All Forum Posts by: Spenser Murphy

There's nothing wrong with doing your own data mining. Are you using a GIS platform to map the data? I'm a GIS analyst (cartographer). I've worked extensively with Census data for the San Antonio, TX area. I can't remember if the current census data still has average travel time to work. Regardless of the mode of transportation, humans don't like average commutes longer than 30 minutes. Number of vehicles per household might be getting too specific for a national survey. Fewer vehicles means a property's proximity to public transit is important. Don't forget an areas Walk Score. I'd love to talk more about this subject with you.

Are there any tax advantages to house flipping like depreciation? Are the profits tax free? I want to get into multifamily rentals. Someone recommended flipping houses to raise capital to purchase the rental properties. Thanks

Thank you for your succinct response. You're correct. One should rate the area as much if not more than individual property. San Antonio has a lot good block bad blocks. I'm saving your response.

I've just been running the numbers on a spreadsheet I found here on BP. I look at cash flow and ROI. San Antonio is not a wealthy town. The 2% rules is more 1-1.5% here. At least that's what I've concluded from my limited number crunching. San Antonio, while not wealthy, has relatively stable employment rates with the major military bases, USAA headquarters, and the Medical Center.

I've read about investors rating properties on an A-D scale? What are your criteria for an A, B, and so on. I posted here because ratings are different from market to market. I've lived in San Antonio all my life so I'm comfortable with this market.

Define contract workers?

I've seen listings for multi-family properties with month to month leases and consistent occupancy. Is this to good to be true? It seems a monthly lease would attract problem tenants. What about vacancy rates? Are there upsides to monthly leases?

Thanks

Thanks, obviously that doubles what I thought the leasing fee was. This does affect my cash-flow projections.

I understand property managers charge half a month's rent per new tenant. The monthly percentage ranges from 6-15%. What rate can I get on a duplex? What factors affect the monthly percentage? I'm doing as much research as possible so I can make a solid pitch to a bank or investor.

Great advice and recommendations. Keep it coming. Thanks