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Please tell me...where you live...Please tell me...where you live...
Harry said: "I'm embarking on real estate investment. My first goal is to seek a nice balance of value and location.
The benefit of a forum like this is it's posters. You are from all over the nation.
What type of communities are in your regions of the country?
I'm looking for nice upwardly mobile towns that have a good industrial and business bases to buy and maintain rental properties.
Where I live (Northern NJ) buying rental property is not too profitable.
Even with the big market correction, houses and apartment bulding are too expensive to offer reasonable rents that would cover a money borrowed.
NYC is rediculous for someone like me starting out.
Some areas are affordable but are blighted...low income population ...homes values are stunted and quality renters are few...neigborhoods run horribly down.
In Pennsylvania the Poconos is nearby. A friend rents some houses there...he hates it. There is no major industry there. There's a college and a lot or resort businesses that also provide a population of low rent people service employees.
Deeper in Pa I do find some nice towns with affordable houses, but too many places seem build on a single industry...I few that if a small town's major industry goes under my investment will go empty.
So I ask...what are "you" seeing in your region.
I like nice clean towns with a variety of bustling business growth.
Where are companies building new facilities, hospials, etc?"
Rbreb13 said: "Can't help ya much here. Properties are overvalued IMO."
FirefighterB said: "Check into Austin, Texas, Harry. Vastly growing, dynamic city with a very young age demographic (average is around 32 or so), an excellent music scene/nightlife, and TONS (seriously) of outdoor activities at your fingertips. Home prices are, actually, still pretty reasonable (compared to AZ, CA, NV, NJ, NY, etc.), too, and, IIRC, below the national median.
They are building new highways on every end of the city and planning on another million people (there are only 1.4 in the metro-area, 850k in the city itself, now) in the next 20 years or so.
I still think they'll be some drops in the city, overall. Texas has a deliquency-to-foreclosure time of 21 days on average and more land than they know what to do with. The sheer number of new housing developments is immense. There is a glut of housing in the suburbs of the city and there is a HUGE number of new condo developments going up near downtown, that will likely have trouble selling if the market and economy hit serious turmoil.
Overall, though, I think it's a pretty solid spot to look for real estate investment, IMHO. I might be moving back there, depending on where job fate takes me in the next year or so. If I do, I definitely plan on putting together a nice RE portfolio of properties there, either personally or through an investment LLC (or both)."
1997zj said: "what about Marthas Vineyard? small friendly wealthy island off the coast of mass? Chatham ma?"
sax1 said: "Southern CA!!! The State has the fifth largest economy in the world. Near perfect weather, beautiful beaches and the entertainment industry attract people from all over the globe. You will never be poor being a property owner here."
newinvestor123 said: "Wait a year Harry...
I live in Warner Robins, GA. It has not participated in the real estate boom to the extent that the urban areas have, and it is host to a large Air Force base, which lends a level of stability to the local real estate market. I would not personally buy any real estate anywhere unless either I had to out of necessity, or I was able to pick something up for an absurdly cheap price relative to the local market. I've heard good things about TX real estate. When I was in Houston in 2005, one of the people I talked to there told me he paid $150,000 for a new 4 BR 3 BA house about 20 miles west of Austin (I think it was that much, I could be mistaken - But I do remember that it was very cheap). From what he told me, property values in that area won't stay that low for very much longer, because as FF mentioned, Austin is growing fairly quickly."
Aligator said: "Harry, I wouldn't do it unless you have oodles of cash. The chances of you finding a sweet deal in an area that you do not live in are pretty slim.
Take my area, for instance. Do you think that we locals are not out looking for all those ready-made money makers? Do you think we're going to let one slip by? 'Cause if you do, you're wrong. I know of three families who are constantly looking and working at it. And that's not counting the real estate people themselves.
Real estate is a fine investment. We make good money with ours. But I have lived in Seattle; San Diego; Chicago; Atlanta Huntsville, AL; Ft Worth; and now Mississippi, and the common wisdom is always the same; the [I]real[/I] deals are somewhere else. :whacky011:"
lil dickie said: "Buffalo. Thats the place."
Harry said: "[QUOTE=FirefighterB]Check into Austin, Texas, Harry. Vastly growing, dynamic city with a very young age demographic (average is around 32 or so), an excellent music scene/nightlife, and TONS (seriously) of outdoor activities at your fingertips. Home prices are, actually, still pretty reasonable (compared to AZ, CA, NV, NJ, NY, etc.), too, and, IIRC, below the national median.
They are building new highways on every end of the city and planning on another million people (there are only 1.4 in the metro-area, 850k in the city itself, now) in the next 20 years or so.
I still think they'll be some drops in the city, overall. Texas has a deliquency-to-foreclosure time of 21 days on average and more land than they know what to do with. The sheer number of new housing developments is immense. There is a glut of housing in the suburbs of the city and there is a HUGE number of new condo developments going up near downtown, that will likely have trouble selling if the market and economy hit serious turmoil.
Overall, though, I think it's a pretty solid spot to look for real estate investment, IMHO. I might be moving back there, depending on where job fate takes me in the next year or so. If I do, I definitely plan on putting together a nice RE portfolio of properties there, either personally or through an investment LLC (or both).[/QUOTE]
Interesting...my nephew is Humble Tx and has mentioned Texas alot. I'll have to start getting him to do some homework for me. I'm trying to find the right balance of renter population, affordable housing, and supportive local business base.
I'll start googloing austin...thanks."
Harry said: "[QUOTE=Aligator]Harry, I wouldn't do it unless you have oodles of cash. The chances of you finding a sweet deal in an area that you do not live in are pretty slim.
Take my area, for instance. Do you think that we locals are not out looking for all those ready-made money makers? Do you think we're going to let one slip by? 'Cause if you do, you're wrong. I know of three families who are constantly looking and working at it. And that's not counting the real estate people themselves.
Real estate is a fine investment. We make good money with ours. But I have lived in Seattle; San Diego; Chicago; Atlanta Huntsville, AL; Ft Worth; and now Mississippi, and the common wisdom is always the same; the [I]real[/I] deals are somewhere else. :whacky011:[/QUOTE]
You named some pretty EXPENSIVE places. I live in one too.
No house mortgage in the northern NJ or NYC area can be paidoff with rent...the prices are too high. My NJ wage actually has more leverage in places that are not overly populated and rundown, or are not major cities.
Parts of neighboring Pennsylvania fit the bill...I just need to know where."
Harry said: "[QUOTE=1997zj]what about Marthas Vineyard? small friendly wealthy island off the coast of mass? Chatham ma?[/QUOTE]
Martha's Vineyard? What do you think I'm Donald Trump? :laugh:"
Mr. Gekko said: "[QUOTE=Harry]Parts of neighboring Pennsylvania fit the bill...I just need to know where.[/QUOTE]
Have you checked into the Lehigh Valley area? While the real estate market [I]has[/I] cooled here, it's far from a crash... and commercial and industrial building is still hot. For example, BMW is building a new distribution plant just a few miles away from me. Plus, Las Vegas Sands is building their new casino at the old Bethlehem Steel facility (sure to bring more people to the area). And even more important, we're smack in the middle of the Wall Street West program (sure to bring more WEALTHY people to the area). :th_coolio:"