Hanover, PA · Member since 2016 · 9 posts · 1 vote
does anybody have any feedback on investing in Hanover and York PA area? What is the cash on cash return , purchase price, rent price and what to look for? Thank you for the feedback
@Michael Trout - I lived in York, PA for 4.5 yrs and know the city very well. I never considered the place unsafe. Even the ghettos are not bad. I know that area pretty damn well. Care to elaborate in which areas your said properties were located?
does anybody have any feedback on investing in Hanover and York PA area? What is the cash on cash return , purchase price, rent price and what to look for? Thank you for the feedback
I took the plunge and recently purchased a single family home in York, PA. I purchased all cash in the area code 17404. The asking price was $45,000 and I purchased for $42,000. Taxes are $2600 and there was a long term tenant in place on section 8 for $875 per month. Since I have no mortgage and the tenant pays all utilities the coc return is pretty good. The house won't appreciate much but if someone is willing to pay me to live there it's a good investment I think. You have to run your numbers if you are going to have a mortgage.
@Josia Nunes, it all depends on what you are looking to buy or looking to accomplish financially vs the effort. We do a lot of short sales with high returns. You can give me a call or pm me and we can talk more in depth.
I would consider York PA a warzone, literally it is one of the most violent and crime ridden towns in the country. The returns look great on paper, but in reality these are tenants with extraordinarily high turnover. Every property we had there was nothing but trouble. We have exited all of our properties in York and moved to other markets.
@Michael Trout - I lived in York, PA for 4.5 yrs and know the city very well. I never considered the place unsafe. Even the ghettos are not bad. I know that area pretty damn well. Care to elaborate in which areas your said properties were located?
We spent over 20 years in York and moving was quite a difficult decision as our families are still there. Our properties were W. Poplar st and E Cottage st. fairly standard neighborhoods for York. We still have a property on Bierman in the family.
Feeling safe is relative. York is the 11% least safe city in the country and has been in the top 20 most dangerous cities list for as long as I can remember.
For comparison, York had 75 shooting deaths in 2016 for a city of ~43,000 people. Our current preferred investment city Houston had 323 shooting deaths for a population of over 2 million people.
At both of our properties in York our tenants had issues with multiple break-ins, drug dealing, and other crime. The house next to our Poplar street property was burned down by arsonists.
Even after completely re-habbing our properties we found it very difficult to keep quality tenants. Most people in the area only move into York as a last resort and move back to one of the many safer surrounding townships as soon as they are able. These properties are so cheap for a reason. I stand by my statement that this city is a war zone.
@Michael Trout - Part of me agrees and part of me disagrees with your assessment. I've lived in York County my entire life, and many people from outside the city do feel very negatively about the city. West Poplar and East Cottage are both very bad neighborhoods, and I'd be hesitant to buy in them. That being said, I did just submit an offer on a property located on West King Street, two streets up from West Poplar. Key to my comfort in investing in York City, however, is my intimate knowledge of the city. I've been both a property manager and subcontractor for properties in York - from the crack houses of South Queen to the upscale loft apartments on West Market, I've seen them all. It's not impossible to have a stable property with tenants in place for five years with great returns, and feel safe while managing it.
@Account Closed I agree 100%. It is not impossible, but you need the necessary experience and deep knowledge of the city to do it. With the OP not from the city asking about returns and purchase prices they most likely do not have an in depth understanding of this city and it's neighborhoods. Even a month of walking the streets likely wouldn't be enough to truly understand it. War Zones can be highly profitable, but for someone without the requisite knowledge and experience that is not likely going to be the case. For the OP's question, I would highly recommend one of the surrounding townships and avoid York until they gain that intimate knowledge of the city and which neighborhoods are worth the trouble.
@Michael Trout - I can definitely stand by that recommendation. I would honestly recommend someone from outside the area working with an investor in York city on a few deals before buying their own. There's a few investors in York city right now that are really making a difference, and would always love another cash partner.
Hi! I am a new investor in York, Pa. I've had one property for over 2 years and I'm in the process of buying another one. I have had no problems. With that being said, there are some areas that I would not invest in. It's a matter of knowing where works. But overall, I would not consider York a war zone.
Interested in a similar thing: Investing in Hanover, PA. Does anyone here think that Hanover is a good place to invest in blue collar communities surrounding the manufacturing plants, etc? (Most of this thread is focusing on York) Thank you !