All Forum Posts by: Joshua Lupo

HI BP! My fiancé and I have been on the hunt for a multi family properties in or around the Albany, NY market. We have analyzed dozens of properties, submitted several offers and at this point have not yet had one accepted. We consistently go in 5-7k over asking BUT we do typically build in 6% seller concessions into the contract. My understanding is that this amount can be added to the total purchase and would allow us to wrap up most, if not all closing costs into the mortgage itself. Our realtor feels that our need for 6% seller concessions may be why some sellers have not accepted our offer despite the fact that we’re offering a fair amount more than asking. My question is why would concessions be a possible deterrent for sellers if they’re getting more money than asking? Thanks!

@Michael Gansberg Wow very much appreciate the insight especially from someone with your credentials! We have been told to avoid Schenectady due to high taxes and not so favorable landlord laws. That being said, when we travel to and analyze properties the ROI on some of them is really quite competitive and these are not in warzones either. For instance, there is one right now I have looked at that is off of upper union ave and no more than 5 minutes from Niskayuna HS which is a great area. Rents seem strong and structure seems solid with no glaring structural issues but internally could use some cosmetic redesign.

We have spent time searching in Troy as well and have had some places that peaked our interest but as you mentioned were seeing an uptick in their taxes but rents are not keeping pace and in terms of quality vs shotty areas Troy seems to have tighter margins in our experience.

We like the long terms prospects of Albany with the industries and all of the colleges and simply the abundance of renters. We are aware this is a highly competitive market and we have been outbid several times now and are questioning whether its time to focus less on Albany and more on the tertiary markets.

You mentioned Albany not as a primary focus for your but as a tertiary location whereas typically I have it the other way around where the Watervliets, Cohoes and Waterfords are more so secondary. Why is that?

@Sean Bayliss Yes we would LOVE to land something in Colonie but at this time and over the last 2-4 months we have not seen a great deal of opportunities in that area?

@Kyle Gendron Thank you very much for your highly detailed, first hand account it gives us hope! I can appreciate when you talk about higher ROI's in less desirable areas and what looks good on a spreadsheet does not always match what you see in real life. This is a big reason we have passed on a some "deals" where cash flow projected to be great because we would not have felt comfortable there and eventually our goal is to house hack again so we would have to show the place in areas we wouldn't necessarily live ourselves. We are trying to get creative and along with utilizing the MLS, we call craigslist landlords every day and see about selling, track foreclosed properties through HUD and Fannie Mae etc. and also have done periodic door knocking to see if people who's properties seem distressed would consider selling.

Hard work and persistence pays off and I am sure we will end up finding a great starter investment it is just a matter of time I believe at this point.  

Steven Luttman I would agree in terms of prospects of Albany and Troy over Schenectady. I do a lot of business in Schenectady and have been impressed by downtown revitalization but taxes are stifling. We’re currently looking in the Troy and Albany area and that’s great that you found a 4 plex as they’re a rare commodity these days..at least ones that aren’t over 100 years old or dilapidated. Close to HVCC is a decent and developing location and we’ve been looking there Did you find it off the MLS?

Ryan Wall Hey Ryan thank you for your input! I could not agree with you more in terms of the 80+-year-old inventory currently on the market and the fact that 95% of what we have seen has had structural\roof issues I see the appeal in Saratoga but all of the prices are jacked up and even small duplexes are running 250K+ Plus there is a massive influx of luxury apartments. “ Old” can be relative though depending on how the property was maintained and made of.

@sebastian ideally we would like to rent to people like ourselves (young professionals) and from what I can gather all 3 cities have neighborhoods that lend themselves to that? I’m also seeing all of the new luxury apartment complex buildings coming into Albany and wonder what that means for smaller 2-4 unit apartment buildings?

Bryce Cutler yes absolutely we love AIN! We actually went to our first meeting back in April and it was great to meet and network with other professionals in the industry. I’m a firm believe in persistence pays off and ideally with all that we’re doing, with a little bit of luck, we’ll find what we’re looking for. I’m also on the fence about pursuing my real estate license. I enjoy what I do professionally but have limited earning potential and the more I learn about and understand real estate, the more licensure becomes of interest.

Bryce Cutler yes we have an agent with Remax and are happy with their services. In conjunction with the work and prospecting they do for us, we are also attempting to do our own due diligence and see about creative ways by which we can make a great deal happen

Thanks Bryce Cutler ! Yes I’ve seen the taxes in those areas and have been shocked with how high they are and how quickly they can eat away at already slim margins in terms of NOI. This first property will be an FHA house hack for my fiancé and I and we keep hearing Albany is great because of the population, colleges and strong business sector. That being said, inventory is very low and so we’ve considered neighboring communities like Cohoes, Watervliet but have reservations about ability to attract good tenants in those areas?

Hey Everyone!

I am looking to buy my first rental property by the end of the year and currently live in Saratoga Springs, NY. As I am looking for multi family properties, I have been assessing, visiting and analyzing properties in Albany, Schenectady and Troy and I am finding (shocker) there are pros and cons to each market.

 I am wondering if any upstate NY investors have done the same and found one market out of the three to be particularly advantageous in terms of tenant base, cash flow, appreciation etc?

Thanks!