Dallas, TX · Member since 2017 · 11 posts · 1 vote
Hi everyone,
I'm very new to real estate investing, and am in the market for a rental property in Dallas (price range $250-300K). My primary fear is that we'll buy a house, and have it sit without a renter for a long time, or we end up barely covering mortgage.
In your experience, what has been the most reliable source of information for:
Average rent in the area
Typical vacancy periods
I've seen information on the standard real-estate websites like Trulia, but the ranges between websites vary quite a bit.
Thanks a lot for the help/advice, and apologies in advance if this question has been asked/answered in the past.
Developer · Hobart, IN · Member since 2014 · 773 posts · 225 votes
9y
I would recommend you get on the phone and call the local property managers in the area. They will know exactly what you are looking for and may be a good idea anyway for them to manage the property depending on what your goals are. Hope that helps some?
Investor · Fort Worth, TX · Member since 2012 · 209 posts · 37 votes
9y
All good points above. @Jervin Justin Also, join and attend local real estate networking groups. Asking this question in front of local investors will get you a ton of great answers. I am over in Fort Worth and we used to get a bigger pockets group together over on our side of the metroplex.
I can tell you, from investing in the same/similar market (Tarrant County), that a $250-300K house may be tight on cash flow, unless the neighborhood happens to bring higher-than-market rents. Feel free to message me if you want to talk neighborhood specifics, I can take a look and give a better answer.