District court clerk · Kent, WA · Member since 2015 · 54 posts · 13 votes
Good Morning,
My husband and I are looking to invest in rentals in the KS or OK market. We have family near Wichita and Tulsa so would like to look at those areas. Could we get some recommendations on which areas would be best for holding a rental property?
Thanks in advance.
Renata M
@Renata McCulloch in Tulsa it depends on what you are looking for as far as clients. If you are looking for a growing family stick to the major school districts, Jenks, Union, Broken Arrow, Bixby,Owasso, and maybe districts that are growing like Glenpool and Collinsville and Skiatook. If you are looking for college students you have the area around TU and ORU. If you are looking for business professionals then the downtown area would be a good choice. There are areas that you can find lower income housing, too. Do you have a realtor in the Tulsa area? Tulsa realtor @Deren Huang posted a video on the Tulsa market. You may want to check it out. Do you have someone to help you with renovations? Let me know if you choose to invest in Tulsa.
@Renata McCulloch in Tulsa it depends on what you are looking for as far as clients. If you are looking for a growing family stick to the major school districts, Jenks, Union, Broken Arrow, Bixby,Owasso, and maybe districts that are growing like Glenpool and Collinsville and Skiatook. If you are looking for college students you have the area around TU and ORU. If you are looking for business professionals then the downtown area would be a good choice. There are areas that you can find lower income housing, too. Do you have a realtor in the Tulsa area? Tulsa realtor @Deren Huang posted a video on the Tulsa market. You may want to check it out. Do you have someone to help you with renovations? Let me know if you choose to invest in Tulsa.
@Brent McKee thank you for the info! I will be studying those areas over the next few weeks. Not in a huge hurry to buy but looking to see where the right place to buy would be for us. After looks ng at some of the properties, we may need a contractor to do little updates. We live in Washington state and would be flying in to look after the property. Will also need a good property manager as well.
My husband and I are looking to invest in rentals in the KS or OK market. We have family near Wichita and Tulsa so would like to look at those areas. Could we get some recommendations on which areas would be best for holding a rental property?
Thanks in advance.
Renata M
I own property in Kansas City on the Missouri side and I think that is the best place to buy in that area. Being from Seattle like you, I felt that the laws in Kansas were complicated and more than I wanted to get into. From my own research comparing Oklahoma City and Kansas City, I think the market is more stable in Kansas City.
I was looking at rentals in Oklahoma City this year, and I thought the fundamentals prices were getting expensive. I am sure one from Oklahoma City could argue that you can always find a great deal but the same could be said for Seattle as well. Lots of great deals in Seattle. That being said, if you are going turnkey as an out-of-state investor I would try to find 2% rule type rentals and Kansas City seemed much easier to find those.
I could not believe what I saw in Kansas City. Multiple offers on properties but no bidding wars going over asking price. That would never happen in Seattle.
In Kansas City, I specifically like Sugar Creek and Independence. There was some environment problems in Sugar Creek in recent history that crushed the prices in that area. I think there are great opportunities around there.
I'll never understand why people always think the best place to invest is "back home where we have family." If it was so great, why'd you move away in the first place? Now, for the brutal truth portion of our program:
1. Your family wants nothing to do with your rental properties.
2. Your family isn't qualified to deal with your rental properties.
3. If your family does get involved things will get screwed up and then you'll have to fire your family.
You live in a great place in Washington. Why not invest right there and manage your own assets? I don't read the news much, but I can't think of one time either of those two places made the headlines unless there was a tornado or something...
And just to handle a potential objection that always pops up when people decide to invest 1,000+ miles away from where they live:
Objection: Properties are more affordable there than where we currently live.
Objection Handler: You can get a "more affordable" meal off the dollar menu at McDonald's, but I bet you don't go out to eat there on a Friday night.
Here is an easy formula for success in real estate:
Become a better buyer + Buy local based on your own calculations + Manage your own assets + hard work and lots of it = financial freedom
Thanks for all the insights. There is a lot to consider. As far as buying out of state, it is a tax strategy I am considering. It is also a lot more stable there as far as the market goes, at least in certain areas. Not as many sharp ups and downs as there are here. I don't expect our family to do any work on these properties. I will be looking to property managers to take care of the properties. We are looking into investing here as well. Still learning all I can about different strategies and how I can implement them to create my own portfolio. @Ryland Taniguchi your comments were great. Thanks for being so generous with your time and your knowledge.
Personally, I am thrilled that you are interested in investing in Kansas. I own a company which matches renters with properties, and I keep a database that tells me exactly what people want, what they can afford, what location, etc.. I provide reports to my owners whether I am only leasing, or full time managing, so they can know what properties are attractive to buy, at least from a rental market standpoint. The Wichita and suburban area is a LANDLORD market. It's a great time to buy here, and many smaller communities, such as Haysville, Goddard and Derby, offer incentives often to buyers, depending on what type of properties you buy. Let me know if I can be of any assistance!
Great seeing you on here. Wichita has been wonderful for us. I'm also going to send you a property I have about an hour SW of Wichita right now, don't know if it would be of interest to you or not.