First time REI in old manufacturing City
Hello - I am a new REI and wanted to gauge the thoughts of some of you folks who have been in my shoes before. As some background, I am a semi-recent college grad (class of 2014) and have spent the last few years working for the US Senate. I recently decided to leave that world, mainly because as most of you know, politics suck. I just obtained my real estate license, and while reading up on how to hone my skills as an agent, I came across bigger pockets and have started to consider the world of REI. I currently live in Northeastern PA and am looking to buy a duplex in the area to rent to Medical students (maybe undergrads as well?) Our area has a vibrant student life with a large university and the recent addition of a medical school. I recently came across a motivated seller who is willing to sell her duplex for around $120k. The one side of the duplex needs light work, while the other side needs a bit more work (stinks like cat pee if you can get a sense of what I mean). The house is definitely on the older side, built circa 1930, but walking through the property I saw a ton of potential (huge back porch, front porch, large semi-modern kitchens, beautiful hardwood floors trapped under dingy carpets, etc.). The one issue I have is that the house is HUGE ( 4,570 sqft, 9 bedrooms) and there is only one bath per side of the duplex. My father is a real estate atty in the area, and he seems to think it is too big for someone like me to fix up. Admittedly, I am not the handiest. I can paint and pull the carpet, but anything more advanced than that I will need some assistance. The home is just 5 blocks from the med school and 4 blocks from the University. I think I can rent each side for around $1,250 each, and after doing some analysis, it looks like it could cash flow positive. Do you guys have any suggestions on what I should do? Thanks in advance!
-Max