Help with an 8-unit property in East Dallas ($100K, completely vacant)
I only own one other property which was a condo that was my primary residence up until a year ago when I decided to lease, so I consider myself still pretty inexperienced.
Since then, I've learned a lot about Dallas, learned about ongoing and upcoming development in the area. I've been eying properties in the East Dallas area for the past few months. Just today I came across this gem: https://www.redfin.com/TX/Dallas/4638-San-Jacinto-St-75204/home/30793354
Something like this scares me, but I'd still like to hear thoughts about it.
Pros: - Great Location: Less than a mile north you've got two separate roads (Henderson Ave and Greenville Ave). Both have been rapidly gentrifying for the past 5-10 years. About 2 miles south you've got Deep Ellum which has a lot of history in our city and is also in the process of being redeveloped. Less than 2 miles west you've got Uptown which is one of the hottest areas in the country in terms of development currently. To the east you've got some older houses than start at about $500K and go up to the millions. The actual property is in a pretty rough patch of East Dallas, and there are quite a few rough patches in the area, but that's slowly changing and this particular property is boxed in by an immense amount of wealth. - Cheap
Cons: - Building condition: Have only seen pictures, but this thing will need a TON of work and, even though the property is 'cheap', it will end up costing me a ton to get it up and running, and I honestly have no idea how to even guesstimate the amount of money it would cost. - It's more than a 4-unit, which means it would be classified as commercial.
Ideally, I'd like something in the same area that appears less risky and is a 4-unit or less. I actually don't plan on buying anything until next year just to have more of a financial safety net, but it would help me a lot if I could maybe talk out some of the pros/cons of a building like this with some experienced investors.
If I don't have the money to fix up the place now, is it risky to simply buy it right now, and just let it sit. The mortgage wouldn't be all that much to be honest, and I'd be okay with just sitting and holding with it remaining empty, or are there risks in doing this that I am overlooking? If I were to buy it, since the timing is wrong for me, I'd buy it now, hold on to it for a few years, then re-do the entire place when I have more money and when the area around it has developed more. I've not really researched exactly what this plan would involve, so that's why I'm not jumping on this deal, but it's possible a similar deal will come up in the near future that I might actually consider.