quite a few reasons (convenience, saved time, yardwork, etc etc), so I'm trying to see if it can make financial sense at all for me to make it happen or if I just need to suck it up and stick where I am for a while.

I ran some numbers, and here's where I landed (Please let me know if I'm missing something):

House Expenses:
Mortgage/Interest/PMI/Insurance/Taxes = $1,370/mo
Maintenance (Assuming 1% per year) = $181/mo

If I were to rent it out, presumably the tenants would pay the utilities, which come to an average of about $187/mo (heat, water, electric)

I expect I could get $1,600-1,700/mo in rent.

Obviously if we were talking about a pure rental investment, the numbers don't really add up, but since I already own it, I'm trying to determine if it makes sense so that I can move pack to the place I want to live. Another factor (which I include in my summary tables below) is that I would eliminate my commute (20 miles each day, which I estimate comes to about $71.25 per month).

I don't think selling would make sense at this point, since the 6% real estate fees would take away ALL of the equity I've built on the house.

Now, if I look at it strictly from a financial perspective, it probably makes the most sense to stay in the house, but I find myself wanting to pull the trigger anyway. Tell me if I'm being an idiot! Here is my breakdown for each scenario.

I'm a crazy over-analyzer but I'm really struggling with this one. What do you guys think? And thanks again for taking the time to read this long post!