All Forum Posts by: Spencer C.

Hi BiggerPockets,

Hoping I can get some help analyzing a deal on storage units, since my niche has primarily been in smaller multi-family units. 2 questions:

1. How do you find out about an area you're unfamiliar with?

2. Wondering if I'm missing something from the analysis below. Let me know and thank you in advance!

283 Storage Unit Facility - residential area close to Oklahoma City.

almost 2 acres
Total Sqft: 26,400
Price per Sqft: $10.80
Price per Unit: $1,007.

Unit Mix:
130 5x10 
109 10x10
44 10x 20

My thought on what Market rate rents would be:
5x10 - $55
10x10 - $80
10x 20 - $160

Property seems to be in excellent condition - on a scale of 1-10 it would be an 8. No leaks in the roof, paving is good, new paint, a few broken doors, fencing is in good condition.

Current Rent Roll: 134 units occupied

Expenses for 2019:
Supplies $200
Repairs $660
Taxes $15,273
Utilities $5,728
Office $1,393
Payroll $13,782
Insurance $5,239

Total Expenses: $42,275

It seems like this is a no-brainer but I don't know if I'm missing something here. Let me know if there is anything I'm not thinking of. Thanks!

@Erik W., thanks for the response. Very true. Each duplex of mine has a much different feel than the apartments / condos that are all lumped together. Also yard makes a big difference as I always allow pets as it helps to get a larger. Appreciate you sharing your thoughts!

@Account Closed, Good point, Merritt. Thanks for providing the link to city data, I'm still trying to figure out all the ins and outs so I didn't know about that!

@Cherie Orellana, appreciate the advice! I'm in the same boat here as the units with the best price and cash flow tend to be the older built units. I'm always about diversification, i'll be looking out for other options next. Thanks for the response.

Thanks to @Robert C. , @Taylor Chiu, and @Jay Hinrichs. All good points and appreciate the confirmation.

Hello BP community, I now have 3 duplexes around SLC area that are all cash-flowing well. My units are a bit older but in decent shape (I like to remodel when I buy so it forces appreciation). I am a little worried about continuing to purchase older units as new construction units are popping up everywhere. Is this worry rightly justified or am I overthinking this?

@Preston Jacobson, Agreed and while it might be competitive right now, if Utah continues to grow then it is even more of a reason to get real estate now. Interesting video clip, thanks for sharing!

@Jennifer Dean, Thanks! How do you find properties that aren't on the market or the one you're in? With today's market in Utah Valley it seems like properties do not last more than a couple of days and are selling for more than you'd expect given the lack of cash flow coming from the property (when doing low-money-down). 

@Jason Larsen, small world! I liked the bay area, but the idea of owning some property was very appealing so moving to Utah made sense :). Agreed, it is a tough market. I just found one property near Pleasant Grove and the numbers may add up, but only if we can force appreciation in a cost-effective way. We're going to give it a try. Good luck to you as well, and thanks for the welcome!

Hi @Becca Summers, Thanks! Yes, I've been very surprised as we've been looking at duplexes and four-plexes how high the price is.. Although coming from northern California makes the price tag a little easier to swallow. We've cast a very wide net looking from Salt Lake City all the way to Orem and just found a four-plex in Pleasant Grove that we've made an offer on. With forcing appreciation we are hoping to make it an income-producing property.

Hi @Dmitriy Fomichenko,

Thanks for the welcome! Based on the links you provided, I've already started to look for BP members in my area. Also, I'm new to the whole forum thing, so appreciate the helpful tip on tagging people in the comment!