All Forum Posts by: Linda Osborn

I have Section 8 tenants that have been great as well. They take very good care of the property and it is always clean when I stop by. I have had these tenants for going on 5 years, and they have been increasing their income every year...which means they are getting less and less from the city, but they still make their payments every month.

So, although I agree it is a risk, a good screening (including calling the previous landlord, credit, criminal, income verification, etc.), should be adequate to vet the tenants when they apply. 

@Scott Poole

Fair enough! Glad to help....

@Scott Poole

I agree with your assessment of Detroit. House prices are very low, but it is one of the few cities that people are leaving in large numbers. I would stay away from cities that are declining in popularity as the reason people leave is because jobs are declining there as well.

However, the median list price in Austin is around $270K, average price is $335K as of February 2016. Don't get me wrong, there are quite a number of $700K+ homes in Austin, but that is definitely NOT the median list price. See the Feb 2016 statistics published by the Austin Board of Realtors below. The biggest plus about Austin is that people are still moving here in droves and the home inventory is really low...there are many, many more buyers than sellers. Housing supply in Austin is 2-3 months. And, although it is currently a strong sellers market, in my opinion there is still quite a lot of appreciation to be had. Whether we are in a "bubble" remains to be seen.

I am unfamiliar with detail on the other cities on your list, so will not comment. 

Hope this helps!

@Scott Poole

Welcome to BiggerPockets! This is a great resource for REI information and networking!! You might want to make connections with other investors and professionals in your area if you are planning on investing close to home. Best of luck!!

@Jennifer Kennedy

Welcome to BP and RE investing! This is a fantastic site for education!

I agree with @Nasar Bhegani...Austin is a crazy place right now. There are many indicators, however, that it is going to stay that way at least for another year or two, if not longer,  especially on SFRs. I have the same offer as Nasar, feel free to get in touch if you want some insight into the Austin market and to hear about my investment experiences, and maybe perhaps others in my office as well.

@Jacob James Caballero

Is there a local REIC (real estate investment club) in your area where you can hook up with local investors? Sometimes these can also be a great source of both additional education and investors to work and/or invest with you.

Welcome to BP Kris!

@Jacob James Caballero

I would recommend you locate a good team to work with should you decide to invest in another state. It is important in these cases that you work with someone you trust who has your best interests in mind.  We recently had a California investor client that bought a 4-plex in Austin from a real estate agent that either did not understand the rental market in the area, or was more interested in the sale. The unit is in a very bad part of town, and was being poorly managed, including having tenants that were not paying their rents, had unauthorized pets, had done damage to the property, the place was creepy crawly with bugs, etc., etc. We were called in to pick up the pieces, which consisted of kicking all the current tenants out, doing a complete (expensive) rehab, and re-leasing the units. However, because of the area the property is in, we are having more challenges leasing this property to good tenants than any other property we manage. Please be very, very careful when investing out-of-state, especially if you have no one to vet the property and the tenants for you.

The advantages of working in your own back yard are many, and you can find deals there if you know where to look. 

However, if you do want to invest out-of-state, start finding a team to work with you!

Hi Mark! I agree with @Donny Widjaja. I also can help you locally identify some funding sources and contractors in the Austin, TX area (depending on your personal situation, goals, and what strategy or strategies you want to use). 

I would love to hear more about your plan / thoughts. Feel free to reach out to me as well. 

Good luck @Samantha Coppinger and let me know how it goes!