BiggerPockets Money Podcast Host · Longmont, CO · Member since 2014 · 7k+ posts · 10k+ votes
So my lovely little town has a street that is extra wide to accommodate a train track that runs right down the middle of the north and south lanes of the road.
1,000 years ago, I lived 3 blocks from a train in my first rental. I didn't know the train was so close, until I was ripped from sleep that first night an hour before my alarm went off. Train horns can be exceptionally loud even from 3 blocks away.
I will NEVER live near tracks again.
Would you buy near tracks? We have a lot of trains, and you can hear them through the night sounding their horns from any part of the city, no matter how well insulated your home may be.
But right up against the tracks is a different story.
The city is contemplating some sort of fix that would allow trains to go through without the horns, which would make renting properties near the tracks much easier.
Investor · Fishers, IN · Member since 2012 · 520 posts · 499 votes
10y
Industrial properties and Self Storage are a great fit - We can buy the land cheap, and the "stuff" inside doesn't care if a train rolls through at 2am.
Just 1 more of the 784 reasons we got out of the tenant and toilet nightmare, and into Self-Storage.
Investor · Narragansett, RI · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes
10y
Don't do it unless you live in the city where it is a "feature" all the properties have. That's me though I am told I a bit noise sensitive- must be due to growing up in close proximity to the NJ turnpike.
If you don't heed that advice at least know the train schedule and how accessible the tracks are from your property. definitely a fence if you back up on tracks.
Investor · Waterford, WI · Member since 2016 · 89 posts · 30 votes
10y
I flipped a home 2 doors from a freight train without active arms at the crossing so I was told they had to sound the horn. It was in 07 at the peak when I finished it the slide in the market had started. I ended up selling it rent to own. It took them 4 years to get their credit clean enough to buy it. I made good money but I think I got a little lucky and would probably pass the chance to do it again
Investor · Fishers, IN · Member since 2012 · 520 posts · 499 votes
10y
Industrial properties and Self Storage are a great fit - We can buy the land cheap, and the "stuff" inside doesn't care if a train rolls through at 2am.
Just 1 more of the 784 reasons we got out of the tenant and toilet nightmare, and into Self-Storage.
Real Estate Professional · Memphis, TN · Member since 2009 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
10y
I would not worry so much about the train. We moved by the train tracks when I was in high school and within a week, you don't hear it. My previous office was 30 yards in front of the train tracks and it never bothered me.
@Jeff B. I own 17 homes in Memphis and I can shoot a sniper rifle in any direction and not hit a train.
I would not worry so much about the train. We moved by the train tracks when I was in high school and within a week, you don't hear it. My previous office was 30 yards in front of the train tracks and it never bothered me.
@Jeff B. I own 17 homes in Memphis and I can shoot a sniper rifle in any direction and not hit a train.
I'm sure you are right - - but what was available when last there was only properties on the lines and as Memphis is a major rail hub, they criss-cross the entire city.
On major criteria in my REI has been "if I would not live there, why should I expect others to do so?"
The question was "Would buy on the tracks?" My answer is clear.
Investor · Big Spring, TX · Member since 2016 · 140 posts · 59 votes
10y
I am considering buying close to the tracks. But I'm concerned I will have a hard time renting it. We know the owners and they say they don't ever notice the train anymore. I guess you just get used to your surroundings.
Investor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
Some years ago I moved into one of my houses and didn't realize until the first night, that you could hear the train sounding its horn . It woke me up a couple of nights and then my brain disregarded it as something not having to worry about and I didn't hear it any more.
If the price is right, I would do it and I would build a very awesome pond, with high waterfall in the the backyard. That water can be really loud and it's so calming. It would overshadow most noises and would probably seen as a great asset by potential tenants.
Investor · Warrens, WI · Member since 2015 · 5 posts · 0 votes
10y
I used to live in the burbs of Chicago. Behind the house was a lumberyard. On the other side of the lumberyard were very active RR tracks (plural). Overhead were the planes landing at O'hare Airport.
People would stop talking mid-sentence till the plane wasn't overhead.
After a few weeks you didn't even notice the lumberyard or trains. Didn't notice the planes unless they were right overhead.
That was a very desirable town back in those days, for buying & renting.
If the price is right , sure , because someone will rent it . You can have train tracks in a "A" area and a war zone .
Bingo! Whether I personally want to live in a rental property or not is not a concern that would ever cross my mind. Certainly somebody will at some price, it's just a matter of how much you paid for the property, and can you get enough rent to cover it?
There are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people in the US living next to railroad tracks. There are also lots of people that live in commercial buildings above or next door to some noisy business. People will rent just about anything if the price is right.
Investor · Saint Augustine, FL · Member since 2015 · 227 posts · 61 votes
10y
No because the properties here that are near the tracks are not desirable...and it is not just the sound of the horns it is the shaking....I can still remember an old Lucy episode where they are in a a cabin by the tracks and the bed moves across the floor...
Realtor · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 857 votes
10y
You're all fancy here. I grew up with a cane train right behind my backyard. Parents also sold this house for a sweet amount of money when all the kids move out.
I would say YES buy, Haggle the price down, prepare to put in some nice noise reducing windows and maybe a taller fence.
Investor · Saint Augustine, FL · Member since 2015 · 227 posts · 61 votes
10y
I clearly stated that in my town the area by the tracks is not desirable and the trains do VIBRATE and shake houses close to the tracks...nothing stupid about that....just trying to inject some humor in my response and here NO ONE would buy or rent on the tracks !!!
and here NO ONE would buy or rent on the tracks !!!
That is not true. I guarantee there are homes in your area by the tracks both rented and occupied by owners. Your town is not different than any other with trains. People always live by the tracks, they just don't pay quite as much.
Rental Property Investor · New York, NY · Member since 2011 · 956 posts · 510 votes
10y
it's like buying near a major highway. Most people will find it unappealing and won't want to live to live there, but a few won't mind. The plus is that these homes are usually bought at a bargain rate. the minus is they are harder to rent. To me , it evens out.
Investor · Saint Augustine, FL · Member since 2015 · 227 posts · 61 votes
10y
Not to go too far afield from the original question but this town is different from any other towns with trains because we are our own little slice or paradise...when you throw your line in the ocean you pull out a plump tasty fish and when you scatter some seeds you grow our own special datil peppers to make a tasty hot datil sauce to brush on your tasty fish...and then throw some oysters and clams on the beach fire grill...we have oceans where you can surf and skim board and Intracoastal where you can Kayak and windsurf and marshes where you can see pretty pink spoonbills and historic streets and buildings where you can dress like a pirate and drink rum and go argggg....when you can live here NO ONE I repeat NO ONE wants to live by the tracks...so to the original poster I say I would NOT buy anything on the railroad tracks !
Full time investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2013 · 405 posts · 312 votes
10y
My childhood home in NJ was in an A area with commuter train tracks about 100 ft from our house (not property but house). Like some people have stated, you don't even hear them anymore. You learn to raise the volume on the TV as you hear the horns approaching. It was odd when people came over and heard the train and felt the shake. We didn't have an issue selling this house either. Comes down to area. Oh and there was an overgrown cemetery from the 1800's next to the house also.
when you can live here NO ONE I repeat NO ONE wants to live by the tracks...so to the original poster I say I would NOT buy anything on the railroad tracks !
I don't think you understand the logic. You're right, nobody "wants" to live by the tracks, but lots of people will. It just depends on how much the property cost and how much you can rent it for. Your advice is bad.
I guarantee if there are train tracks in your town, there are at least a few houses near them that are occupied. Your town probably isn't nearly as special as you think.
