All Forum Posts by: Nathan Carter

Hi @Chris Low I have not looked outside of the downtown Boise market.  I live overseas so I had less time or experience exploring the wider Boise area such as Nampa and Meridian.  I echo the comments from @Jonna Weber that it is worth looking in the Boise Bench and West Boise the options are better than those in the North End at this point.  Good luck in your search, I am sure you will find Boise is a great place.   Nathan

Hi @Chris Low,   I agree with @Claire Fenton that Boise is a tight market now.  It is a desirable area and there has been significant appreciation in the last five years. But rents are just too low for most investment properties to pencil out, particularly closer in to Boise.  It is a good time to conduct some due diligence and see if there is a correction in the market down the line.  There certainly was a major correction in Boise in '09-'10 which created some great buying opportunities.   Good luck!

@Chatree C. 

I do think we are heading into a real estate bubble, maybe not at a macro level, but definitely in certain markets.  There is still value out there but with increased competition and rising values it is getting harder to find deals with solid returns.  It is incumbent on investors to really do their due diligence, because when the market turns the other way you want to be able to discount rents or prices and still be able to make all your payemnts.  That is how I successfully rode out the '08-'10 crash.  I wrote a longer acticle on BP about factors consider regarding a real estate bubble if readers are interested in reading more on the subject.  https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/7314/47526-are-we-heading-into-a-real-estate-bubble-six-factors-to-consider 

@Heidi B.

I do think we are heading into a RE bubble, but it is more localized this time (looking at you Denver) and not at a national level when compared to the global financial crisis.  Also at that time there was very little due diligence on loans applications and people were buying homes with no skin in the game.  There are some worrying trends on the macro economic level, such as the slowdown in China you mentioned.  For example, this has hurt the demand for commodities and the once red hot real estate markets in Western Australia, which is a source for those commodities, are starting to suffer.  

One simple barometer to watch is cost of renting versus the cost of buying.  As prices rise too quickly the cost of ownership becomes far higher than what it would cost to rent.  At that point it may make more sense to wait, conserve your cash, and buy when prices pull back a bit.  I find the topic of a current bubble very interesting and if you are interested I recently wrote a post looking at six factors indicating that we are heading into a bubble.  

All the best, Nathan

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/7314/47526-are-we-heading-into-a-real-estate-bubble-six-factors-to-consider

Hi @Ryan Matthews,

It is probably worth attending meetings to connect with other like minded RE investors in the Boise area.  @Lisa Kohl and @Jonna Weber both arrange regular meet ups in the Boise area.  Personally, I find that people who have been in the game a long time are more than willing to share their war stories, which helps to avoid making the same mistakes.  Experienced investors also have insights to help you think creatively about your business.  It never hurts to listen and add value to a discussion when you are able.  You probably have a lot more experience than others in the room.   Good luck on your goals.  Nathan

Hi @Mark Ferguson

I have invested in the Mountain West (Idaho) and in Jacksonville over the years.  If you are considering Jacksonville, @Benjamin Pekarek gave some sage advice above when he said you need to be on the ground or have someone in place you absolutely trust.  I have found the property taxes are lower in Jacksonville and the rent ratios are better than Idaho, but the returns have comes with a lot more headaches, particularly when it comes to property management.  Just something to consider.  Good luck on whatever you decide to do.  

Nathan

@Landon Elscott @Ajay Virdi @Lynn M. @James B. @Ned Carey @Wendell De Guzman

Adding to the ideas for creating passive income,  I wrote a post on BP recently on the pros and cons of 12 different types of passive income to fund financial independence.  I was looking to put a wider list of ideas on one post, although I did not cover some of the IPR related items books, creating and selling software, and music royalties mentioned above, which are great suggestions.  The link to the post is below.

Best regards,

Nathan

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/7314/47144-12-types-of-passive-income-to-fund-your-financial-independence

@J. Scott

Great points on using IPR to generate passive income. 

Thanks,

Nathan

@Brant Richardson and @J Scott

I wrote a post on BP recently on the pros and cons of 12 different types of passive income to fund financial independence.  I welcome additional suggestions, the link is below.

Thanks, 

Nathan

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/7314/47144-12-types-of-passive-income-to-fund-your-financial-independence

Welcome @Logan Knight back to Boise.  There are great resources on BP and in Boise.  I have written a few articles on investing in Boise from a distance on my BP blog if they are of interest to you.  Best of luck on your first RE investment.

Nathan