Long distance investing Help (Where to start)

[Joe Matthews]

I’m looking to getting into out of state investing but need help what to do first.

My markets I’m interested in are Chicago, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Ohio, New England and possibly Detroit.

I am actively saving and making great strides, however I need to figure how to make the first move. Should I physically travel to these areas and get a feel for them before I get a Realtor involved or try to find a good Realtor first? I am a current Realtor in the state of Florida right now. Should I start talking to local lenders in each area? Please help!

My budget is under $250,000 and looking for multifamily (4 units or less).

[Bonnie Low]

We are also out of state investors. I can tell you from experience that it's very valuable to visit the area you're planning to invest in before you pull the trigger. As the Real Estate Guys like to say, real estate is local. There is so much variation from neighborhood to neighborhood and even street to street. Get a feel for where you want to invest so when a deal comes up you know if it's an area you want to be in. Also, it's hard to take someone else's word when it comes to what you're looking for. We had a realtor from Pocatello Idaho caution us to avoid "the hood." After driving around for 2 days we had to ask where "the hood" actually was because we saw nothing that would meet our definition of it. Turns out it was just a solid C class area with a few rough properties mixed in and the occasional dead car in the driveway. Nothing overly worrisome, but it's all a matter of perspective. If I've spent time there, I have a feel for the area and can know from the listing if it's somewhere I want to buy or not.