All Forum Posts by: Daniel Kent

Hi All,

Did some more investigating and researching in South Jersey and @Rick C. and @James Masotti do bring up some good points about the PATCO stops.  Oaklyn does have a small "Main Street" besides the White Horse Pike, even though it really only runs about 1/2 a block (Clinton Ave) with a Brewery and Coffeehouse.  But I do agree with investing in an area along a good public transit line into Camden, and starting checking out along the River Line, specifically Riverside, NJ.  Any thoughts on this area?  It seems to also have the small town feel and some good development happing up there as well: http://www.burlingtoncountytimes.com/news/20171228...

Thanks @James Masotti and @Lauren C.-

I agree that the master plan is to revitalize downtown Camden, but to me it seems like the immediate downtown area is already well on its way.  The other areas of Camden are still pretty scary neighborhoods.  I also think that people that are moving into Camden are more likely to move into the apartment buildings (victor or the new cooper place), with gated parking, security, and 24/7 concierge.  I think towns like Oaklyn and Bellmawr may attract people that connect necessarily afford luxury apartment living and are looking for more of a small town/mainstreet type feel.  Maybe oaklyn will be the next Collingswood?  Thanks for all the input and discussion!

Hello All,

I am looking for a realtor in South Jersey, specifically the Oaklyn/Bellmawr and areas surrounding Camden City, but not in Camden City. I am searching for SFH Rentals or small multi-unit rental properties. I currently have a SFH rental in Philadelphia and I am looking to add to my portfolio in the South Jersey area. I am interested in the areas surrounding Camden City due to the increase business boom in Camden City (Connor Strong, Subaru, Holtec, etc). Any input/direction/referrals/conversation is greatly appreciated!

Thanks-

@Lauren C. What really intrigues me about Oaklyn is it is a lower price point than neighboring Collingswood/Haddonfield, and from looking through the area seems like a nice town, close to the train with a small downtown mainstreet feel.  I think also with the corporate development going on in Camden (Connor Strong, Subaru, Campbells, Cooper, etc), I think it may increase the rental market in the area for those working on Camden, but not wanting to live in Camden.

Hi BP Community,

I currently have a rental property in Philadelphia and I am looking to expand into South Jersey.  I have been watching all the development and and corporations that have been and are moving into Camden (Campbells Soup, Conner Strong, Subaru, Cooper Hospital, Rutgers University and more).  Camden City still seems to have not so desirable areas, but with these companies, I think more people are looking to relocate closer to the city.  I  have been looking at Oaklyn, Haddon Township, Haddon Heights, Barrington, for buy and hold single family rental properties.  These towns have a small downtown main street feel and I think it may be a great market for these properties.  I have been researching these areas for the past few months and am looking for any other thoughts/advice about these areas. 

Thanks in advance!

Thanks @Sam Alomari  This being my first home, I of course love the property, but I love the thought of financial freedom much more ;-)  I decided to keep the property and rent it because the area has such a great rental market and I did very simple math.....(Rent>Mortgage=Win) 

I have almost $110,000 in home equity.  I am a little confused about the heloc option, where I would use a Heloc to pay off the mortgage, but then the heloc would need to be paid off as well?

Rent to own, and seller financing is a different idea.  With just principle, interest, taxes, and insurance, there is a small positive cash flow on the property.  It becomes negative when I figure in Vacancy, Repairs, and Cap Ex.  If the home loan is quickly paid off, then the cash flow skyrockets and, to me, doesn't make much sense to sell at that point, as long as the area is still a good rental market, unless I am just confused about your scenario.

Thanks @John Knisely  Of course my goal is to retire early!  Who doesn't? ;-)  And trying to reach this goal and seriously analyze new properties is really what made me take a hard look at my current property.  I am at market rent on this property.  It is in the Manayunk section of Philadelphia, which is kind of a tough area to analyze now, as they are building new construction monstrosities in any available empty lot.  There are also alot of apartment buildings with secure parking that are changing the rental market. (My house is 100 years old with street parking).  That being said, I haven't had much trouble renting it out and have not (knock on wood) encountered the tenant from hell.  So with all of those factors considered, I always thought it would be a good idea to hang onto and rent, (even if not necessarily a positive cash flow), until the single family home rental market there tanks, and I have a hard time renting, then list for sale... 

If I can find the proper funding, I would love to purchase another single family home rental property (property 2) that has a positive cash flow, use those profits to expedite the payoff of property 1 mortgage, and then have 2 positive cash flowing properties....and go from there.

Thanks for all of your responses, here are my answers and some more details about the property....

@Lana Lee I purchased the house in 2007 for $180,000 and for the past 5 years it has been a rental property, so 5 years primary, and 5 years rental.  Rental since 2012.  There has been some appreciation, but not much.  The negative cash flow occurs when I do account for maintenance, management, Cap Ex, Vacancy, Etc.  If I do not account for those expenses, (just principle, interest and insurance) it shows a positive cash flow of $1,200/year.

@Alexander Felice My thought to increase cash flow is to refinance, which will definitely accomplish that.  However, I just refinanced within the last year and I am not sure 1) how bank lenders will accommodate another refinance so shortly after the last one 2)How will 2 refinances in the past 2 years affect my credit.

@Llewelyn A.  Thanks for your alternative analysis on this....I believe the property will be at or above the current value by the 15th year.  I will, and have been getting mortgage reduction.....that was originally what I thought to be the most important factor in holding the property.  Hopefully there will be a 3% growth in rental income per year, but I haven't seen that in the past 5 years.  (One year was college students, one year I was on a bad rental cycle and lowered rent to get it occupied, etc), but I learned many lessons along the way and can hopefully start to see that increase.

For all, here are the financials on the property.

Amount owed on loan: $153,000 

Loan Matures May 1, 2032

Principle/Interest/Taxes = $1,482 (Fixed Rate of 3.75)

Rental Income = $1,600

Thank you again for all of our advice and information, I look forward to reading more!

Dan

Hello BP Community!

I have a rental property in Philadelphia which within the past year I just refinanced to reduce the term of  the loan from 25 years to 15 years.  This property was originally purchased as my primary residence and then became a Single Family Home rental.  In the recent months I have been looking to purchase my next single family home rental and have been analyzing other deals in the area.  In doing so, I decided to analyze my current property, which I have never done, being that it was originally purchased as my primary residence.  In doing so, I discovered that this property (with the refinance) now has a negative cash flow of about -$1,200/year.  I am debating what my next step should be.

1. Sell the property and purchase another Single Family Home rental with potential positive cash flow.

2. Refinance (although the last refinance happened about 1 year ago) to a longer term mortgage to bring it back to a positive cash flow property.

3. Nothing.....keep the shorter term mortgage and enjoy the positive cash flow once the mortgage is paid off.

Thanks in advance for everyones input/advice, and I would be happy to answer any questions that might help in this decision.