All Forum Posts by: Chris Dooley

Also, we'll be moving back to that area in the next 2 years so it won't always be 9 hours away.

So to update… We spoke with my MIL and she loves the idea and the nature of her relationship with us I don't see any issues arising from it. I'm confident that'll she'll be there for at least 5+ years. We also spoke with my wife's uncle who is a contractor and he is totally onboard and supportive of the idea. Rental property and house flipping is how he made his living since he was 19 so he's excited about helping us out with the repairs and maintenance. 

If I were able to find a house ~$85k (i've found a few options at this price point in neighborhoods where the mean value is $140-150k) and rent out for 850-900/month it seems like it would be a more favorable. The plan is to put 20% down on a 15 year loan, is there a better option? (all cash is not possible)

Thanks you guys all for the input this is the type of information I was looking for. I really appreciate you all taking the time to reply. I understand this would be looked at as less of an investment and more of helping out family. 

This is my first post to this site, I was directed here by some people from the Boglehead community and am excited by what I've seen so far. Thank you ahead of time for taking the time to help others on these forums, I'm really thankful for the community here.... On to the interesting part.

On the drive back from thanksgiving (9 hours in the car yay!) my wife brought up an investment opportunity that has caught my interest. My mother-in-law has been a long time renter (single mother, 30 year employee with very good stability and an income ~50k/yr) and always stays in one place for a long time. She's only had 3 rentals over 30 years. Our uncle currently rents out a home and was thinking about buying another rental property, my mother-in-law over heard this and told my wife she hoped he would and then she would just rent from him. She's unhappy with the condo she is in currently. My wife proposed that we look into buying a cheap rental property (>$110k tops) which leaves a lot of good options in our hometown and let her mom rent from us for close to what she is renting for now (~$750/month) from what I've looked into that would be more than the mortgage payment and we would be able to pay off the house in less than 15 years. My mother-in-law just turned 50 and I'm quite confident she would stay there for the length of the mortgage (i'm not counting on that though).

Most of what I've read is that the largest risks involved in rental properties are repairs and tenants. If we have all of the background information on the tenant and are confident that she will be there for awhile this seems like a pretty good investment. My wife's grandfather and uncle are also experienced contractors and repairmen so that would help on the repairs front.

Any input about things to consider or rental experiences would be very much appreciated. I just want to make sure I've got more than enough information before I make a decision.