Upside down property that ended up not being great.

[Jack Young]

Hello bigger pockets. I have had a small amount of real estate investment training from a friend who is a real estate investor, however I've never done a deal. My girlfriend bought two investment properties in the last year to act as airbnbs after minor rehabilitation. 

H ere are some facts:

Both houses are in non-centralized locations and Phoenix metropolitan area, meaning they are not close to highways or freeways airports, or a significant locations. This means that bookings on Airbnb are less premium. 

secondly, she paid full market value for both, but does not own either outright. 

third, the financial strain has begun to cause issues. 

what I am hoping for is an easy way out of the property even though a real estate agent wouldn't touch it due to its lack of equity. Is there any potential for something such as a large investment firm buy out the property or would an investor even consider the property, which has already been rehabilitated furnished, etc. Realistically, if somebody could just do a mortgage takeover or ideally pay off the mortgage with their own financing, that would be a great relief. Even getting rid of one of the properties would help a ton.

[Melissa Justice]

@Jack Young,

Hi there! It sounds like your girlfriend jumped into the STR market without much buffer for holding costs, which is common when investing in non-centralized locations. A few thoughts:

Traditional buyers may be hesitant – Since the properties were purchased at full market value and don’t have much equity, most retail buyers or typical investors won’t see an immediate upside.

Mortgage takeovers / assumption – Conventional mortgage assumptions are rare unless the loans were structured to allow it. Most standard mortgages in Phoenix aren’t assumable.

Investor options – Some larger investment firms or private equity groups do purchase turnkey or fully rehabbed properties, but they typically want a portfolio discount. They’ll look for either cash flow potential or appreciation upside. If your properties are struggling on cash flow due to location, it may be harder to attract institutional buyers unless multiple properties are bundled.

Alternative exit strategies:

Owner financing / lease-option: You could try selling to another investor via owner-finance, which can work even with little equity if you structure payments to cover the existing mortgage.

Portfolio buyers: If you have any other local investors in your network, they might be interested in a bulk buy or taking over one property at a slight discount.

Short-term rental marketplace listing: Sometimes STR-specific brokers or companies buy fully furnished, turnkey rentals in bulk.

I’m a licensed agent here in the Valley, and I also work with investors regularly, so I can help vet buyers or investors who might seriously consider taking over one or both of these properties.

If you want, I can outline specific strategies for packaging or marketing these types of STR properties to investors so that they’ll seriously consider taking over one or both. Feel free to DM me.