All Forum Posts by: Shawn K Hicks

@Owen Schwaegerle I do as well as @Jenn Barona & @Arthur 

@Arthur Harris II

1. On the surface the economy is pretty stable. Gainesville is known for medical and also the U of F. Residential housing and new construction continued to have a hard time keeping up with demand. This is mainly fueled by record low interest rates. *What I'm not sure of is the long term prognosis of the student market. This past year sales were down for student housing due to there only being online classes. Also like Jennifer said, there was unusual vacancies for student housing due to students not being in town. I've noticed so far, parents are buying for students again. It looks like demand is picking up for 1 and 2 bedroom units. Sales of 3 and 4 bedroom units have continued to remain a bit stagnant with student housing but may pick up as prices have dropped a bit.

2. As to crime, I'm pretty sure there are sites online you can visit to check the stats. The short answer, there is always trouble to be found if you look for it. There's not anything going on however that is significantly affecting the investment aspect of the housing market.

3. If you visit the Alachua County Property Appraiser site, you'll find that the assessed values they have are often less than what the true market values are. To add to Jennifers feedback about the University of FL and the city of Gainesville passing on the tax responsibilities with higher rates to home owners: of note, decades ago this was necessary due to there being significantly less of a tax base. It's interesting however that even after all of the decades of residential growth and a significantly larger tax base, the tax rates have not gone down.

@Jenn Barona @Arthur Harris II

I'm going to be in NC this week. If someone wants to put together a Zoom meeting I'm in. Otherwise, maybe we could plan something in person the following week when I get back. Maybe meet somewhere open like the stadium? I'm open to ideas/suggestions.

Hey guys, I apologize for being MIA the last couple of days. Can tomorrow afternoon or evening work for everyone?

@Deantre Burch how’s your Tuesday looking? Jay can chime in if he’s also available. I also can think of a few others that might be up to conference. I can meet with you one on one this week as well. I’ll message you.

Pre Covid we used to meet twice a month. At the very least like Jay mentioned we could video conference until more people are comfortable meeting in person.

Welcome Beau.

@River West I share your thoughts on the student market. This year, some buyers still purchased student housing, some are attending classes but holding off buying right now/just want to keep an eye on the market. In one case I even had a student decide to not even attend classes anywhere for the next year. From what I'm hearing from property managers however,-they are still doing ok with keeping properties rented. So, even with uncertainty, there is still some strong rental demand. I speculate when September rolls around, certain sellers of student housing will be more negotiable with their price expectations. Could be some good values coming up. -and like you mentioned there is some student housing in B neighborhoods that's reasonably priced/the numbers make sense.

Look forward to catching up with you & comparing notes further.

@River West If it's of use to you, here are my observations on the local Gainesville market. Quads in my area are currently being listed anywhere from 225k on up to 325k. Most actual comps are for quads in D+/C- areas and have closed typically between 180 and 225k depending on condition. Rents for most individual units I see range from 650 to 750 for 2 bed 1 to 2 bathrooms. Of note, some of these units will bring in up to 850 a month with section 8 tenants that qualify. The reason in my subjective opinion for the significantly higher list prices on quads priced 275 to 325k that are typically sitting on the market for months has to do with a lone comp where a buyer paid 285k cash in a neighborhood where the previous high comp was 215k. I notice the realtor on that transaction had both sides of the deal. Either the buyer was taken advantage of, or there is some kind of funny business where they inflated the sales price to have a higher comp and perhaps cash was then refunded back under the table. Once that comp hit however, everyone and their neighbor decided to try and list at that price or higher. The most recent actual quad sale however actually closed 10 days ago for 220k. The particular property had a newer roof, updated plumbing, and 2 of the 4 HVAC's had been replaced.

As to flip opportunities, again some of the best options are in the C/D neighborhoods. They are able to be purchased anywhere from 50 to 90k before renovations. Thereafter, most have great flip potential or long term rental potential. One of my top local investors shared with me he is done for the time being with our local A & B neighborhoods, as he ties up more capital, takes on more risk, and his actual profit margins are not any better than when he sticks to the C/D neighborhoods. If 12 to 24 months down the road however there is a market correction, a small wave of foreclosures associated with Covid fallout, etc, he at that time would entertain considering options in those higher priced areas.

Our market is flooded with whole salers. Some have more experience than others. I'd say right now 2 out of every 5 "deals" sent my way are having legitimate potential. 

I'd love to network with you.

@Mike H. Glad to help sir.