All Forum Posts by: Paul Winka

@Peter MacKercher

I figured that. I am not necessarily thinking about St Louis when asking this question, but what identifies a good flipping neighborhood in your opinion? In my mind, it's a place with older housing stock and a few blighted properties, but in an area I would probably not care to be a landlord. Florissant and Ferguson come to mind. 

How much longer are you and your spouse going to be in the service? When you PCS, are you looking for rehab properties instead of the typical SFH a vanilla military member would buy?

@Alex Franks

Alex, you have confirmed a bit what I am thinking with what you said: "There are plenty of folks from the west Coast ( just example that are doing projects in multiple south eastern states". 

That's why I am leaning toward the Southeast. TX is topping the list now because there is no state income tax, landlord friendly, and there are lots of military bases around which is familiar turf for me. But darn those property taxes. FL and TN are tied for second. 

Thanks for the appreciation for what we do in Afghanistan. :)

@Jason Miller

@Jason MillerI undestand what you mean by "targeting" people, landlords among them. Florissant Road is notorious as a speed trap with Ferguson Police, and it's even worse with Calverton Park. Go 36 in a 35, and you will know what I mean. 

If investing in St Louis again, Webster Groves would be at the top of list for places to consider scouring for a buy and hold.

So would you buy either property again, knowing what you know now? Do you have property managers taking care of them?

After a quick glance at those zip codes, 63120 is indeed bold. That area has been dicey for as long as I can remember. Just as a bit of trivia, the rapper Nelly grew up near there. It's kind of like what inner city Detroit is like now.

On the other hand, as @Ed Rataj  mentioned the southwestern edge of 63112 is the best bet. It's immediately adjacent to this area called "The Loop" which is where hippies, vegetarians, university students, LGBT community members congregate, especially along Delmar Blvd. However, the actual Loop is in University City, not St Louis City, although there is a little spillover into St Louis City. If driving east on Delmar from University City, one can note a change once crossing the boundary into St Louis City (Skinker is the boundary). I would not invest there sight unseen. And from what I know growing up there, anywhere west of that railroad track going through there is where I would take a look first.

Map

The longer time to hold on to security deposits and ease of eviction is nice. What I think of with a more landlord friendly state is that it is not a good breeding ground for "professional tenants" that know the laws better than the unwary landlords they prey on. All the chicanery they put forth could score them 6 months or longer of staying in a unit, where it would be 30 days or less in landlord friendly states. 

On another note, I have been going through the forums, and the states that keep getting mentioned are TX, GA, MS, CO, IN, and FL. Honorable mentions are AZ, VA, OH, and TN.

@Jason Miller

St Louis, MO, was a nightmare? I had a fourplex there in 63109 (St Louis City). Buying that place in 2005 was my foray into landlording and a lot went wrong. My biggest weakness with getting back into REI is to stop being jaded from the experience of owning just that one place. Occupancy permits, tenants that couldn't qualify even for a checking accounts, late rents, paying people to leave, and drug users on the same block...it was a nightmare. Where are your properties there in MO? Are you referring to St. Charles County at all?

@Teri Feeney Styers Thanks for the reply. I really should have been more clear about what I wanted, so let me add this.

Flipping would provide the most learning for someone starting out, right? That's part of what I am posting about too is determining which strategy I should have. Flipping involves buying and selling in a relatively short amount of time, dealing with contractors, finding the property. If I break even or even lose a bit on the first deal, I can live with that as long as I learn something to make the next one go better. 

The way I see it now, I have the time off I can take, money in the bank, and the freedom to move nearly anywhere. I want to be able to leverage that and be active. How would your reply change now? 

I could be moving back to St Louis after being away for almost 17 years (military & contracting work). I haven't thought much about a "farm" area yet, other than with some of the older houses in St Charles city and South City. I don't know Metro East too well, but there could be opportunities near Scott AFB too. Military tenants are usually decent.

Is STL best for flipping, buy & hold, or BRRRR?

Hi all,

WHERE SHOULD I LOCATE MYSELF IN THE USA TO BEST TAKE ADVANTAGE OF FINDING AND BEING NEAR FLIPPING DEALS?

That’s the big question I have. It’s quite a serious question too, because I very well may decide where to live in the USA based on what comes out of this thread. Why not go to an area of the country where I would give myself more advantages for flipping? Hopefully, there are others in this same situation that can benefit from this thread.

Here’s some background information on why I’m asking.

I’ve been in the military for 11 years, then been working as a contractor in combat zones the last five years. I’ve been away from home for 16 years! I am still overseas as I type this, but coming home in a few short weeks. I’ve saved well (nothing to spend money on here), but I don’t have a car, clothes (other than what’s in my backpack), or any items in storage. I do not necessarily want to move back to where I grew up either. Some areas are better than others for investing, of course. I have been able to rule out high-cost areas like San Francisco, New York City, Los Angeles, etc. Then there are landlord-tenant laws by state. If I can choose between a landlord-friendly state and a tenant-friendly state, well, that answer is obvious. But beyond that, I am not sure where would be best.

Most BP members are tied down to a certain area for some reason, whether it’s a job, married and spouse won’t budge, kids are in school, can’t bear to be away from home, etc, so they make due with their local area. But I don’t have any of this tying me down. The “my own backyard” doesn’t apply to me.

I am a newbie. I need to learn. I have saved quite a bit of money and won’t need to work a regular job for the next year at least. So the plan is to move to this new locale and invest my time and what I’ve saved with a seasoned investor and learn.

Where would you go if you were me, and why?

Thanks.