All Forum Posts by: Michael Henry

 I’d say your gut. I debated selling a place instead of renting it because of the appreciation, but you’re just taking advantage of an increased price on one side and buying something at an increased price on the other side, and paying the fees associated with it.

Trust your gut, make sure you don’t lose (too much) money, then you’ll know if you’re instincts are right. You’ve planned for this expense, so if are worried about it, It’s probably a symptom of something else, like not enough cash reserves, not a good initial deal/cash flow, etc. 

I agree with all of those. There is some value in us keeping the property, so I don't need to max ROI in absolute terms.

My question could have been more clear. I'm purely asking the characteristics of the renters in Southlake. Who's renting. Why. A few hundred dollar difference in rent for my rental in HTX may sway someone from it, what's that dollar figure in Southlake since a 4/3 is +1k over a 3/2.

@Todd Harris thank you for that reply. The schools part I assumed, would have never thought about the families building a home. The schools family seems a better option than the building a house family, for turnover sake.

@Andrew Postell agreed on the Southlake market in general. It would be an atypical deal that could satisfy the 1% rule.

@Kyle Mccaw it would be a similar situation, hold it to potentially return. could you share average time tenants stay, and if you find a huge difference between a 3/2 or 4/3? I understand if you cannot share this info. 

Greeting all,

I have an opportunity in Southlake, TX, and I'm looking for insights on renter dynamics/characteristics there or other areas like it. Based on median home prices/property taxes, is it truly better to rent than buy there? Zillow rental listings are about $3500 for 3/2, 4500-5k for 4/3, and 5500 for 5/3, so ~ $1100ish per bedroom. Are Southlake renters trying to maximize house? At these price points, what difference in price forces a decision?

I'm asking these things as it will determine price we pay and renovations (updates or additions).

Appreciate any insights.

Thanks for the response @Joshua Noth, and thanks for the insights. I could have been more clear. My goal is appreciation. Our situation allows us to live in a place and reasonably build as much equity as possible, then look at cash flow later down the road, like 10+ years. It is part of an overall retirement strategy. I could use leverage and go faster, but I don't need to.

I was introduced to the podcast by a close friend nearly 5 years ago, and since I’m in a transition phase personally, now is a good time to get a little more serious with real estate.

I currently live in Houston, TX, and will be moving to Fort Worth in about 6 months. My wife and I are both in the medical field. My real estate experience is limited, I’ve used a property manager to rent a previous house out of state. Overall the experience was good, good company, same tenant the entire time (2009-15), etc, etc, the only/biggest downside was the house was not a good rental property numbers wise, so it was a relatively expensive lesson.

I will likely rent my current house out when we move. The #’s will be a little more in my favor. There are other details I’ll have to work out.

My goals in Fort Worth will be to start building more equity using RE, ultimately cash flow, but that isn’t as important in the short term. I don't know how specific that goal actually sounds. My wife’s family is in the area, so there is potential for us staying in the area for a long time.

An situation would be multi family (duplex or triplex), likely living in one of the units (my family, or potentially my mom). I am in no hurry to buy anything. At this point since I don’t know what I don’t know, I’m just looking to get a lay of the land as I don’t know much about the area, and any insights would be greatly appreciated. We would like to be very close to the medical center (Baylor Scott White, JPS, Harris Health) since that is where my wife will be working. Houston traffic has really made me appreciate not having a long commute. School’s are less important since my youngest is 2 and my wife’s initial contract is 2 years and don’t think I need a college prep pre-school/kindergarten (sarcasm). I do understand the importance of schools in some rental markets, any experience with that in the FTW is appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read. I’ll continue to soak up as much knowledge as I can with the forum.