All Forum Posts by: Nick Scullin

A lot of my worries and wonders about this place have been confirmed by you all. @Steve Babiak, I have seen this report before and it's what has me nervous about making the plunge. Is a great house hack deal really worth my safety and feeling uncomfortable where I live? Probably not.

And with all the new projects coming along, as well as increased traffic, @Jimmy O'Connor I can really see this place taking off down the road and then seeing my assets shoot up.

Now I know that you shouldn't ever bank on appreciation to make a good deal, but it would be awesome icing on the cake you know. I appreciate everyone's feedback and I will take all of it into consideration.

I wish Conshy was more open for business, meaning more deals. I guess this is me making excuses and not implementing a boots on the ground approach by door knockings there. The journey for a house-hack in Montco (or Manayunk) continues!

@Joseph Pietrzak @Joe Steinheiser Thanks for the feedback...I didn't realize the taxes were so high there. That could break a lot of deals

Hey everyone! I'll try and keep it short. I've been looking more into Norristown lately as a place to invest and potentially start with my first house hack. The prices are much better and there is a larger amount of multifamily homes. And the location is great....but we all know the elephant in the room that I promise I'm not overlooking. Norristown obviously gets a bad rap for being laced with crime and being an overall bad area. Friends think you're crazy when you mention living there.

My question is, is it really that bad still? Or is there a LOT of potential here?? Everything surrounding it, such as KOP, Plymouth Meeting, Blue Bell, and Conshy are great and desirable areas. Will gentrification take over and find this area as "the place to be" in 10 years? I'm not sure. I know of a couple people who live there who say that it isn't nearly as bad anymore and most people make it seem worse than it is.

Just want the opinions of other investors and agents (or residents) on the topic! Comment your thoughts or shot me a message!

Thanks for the great post and insight! I hear mixed things about investors having luck in my city of Philadelphia, especially with MFH, but I am taking to the surrounding suburbs... it's nice to read this post about the viability of MFH at this time!

I'm generally looking in the suburbs of MontCo. Inventory is the biggest issue and if you can find something, the numbers generally don't work out to go after it.

I'm interested to hear what others think about this!

@Cole Britting There are for sure places where you can live close to the city with that kind of budget. My question is, is how close is close for you? There are areas like Brewerytown and cobbs creek which are doing well for investors right now, but this is more from a fix and flip standpoint. Brewerytown also isn't exactly the nicest place to live for a house hack, but the area is getting safer.

Somewhere like Manayunk might be a good balance for you and what you seem to be looking for!

@Drew Sygit Ya that's a great point and something that I have noticed when practicing analysis on properties in the area. The expensive MFH usually don't pass the 1% test. Just because a Duplex goes for 400K, doesn't mean I can get 4K or more rent a month out of it!

@Connor Murphy While you are going to be new to the area, I still think you will have to narrow your criteria down more first. It is extremely broad to say a house hack within a "reasonable" commute distance of Drexel. Do some market research about crime, schools, and home prices. This initial phase will help you get a quick and dirty of what areas are "bad" and "good." 

Also, do you want SFH or a multifamily? This will also make a difference in the market you choose. The amount of capital you have also will because a lot of nicer areas around Drexel are expensive (depending on what you call expensive). Since you will be living in your investment, you will be able to get an owner occupied loan which will make your down payment much smaller if you need.

So in summary, fine tune what you want more so that others in the community can help you out more. SFH vs MFH? Price range? Turnkey or fix and flip? How long is a "reasonable" commute for you? 15 minutes or 45 minutes? Public transport vs personal vehicle?

Good luck!!

@David A Lisowski I guess it does just come down to the deal and what you want out of it. If the numbers meet your goal and criteria, then you should go for it!

@Zachary Beach Thanks for this insight I wouldn't have thought about this initially and it's really helpful! I'll also be sure to get prequalified before I really start searching.