Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2017 · 352 posts · 374 votes
Hello All,
I've noticed a lot of properties sitting on the market for months in Harrisburg. The low purchase prices and relatively high rents seem too good to be true. Why aren't these units getting snatched up? Any insight is appreciated!
Thanks!
@Victor Steffen It truly depends on what area of Harrisburg you are looking at. There are a number of areas that have been revitalized over the last 10 years. Others remain very depressed. The revitalized areas are more expensive to purchase, but also draw good tenants--young professionals. The depressed areas draw the opposite. They may have much better cash flow, but they also have higher turnover, more issues with property damage/repairs, etc.
Here's a duplex I just purchased in Old Uptown Historic District last month and just finished rehabbing. A lot of money was spent revitalizing this area over the past decade.
@Victor Steffen It truly depends on what area of Harrisburg you are looking at. There are a number of areas that have been revitalized over the last 10 years. Others remain very depressed. The revitalized areas are more expensive to purchase, but also draw good tenants--young professionals. The depressed areas draw the opposite. They may have much better cash flow, but they also have higher turnover, more issues with property damage/repairs, etc.
Here's a duplex I just purchased in Old Uptown Historic District last month and just finished rehabbing. A lot of money was spent revitalizing this area over the past decade.
Beautifully done rehab! I'll be visiting the city in 2 weeks to get a better feel for the different communities. Also- there is some buzz about Amazon potentially moving into the area? Any validity to that?
Very nice Cory!...I personally don't know the area that much other than Camp Hill where my brother lives but curious how you will make out because it can be an option for me in the future. I don't see why you would have a problem renting this out. Good Luck
Can't speak to any Amazon rumors -- personally that seems far fetched but who knows. We do both invest and manage properties in Harrisburg. It's an interesting market for sure. The low income areas, city budget issues, and overall slow job growth recently of the city has turned off some investing demand which has lowered purchase prices considerably. It's really hard for us to guess where it's going to go... but we do think it's worth the time to look into the market due to it having such a strange dynamic. Let us know if we can help in anyway in your search.
I see most of the posts here are a year old. Has anything changed in the area? I just moved closer (about 45 minutes away.) Any Areas I should focus on? Thanks!
Avoid this sh** hole. It's full of con artists contractors, junkies, and code enforcement will always find a reason to get in your way to extort you to fund the the city. Read up on Harrisburgs code enforcement scandal to extort investors and homeowners.