All Forum Posts by: Michael S.

This topic worked out for me well when I purchased my last home in North Texas, so I wanted to see the advice from those in the Atlanta and Jacksonville area for where to focus my attention prior to reaching out to real estate agents. 

For those who know either of the markets, where would you recommend I look? Here is my criterial (willing to compromise where necessary):

• safe
• ~1% rule
• good tenant base
• in area of appreciation (influx of jobs, especially white collar)
• good schools preferred (zillow of 5 out of 10 or higher)
• 3+ BR
• < $160K
• Preferred brick exterior homes
• The newer the homes, the better

For those familiar with the locations and the recent trends in the areas, which sub-areas would you recommend focusing attention on? I will be traveling to Atlanta and Jacksonville later this month to check out homes.

If anyone knows both markets well, what are your thoughts on which is the strongest investment city?

Thanks for your time!

To follow up on this post, I ended up buying in Arlington a few months ago. Thanks for your feedback and advice!

Should have read the last page prior to posting. Too bad I can't go back in time for this meeting!

I plan to attend. 

If anyone in the area is an out-of-NYC-area investor, I'd be interested in connecting. I currently invest in Texas and am looking to bounce ideas off of like-minded investors in the NYC area.

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I may be making a bid on a house tomorrow depending on what my agent sees during the walkthrough. Looking forward to getting into the area.

@Damian Leonard@Bill Tyler@Mike Makkar

Thank you all for your feedback. This is really helpful in narrowing down areas and understanding what is realistic. 

If you had to choose one city in the DFW area that you'd focus on with my criteria, which would it be?

Mike

Thanks for these cities. I'll keep my eye on them in case I decide to bump up my budget. Are you seeing any of these cities hitting rent of 1% purchase price?

@Bill TylerSince you live in Arlington, what do you think about the Arlington and Fort Worth areas?

Mike

I know this question is subjective, but I'm looking to better understand the North Texas area and figured this forum could provide good advice. I'm looking for the following:

• safe
• ~1% rule
• in area of appreciation (influx of jobs)
• good schools (zillow of 6 out of 10 or higher)
• 3+ BR
• < $160K
• Preferred brick exterior homes built after 1995

 For those familiar with the location and the recent trends in the area, which cities would you recommend focusing attention on? It looks like Fort Worth, Arlington and Forney may be good options, but wanted to see if there are other opinions on these areas.

Any thoughts?

Thanks Ray -- sending you a message now.

Hi,

I am looking to purchase my first primary residence and am strongly considering a condo in a good area of Newark, NJ (University Heights) as I work in NYC and want a property that could be rented out after a few years of living. While this wouldn't be my top choice of rental properties as an investment, it is the best mix of ratios combined with proximity to Manhattan for a personal residence. 

While most of the conversations here are regarding distressed areas of Newark for good rent-to-purchase ratios, I'm looking at more of the middle-class and safer areas and want to see if anyone else has experience in good areas like University Heights or Ironbound. Pros, cons? 

Finally, I'm having trouble connecting with property managers in the area. Does anyone have a recommendation for someone in the area?

Thanks,

Mike