Novice considering buying out-of-state rental prop

[Melissa Lieb]

Hello, I live in Los Angeles, CA and am strongly considering purchasing a rental property in Michigan, my home state, in a town ~3 hours away from my home town. A couple questions: 1) Does anyone own rental property in Grand Rapids Mi? 2) To anyone with an out of state rental income property, will you share your experience with property management companies? Any pointers - I have blind spots and likely do not even know all the questions to ask. Details: *Willing to spend ~$180k; Prepared to put 20% down on a Grand Rapids rental property *Not seeking a fixer *Will need to hire a property management company Goals: The obvious: passive income Duplex, triplex or single family w guest unit Purchase a home with tenants already occupying and generating rental income Top-of-mind concerns: *Winters in MI wear and tear on roof, pipes *Cost of property management, costs to heat Tenant selection, How-to from Los Angeles to MI *Offer / escrow process How-to from Los Angeles to MI

[Jason Carter]

Hi @Melissa Lieb. I live in Culver City and started looking into Grand Rapids last year. (When prices were much better :) ) Bought 2 properties there earlier this year.  

You can find a list of questions to ask property management companies in the Files section of BP. You could also probably enter in the search bar and find similar in the forums. 

I interviewed a few and chose United Properties where I work with 

@Tim VandenToorn who it looks like you may have been in touch with. 

A great local agent and fellow investor who also helped me a lot is  

@Paul Leason.

There were also a handful of other Grand Rapids investors from BP who were extremely helpful with tips and advice. Hit 'em up with your questions - one of the reasons I chose Grand Rapids was the level of support I received from local investors.