I am a Jacksonville, FL native but new to REI. I am considering buying a rental property in St Johns county due to the growing population, more reliable tenants, newer homes, etc. even though margins are a little lower.
I have also considered new construction homes (roughly same price as other homes on the market, and it will be brand new so it will have minimal/no repairs and can charge on the upper end for rent?)
Would appreciate any thoughts or advice on investing in Jax.
Hi James, I'm not a Jax native, but am looking to get into the market as well.
From what I have learned so far, Saint Johns County has a specific demand for single family rentals. There are many long term good quality tenants there and they tend to move in the summertime to work with the school schedules. That being said it is not a very good cashflow market and more of a good appreciation market, due to the development, people moving there, and great quality schools.
I looked at 2 SF homes in St Johns, and analyzed many more. I moved my search back to Duval county though because of the more active and growing economy. It seems to be easier to find cashflow and appreciation areas.
It sounds like we have a similar goal though, if you'd like to bounce ideas off me and vice versa that'd be rad!
Hi James, I'm not a Jax native, but am looking to get into the market as well.
From what I have learned so far, Saint Johns County has a specific demand for single family rentals. There are many long term good quality tenants there and they tend to move in the summertime to work with the school schedules. That being said it is not a very good cashflow market and more of a good appreciation market, due to the development, people moving there, and great quality schools.
I looked at 2 SF homes in St Johns, and analyzed many more. I moved my search back to Duval county though because of the more active and growing economy. It seems to be easier to find cashflow and appreciation areas.
It sounds like we have a similar goal though, if you'd like to bounce ideas off me and vice versa that'd be rad!
Contractor · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
5y
@James Harrington
This would definitely be more of an appreciation play and I don't think you would get much monthly cashflow. And prices seem pretty high right now in that county I don't know after 3 or 4 years if you would really have a ton of appreciation, Maybe 15 or 20000 max.
You might wanna look for something closer to the water in St Johns County and maybe think about trying to do a short term rental, make higher cash flow and get the appreciation.
Real Estate Agent · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2020 · 24 posts · 10 votes
5y
@James Harrington
Hey James,
I like the fact you brought up new construction for buy and hold opportunities. I just purchased a new construction home as a buy and hold rental property and am very happy with it.
Builders almost always offer incentives which typically include covering closing costs and sometimes even pre-paids therefore it helps allow for less cash to close although down payments are higher at retail.
On top of that, with today’s rates even if you are paying retail, these properties still cash flow over your mortgage cost.
For example, I did a rate buy down with the builder’s preferred lender and was able to secure a 30-Year Fixed Loan at 2.25%.
Like you mentioned, being a brand new build you have awesome warranties plus everything being new definitely helps limit some Capital Expenses needed with older below market property purchases, while this growing Jacksonville market keeps growing.
There are pros and cons to buying different property types and I am not saying new construction should be the only strategy because off market properties and properties that need renovations can provide a huge ROI when done right.
I am just a firm believer of analyzing all options available, which in this market includes new construction.
I sent you a message with my contact info if you want to chat further, or if you want me to send over builder inventory I receive from different builders across Duval and St. John’s county.