Buying Property Sight Unseen
I am considering moving to other markets since the housing prices in my area are not conducive to positive cash flow. I would appreciate any thoughts, comments, or tips on owner rentals from afar. I plan on using a managment company but am kindof uneasy about buying a property sight unseen. Thanks in advance.
Dont buy anything without seeing it with your own eyes. Over time if you build a track record of trust with someone in the area to evaluate properties, you can delegate some of your due diligence.
Thanks for the replies. II have decided to buy sight unseen and rely on the sales agent and home inspector. The agent is sending me tons of photos. If this works out I plan on buying a cheap camcorder to send. Anyway, I am working on a proforma and am wondering how much of repair/maintenance you set aside each month. The properties I have in mind are older (80+ years old) duplexes. I was thinking on $50 per unit per month or about $1200 annually. Not sure if this is low or high.
A couple of weeks back we had a discussion about buying and rehabbing in another state. You may want to read the comments there.
http://www.thecreativeinvestor.com/residential/ViewTopic54599-20-14.html
Jim
I have to agree with Chris - Zillow has a long way to go to a dependable source of info.
Jim
I would highly agree for you to move to other markets!!!! You need to think of it as a savings account even if it is cash flow or not. You put $100 a month into savings and in a year and one day (avoids taxes) you recieve 20,000 +. What account can you do that in? You should look for turn key companies that will take care of everything for you. You just sit at home and sign the documents. Look over the appraisals (ask for 2 ) and the inspection. You would not put all of your money in one account . Try a couple of markets . DIVERSIFY
i agree with the coment on starting early but what kinds of bothers me is when u rent it out to someone when u get back u dont know what kind of condition they gonna keep it in so just someting to think about
"Now you know why you never let buyers take possession before settlement."
Worth repeating.
"Never" is not too strong.
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Mike J
Elevate Your Game![ Edited by mikejaquish on Date 05/14/2006 ]