All Forum Posts by: Jason Bee

Thanks for your help! I really appreciate it. Now all I have to do is have an offer accepted. lol 

Hi BP,

So I am looking at 2 multi-family houses in the competitive Boston market. It is a very competitive market and would be highly unlikely that both offers get accepted. One MF is listed below the price it should be and I would be offering over asking. The other MF is a little high and I would be offering less than asking. Is it ok to have my Realtor make 2 offers on 2 different properties at the same time? My realtor says I would lose the $1,000.00 check I take a pic of to show our intention to buy the house that we send with our offer. How does that work and any advice would be very much appreciated. Thanks! 

@Raisa Penney & @Brendan Murphy, my fiance and I have been looking at multi's in Malden, Melrose, Medford, Everett, Revere, & Wakefield for the last cpl years. We have put multiple offers in and they keep going for well over asking. As an example; a duplex in Wakefield, this past March, 20 Bartley St was listed at $640,000. The house was old but really nice, you can check it out online still. It needed minor rehab and some work on the yard, the first floor unit needed to be turned into a 2 bedroom but was pretty much done. We put an offer in at $655,000 and moved up to $660k, it sold for $727,000. We though it was just crazy because even with the little work it needed, you couldn't build a good amount of equity afterwards, and with the rent you get, it's not worth the investment. The housing market still in these areas seem to be hot/warm, cooling a little because of the pandemic. One meetup group I attended virtually recently, the real estate investor said it seems houses are not going over asking too much (even though the numbers are 1 month behind) but most likely could see a slight dip of up to 5% depending on what happens after we re-open. If you have the money for a down payment with extra for rehab and a cpl months vacancy, the Malden, Melrose, Medford, & Wakefield areas are still gold. Closer to Boston still sees more resilience in recession / economic downturn. One problem Mass still faces is the lack of supply with reasonable demand. Even though this downturn still has stopped a decent amount of buyers, the supply of a good MF is tough. 

With that said, we have pushed out to Salem, Peabody, Swampscott, & Lynn but are still looking in our desired areas. We even went as far as Haverhill & Lowell where you can get more for your money but you have to be careful of where and the type of tenants. We always keep and eye out on Salem & Swampscott and even put offers in at each location last year but Salem went for well over asking and Swampscott we were close. Both are great quality towns that can get good rent. Lynn is up and coming but again you just have to watch out for the area. In Lynn they are supposedly trying to put in a ferry port that goes to Boston. Also two luxury hotels are supposedly going in near the Lynnway and the town wants to re-due the areas near the beach and Lynnway. 

Reading, Andover / North Andover, Stoneham, & Wakefield are great towns with good public education and infrastructure. They are highly sought after towns that will still have a high price point because of low supply. The real questions you should ask yourself is what type of investment you are looking for. Do you want a property you can live in for a while, if your at the age where you're going to have kids and want that good school system, paying more for a duplex in one of these towns would be great. Or do you want cash flow and want to get out of the property as soon as you can...

@ Patrick Hagerty, have you thought about Worcester? The city is the second largest in Massachusetts and will be getting the Paw-Sox (the Red Sox's minor league team) and there are many universities and colleges. The food scene is also blowing up there as well. They also have the commuter rail you can take into work to Boston. You might be able to get a 2 unit multi, but if you can push your cap to around the $350k mark, you can get a 3 unit and probably have some good income. The bank will allow you to do FHA or 5% down, live there and use 75% of the rental income towards your income to pay for the mortgage. The numbers might work for you, but you should talk with a bank. Also, talk with an experienced realtor who sells and possibly has multifamily homes. This is important that they have experience because they will run comps for you and should recommend houses that fit your budget as well as tell you if the property is a good investment. I recommend Josh Handverger at Berkshire Hathaway (Medway MA Office). He held a multifamily Investment seminar and he knows a lot. I was taken aback by how much info I gained from him. Remember, you can always talk with realtors and get MLS listings but not be tied down to a certain realtor unless you sign a contract with the them. It never hurts to start getting MLS updates to check out the market.

Hey Justin,

I am in the same boat, I have been looking for the last year for a multifamily home and made 5 offers last summer, 2 of which were on the same house in Wakefield with favorable terms to the seller who wanted to stay for a cpl months. I cam up with nothing, even though I would offer 15-20k over asking. It seems like I see a lot of families buying the multifamily homes. I would hang in there and start looking now. Make sure you have a mortgage lender/bank ready to help you as well as your pre-approval letter. I work a regular 9-5 job and am trying to get investment properties that will allow me freedom to not worry about having a job and retire early. I wouldn't quit your day job just yet to start working with your Florida Friend. I would try and do that as a side hustle until you really start building a good portfolio. I also tried looking to buy out of state but because I am not too sure about the financing/loan restrictions as well as who to manage the property and knowing my tenants, I would not stray far from New England until I get my feet wet. I was also looking at buying a condo or townhouse in the Boston area, it is a good idea and I would stick with it. Try and find a SFH or a condo /townhouse, I know some people who rent their condo out in the North End and they make bank. You can also try Malden, Everett, Revere, Melrose, & Chelsea. I also think buying in Worcester and taking the commuter train into work isn't a bad idea either. I still hear a lot of investors & real estate agents talking about the boom in Worcester, it's a great opportunity. The only reason I am not there now is because of my Fiancé. lol But they are starting work on the new stadium for the Sox AAA team (Pawsox). The colleges & universities are all putting money back into the community to revitalize / improve the city as well. I know its a far commute but you will make good money. Remember, you don't have to be in love with your property, it's just an investment that you will move out of.

Hi Tyler, I have been looking for a while now in and around the Boston area for an owner occupied multi-family in the Everett, Malden, Melrose, & Revere areas. The south shore is a good market also, if you don't mind the traffic on 93. There are great deals out there, but you have to have all your ducks lined up to make an offer and be ready to buy in an instant. My girlfriend & I are sticking with the north shore area, because of her family but there are great places in Quincy, Weymouth, Braintree, Dedham, & Norwood areas. Def a good idea to listen to the podcasts on BP as well as pick up some books. It is important to be patient with real estate, many people jump into buying anything they see, esp in our market where homes are being sold for over-asking price, when the house is a dump. Do your due-diligence on the area and the house, and make sure the numbers work for you. Positive Cash-Flow means also you being able to pay below market rent while your tenants are paying the majority of your mortgage and you saving money.

What do you guys think about Saugus? It's close to Malden & Medford, even though there is no direct subway line or commuter rail to the city, I found a spot that has a bus line and it is only 20-25min drive to the city.

Thank you for the responses!  DJ, I have a pre-approval and a friend who is a real estate agent who is helping me but he doesn't get any inside scoop or seem to have any connections on properties in the area to get a showing of a home before it goes to OH. How well do you know the Malden / Medford area? Do you have connections and are you able to get the inside scoop on upcoming properties before they hit the market? 

Hi Everyone,

I am trying to buy my first multifamily in the Malden, Melrose, and Medford Massachusetts areas. My main area of interest is Malden but I am open to anywhere at this point to get the right property. It would be owner occupied and my primary residence for a while. I have been to multiple open houses and only seem to be finding homes that are expensive and need a lot of work and won't be worth the sweat equity nor the cost of the property itself, or homes that are really nice but that are out of my price range and won't be a good ROI because the updates are already done and there's no cash flow. I am hoping for any advice . Lastly, in your opinions, does having a property with a driveway to park a car a necessity or luxury in these areas (close to the city with public transportation)? I found a home that has no driveway but there is plenty of street parking. Thank you for your feedback!