All Forum Posts by: Jeremy Taggart

@Brian Dolbeare This is a "it depends" question for sure, but in most cases street parking is pretty common here. Especially on small multi family buildings since most of them are in more urban areas. 

I wouldn't consider it a heavy negative unless the street is super tight and parking is hard to come by or if the street is very steep/busy.

The more desirable dense city neighborhoods it's almost kind of expected and off street parking would be considered a luxury rather than a necessity.

If you get out into the suburbs I would say it's more of a big deal since more rentals have off street parking or a garage there. In the city or more urban neighborhoods though it's definitely more commonplace.

I've added off street parking behind a property off an alley like you said at least a handful of times. If it's something as easy as adding a parking pad then I would say it usually can make sense. But if you have to jump through hoops or spend a significant amount of money to put it in might not be worth it. 

@Tove Fox You can get a 2-3 unit property in Pittsburgh in B areas that will hit the 1% rule and be in decent shape. A class typically won't hit 1% rule unless you get 30-45 minutes outside of the city. Single family usually doesn't make much sense from a rent/price ratio in A-B areas unless you are doing a rehab. B class will be basically break even maybe slightly positive cash flow on a good deal with your typical 20% down payment and financing the rest with todays interest rates. 

@Noy Rivlin

Mount Washington: Pretty much all good. Desirable first ring city neighborhood. Nicest sections are closer to Grandview Ave/Duquesne Heights.

verna- out side of Pittsburgh: I think you meant Verona if so it's a C+ area pretty good school district in Riverview. Good rental area. 

Brookline: Solid throughout city neighborhood with its own business district. Still decently affordable.

 Larimer: Bit gritty there still currently but right beside very high priced neighborhoods and commercial business district of East Liberty/Bakery Square so could see it turning sooner rather than later would not be surprised.

 Lincoln Place: Still somehow in city limits but more suburban neighborhood. It's nice there. No complaints. 

Carnegie: Solid suburb of Pittsburgh in between downtown and airport. Right where interstate 79 and 376 meet so great location. Has its own business district. Decent school district in Carlynton.

Wilkinsburg: Depends on section. The Regent Square side of Wilkinsburg west of the MLK Busway is a borderline A class neighborhood. Once you cross the tracks into downtown Wilkinsburg it gets a lot rougher. In between would be the blackridge section which is more suburban as you go further east.

 Hazelwood: Similar to Larimar. Located close to the East End/Oakland where the universities are. They are developing along the river so a lot of upside here (look up hazelwood green). I think it will start to gentrify soon. 

Sheraden: Nicest the closer you are to Middletown Road which is up the hill. Then tends to get not as nice as you go down the hill closer to the river. West of the park is nicer than east of the park. Close to downtown. 

@Noy Rivlin Most single family homes that make sense as rental properties are about $125k-$225k. Multi family can range from about $60k-$125k/unit. Once you go above $125k/unit you start to get into the high end areas that won't have very good rent/price ratios and are under the 1% rule mark for turnkey stuff.

Neighborhood wise in the city the "East End" is where the most expensive real estate is since that's where the universities and a lot of the hospitals are located. So I'm a fan of buying in the path of progress from here since it's starting to expand outwards into cheaper neighborhoods. Think across the river or highway from the East End, or south/north of downtown in neighborhoods that have easy access to the city and walkable downtown areas. Those tend to be the neighborhoods that are gentrifying.

Unique stuff to Pittsburgh I would say is don't go based on zip codes since one zip code can be composed of multiple different areas/neighborhoods. We have zip codes that have lower and and higher end areas within the same zip so not a good marker to use.

Going along with that a lot of the neighborhoods are very street by street or change pretty quickly by block, so you have to be aware of that. You can have two houses within a quarter mile of each other with vastly different ARV and rent amounts. The hilly terrain is a main reason for this and you can't really see that on a map so knowing the areas is key.

We have old housing stock as well so big things like plumbing and electrical can vary cost wise if they have or haven't been updated. A lot more important compared to newer construction homes where you don't have to deal with certain things when it comes to either of those.

Many other nuances but those are just a few that come to mind. Pittsburgh is a good market to make money in now cash flow wise and has good upside as well if you know what you are doing. 

@Brent Hindman If you aren't looking to grow the rental portfolio quickly or build it to be large, then I'd probably just get a HELOC on it and keep it as a rental. You might not get as much cash flow with that equity as you would get if you sold and put it into say an apartment building, but with the low mortgage rate you are likely getting some pretty good principle paydown each month and it's in an area that will see good appreciation/rent growth long term.

@Brent Hindman 

Are you looking to upgrade your primary residence or what would you be looking to purchase as the next home? Would this be a forever home or something you would plan on doing the same thing all over again on? (Live there for a bit then rent it out)

It's a tough decision nowadays with a 3% mortgage which is pretty much an asset in itself. 

I would also say it depends on your timeline and how big of a rental portfolio you would be looking to build. I am a fan of utilizing equity in existing real estate owned to build the rental portfolio though at the beginning, rather than just relying on money saved alone.  

Yup I like the small-mid size multis like 5-50 units. Big enough that you aren't competing with newer investors/house hackers but small enough that you aren't competing with institutional money. You also see those marketed improperly or not managed very well quite often which presents opportunity for value add. 

We have mostly 2-4 unit buildings compared to the larger stuff but that 5-50 range can be a good space to find deals in. 

@Anne Christensen BRRRR can still work here on the equity side of things. Plenty of fixer upper homes that have good margins after rehab. You just won't really have a ton of positive cash flow right off the bat if you are refinancing at 70-80% LTV at today's interest rates.

Multi family you can get both but those are tougher on the equity side of things since they cost more to rehab compared to a single family home. So won't tend to find as many oppotunities that work to maximize equity gained like single family homes.

For single family homes you'll want to stick to neighborhoods under about $225k ARV in order to have rent/price ratios that make sense on the backend for holding as a BRRRR. In most instancdes anything higher than that is more flip territory now with the higher interest rates.

@Tomer Einy generally neighborhoods with an ARV of about 250-350k are your best bet right now. That gives you enough margin to work with and make a profit and have the highest # of people looking in that price range since it's closest to the median price point of home here. Plenty of areas that fall within that price range.

@Ashley Harris I'd go for a 3-4 unit if house hacking. A lot tougher to live for free or close to it anymore with a duplex. My house hacking criteria for the last few I have done has been to buy the most expensive 3-4 unit I could with it still at least breaking even after all expenses as a long term rental. The overall ROI long term is the highest with that strategy when it comes to house hacks in particular.