All Forum Posts by: Kou Y.

Thanks for all the input. I am moving to central California because my wife got a stable job there. Real estate investments in CA are way over price so we are going to rent there. If prices does not come down in a few years, we will use our high income there to buy rental properties out of state. Most likely invest in Columbus, Ohio or Kansas City. Atleast in California, pur combined gross income ( W2) would be over 150K to 200k yearly in a few years.

Durham, NC and surrounding areas are not cheap if you want a half decent neighborhood. I live near Duke, and properties in my zip codes are sky high. Cheap properties are in very bad neighborhoods with school ratings at 1 out of 10, crimes, shooting, robberies, every week etc..

I am going to go all in and be willing to move anywhere in the US to invest in rental properties.

I am a truck driver owner operator and my wife just finished Law School with a JD degree. Being a long distance truck driver, i can live anywhere. My wife would be more likely to get a job in big metropolitan areas.

Here are my criterias:

- Single family 3 bed, 2 bath homes must not cost more than $120k and be able to rent for $1000 to $1200. 

- Home must be in a decent area with  schools that have at least a 5 out of 10 overall ratings.

- Areas must have jobs and growing population.

- State, City must be landlord friendly and allow for quick eviction process. (California takes 6+ month process so it is out)

I was narrowing it down to Columbus, Ohio. But my list included Kansas City, Saint Louis, Memphis, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Birmingham, Houston, Dallas, Jacksonville FL, etc...

For the experienced investors, where should I go ? I want to have 1 million equity in 10 years.  

Should I start out with single family homes or 2 to 4 multi unit in the Columbus Ohio area ? I am not set in Columbus but would like to invest in Ohio due to the nature of my business. Possibly may choose between Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, or Toledo region. Which would be a better area ?

Currently, I live in Durham, NC and looking to move to Columbus, OH area to invest in real estate rental properties. I believe that the current market values of homes in the Durham/Raleigh and North Carolina in general is too high. Most of the properties jumped $100k in value in the last 3 years so I am not going to buy in my area. It was unfortunate that i was not in a position to buy any real estate due to negative marks on my Credit Report and score. Now, my score is all cleaned up and in the 700's range. I am willing to relocate to invest in real estate. I can provide 10 to 20% down payments.

My main goals is to eventually own 10 free and clear rental properties that will provide cash flows to allow me to work less and eventually retire early from my day job. I am looking for long term investments and do not plan to flip.

I have been researching in the pros and cons of cheap properties in not so good neighborhoods vs higher end properties in decent neighborhoods with decent schools. In the end, I concluded that cheap properties will remain cheap while the good properties will raise in value and provide a better return in the long run with both cash flow, and equity.

There will be a trade off in the small multi units vs. Single unit homes. On paper, numbers looks great with multi units properties.  Most of the decently priced 2 to 4 plex units are in bad neighborhoods. Looking to spend $80k to $120k on single unit or multi-unit home. Obviously, the multi unit properties will bring in more cash flow monthly if everything works out. I am afraid these units will attrack lower end renters that are higher risks of non payment, damage to property, etc... 

So, in the Columbus, OH area, which is better to invest in and why ? Single family homes in decent neighborhood or multi units in less than desirable areas ?

I think that the interest rates will make the most impact on future real estate contracts.  Can we maintain such a low interest rate on mortgage ? How can mortgage rates be lower than inflation ?  That is not sustainable in the long term.  When interest goes back up, there may be another real estate bust because in the past 10 years, income haven't gone up much.  I have many many cousins and friends who just graduated college and can't get employment in their field of study. Most of our jobs are going over seas.  So, when interest rates goes up, payments on mortgage will raise and many folks will not be able to afford current real estate prices in many markets.

I used to live in San Jose, CA and moved to the east coast because it was too expensive to invest in real estate there. After hearing about a distant relative who moved to Iowa and cash 5 cheap homes (20k each), many of his relative made fun of his cheap homes. They were telling him not to move from California because the real estate in CA may be expensive but the value will go up. That was before 2001. As it turned out, most of the family members who owned homes in California made a killing during the real estate boom. All the families were making more fun of the distant uncle that moved to Iowa and his cheap 5 homes because they only gain 10k each in value. In california, all the houses were gaining 200k+ in value.

Fast forward to 2010, most of the family members in California lost their homes and were mostly wiped out because they bought too many overpriced homes after selling their original homes. The uncle in Iowa still have his cheap homes and didn't over extend and was able to retired with 5 cheap homes. His cash flow from those 5 properties were $4k monthly.

I decided to moved out of CA in 2006 because the properties there were way overpriced. Income will not support the mortgages. Right now,my brother still live in San Jose, CA can't even afford a home there even though he makes $100k. After taxes, child care, and living expenses, he will not have enough to pay for a crappy 800k home there.

So the real question is, do you want cash flow, or do you want accellerated appreciation on properties ? From the story about my families, the uncle with the cashflow properties is the winner. Thats why I moved out of CA to find a better future in NC.  

Thanks for the replies. Will a Realtor firm allow investor to join them for a fee to have access MLS or will they require the investor to work for them ?

I wanted to get a Real Estate License in North Carolina to have access to the MLS listings and comps rather than relying on another Real Estate agent. I notice that on a website that trains Real Estate students that once the student pass the state exams, they needed to be attached to an experienced Real Estate firm or something similar. I don't want to sell nor list properties, I just need to have access to the MLS so do I need to be attached to a Real Estate firm ? Can anyone that pass the state license have access to the MLS or do they have to actually work as an Agent ?

Thanks,  Johnny