Opinions on investing in a small college town

Opinions on investing in a small college town

Horseheads, NY · Member since 2017 · 12 posts · 6 votes

-I'm interested in a small college town upstate ny and want to get some advice. This specific town is very, very small with absolutely no chance of property appreciation; but for some reason my gut tells me to look into buying a house or two. Houses are very cheap, quite old, mostly 3-4 units but are made to fit in students per bedroom not per unit. There is about equal supply as there is demand so no problems in filling vacancies. I don't want to dive in to numbers just yet but on average I'm seeing comps being 1500-1900 per student per semester as the normal rent here...semester being 5 months-ish. House prices are 70 - 125k here for 2-3 unit that may fit 2 students per unit. Little bit of napkin math tells me I can make decent cash flow. My sister went to school here and she lived off campus in of these houses and told me its not a party school just occasional drinking at the bars and back home.

But back to the point, what are your guys' thoughts on investing in an area like this? The college is about medium-small size (~5000 students). Very quiet small town, low-income but low crime. I just love the fact that prices are cheap and small town makes me feel in control because I can establish a good relationship with other land lords and contractors. Thanks in advance!

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Real Estate Agent · Albany/Schenectady/Troy, NY · Member since 2016 · 74 posts · 35 votes
8y

Since it sounds like the town is highly dependent on the school I'd do some more research on the school itself.  What is the cost and quality of on campus housing?  Is there a beautiful new dorm with gym and swimming pool under construction that could impact off campus demand?  What majors do they focus on and are they likely to be in demand in the future?  How will the school be impacted by potential tax bill being passed?

You are near Ithaca which is a great college town.  It also has some airbnb potential in the summer when your units might be vacant to bring in somecadditional cash flow.

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  • Allentown, PA · Member since 2016 · 515 posts · 404 votes
    8y

    @Khayyam Latif

    Go for it buddy. Sounds like you have done a good amount of research on the area. You already have a relative who can give you perspective. Plus the price points are pretty low enough that you won't feel like you are investing too much money into it.

    Remember when it comes to college housing. You rent by the bedroom, not by the unit. So if certain bedrooms in your units are large enough to be divided into 2 smaller rooms, do it. That way you can charge more as a whole but the students won't feel the crunch because they will be paying a "low" price for their rent.

  • Allentown, PA · Member since 2016 · 515 posts · 404 votes
    8y

    @Khayyam Latif

    I also like the fact that the price point is just of single families but multi-families. This is great, so just in case for some reason the student population decreases, you can always turn it back into a regular long-term rental property.

  • Real Estate Agent · Albany/Schenectady/Troy, NY · Member since 2016 · 74 posts · 35 votes
    8y

    Since it sounds like the town is highly dependent on the school I'd do some more research on the school itself.  What is the cost and quality of on campus housing?  Is there a beautiful new dorm with gym and swimming pool under construction that could impact off campus demand?  What majors do they focus on and are they likely to be in demand in the future?  How will the school be impacted by potential tax bill being passed?

    You are near Ithaca which is a great college town.  It also has some airbnb potential in the summer when your units might be vacant to bring in somecadditional cash flow.

  • Stephanie JacobsonBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Ithaca, NY · Member since 2016 · 429 posts · 324 votes
    8y

    Are you considering Corning? If so, do it! It’s a great area to get into student rentals. 

  • Downers Grove, IL · Member since 2017 · 366 posts · 165 votes
    8y

    One of my children went to school upstate NY, and rented from two landlords, one LL was great, one LL was a horrible slum lord. Renting to students, probably even more of a mixed bag than the landlords who rent to em. Management, is critical, your patience for insanity also matters. Not saying it's a bad idea, just a lot to think about. 

  • Will GastonPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Columbia, SC · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    8y

    @Khayyam Latif I would think long and hard about renting to students unless there is considerable upside. It's been my experience that they pay 20-100% more than non-students in my market, but the management can be very tricky.

    This post may be helpful when considering.

    https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/52/topics/491...

  • Real Estate Broker · Westminster, MD · Member since 2017 · 159 posts · 101 votes
    8y

    There are lots people who will tell you to pack in as many students as you can. I would suggest hiring a local architect to ensure you are using the building in an effective and lawful way. You can quickly run into local and state building code issues. Not to mention the nicer apartments attract better clients. Make sure you have parents on the leases, I have seen this problem at some small colleges when I was in North Carolina. 

  • Horseheads, NY · Member since 2017 · 12 posts · 6 votes
    8y

    Thank you all for the insights, sincerely. I'm going to start analysing deals and will keep BP updated! I just wanted to know if small college towns were something I should stay away from before I start running the numbers.

  • Horseheads, NY · Member since 2017 · 12 posts · 6 votes
    8y
    Originally posted by @Stephanie Jacobson:

    Are you considering Corning? If so, do it! It’s a great area to get into student rentals. 

     No I'm considering Fredonia, I live right next to Corning...CCC just constructed dorms for its students so there is less demand for student rentals now than before.

  • Horseheads, NY · Member since 2017 · 12 posts · 6 votes
    8y
    Originally posted by @Will Gaston:

    @Khayyam Latif I would think long and hard about renting to students unless there is considerable upside. It's been my experience that they pay 20-100% more than non-students in my market, but the management can be very tricky.

    This post may be helpful when considering.

    https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/52/topics/491...

     Wow, thank you sir! Loved that read. Yeah I know the management will be much different but I like the idea of having yearly tenants instead of long term tenants...especially for my first few properties, I'd like to be hands on & give it attention. I hope I could get in touch with you if I ever need some specific advice down the road?

  • Stephanie JacobsonBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Ithaca, NY · Member since 2016 · 429 posts · 324 votes
    8y

    @Khayyam Latif yes, but it's not a super-saturated market like Ithaca, for example, and there will always be students who prefer an actual house over dorms. Especially considering dorms are expensive; charging $300-400/bed will be less cost for them than on-campus housing, and CCC students are typically willing to do more to save money than Cornell or BU students.

  • Horseheads, NY · Member since 2017 · 12 posts · 6 votes
    8y
    Originally posted by @Stephanie Jacobson:

    @Khayyam Latif yes, but it's not a super-saturated market like Ithaca, for example, and there will always be students who prefer an actual house over dorms. Especially considering dorms are expensive; charging $300-400/bed will be less cost for them than on-campus housing, and CCC students are typically willing to do more to save money than Cornell or BU students.

     Oh yes, good point. Do you have any experience investing in Corning student rentals yourself? 

  • Stephanie JacobsonBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Ithaca, NY · Member since 2016 · 429 posts · 324 votes
    8y

    I haven't myself, I mainly flip houses in Ithaca. But most of my clients are investors, mainly of student rentals in Binghamton. (I cover both Binghamton and Ithaca.) But my husband went to Corning and we live nearby, so we keep an eye on the market there.

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