Rental Properties in Scranon PA

[Ali Muhammad]

Hello Everyone, new wannabe investor here. I am in the military stationed abroad but my home of record is in Pennsylvania.  I wanted to start getting into investment properties and i was wondering if anyone knows what type of rental properties sell good in the Scranton area. The last time i left that area i remember the city having lots of debt and the schools being semi good. I've been looking at duplexes and single family homes but i'm more worried about tenant availability as this will be my first rental home i buy, Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[Adam Guiffrida]

Ali, wanted to say first of all that "I Thank you for your service!"

I am very familiar with the Scranton area. My advice would be to stay away from single family homes. If you get a bad tenant or a vacancy you will be floating the expenses every month. I am a big proponent of 2-4 units. duplexes are nice because they are still considered residential so getting repairs or improvements done is easy. Usually you should be in the $750-$1000 range per side for 3-4 bedrooms. And the other good thing is that utilities are usually separate which tenants will pay.

I also like 3-4 units because you are almost always cash flowing even if 1-2 units are vacant. The two issues are permits for contracting work. The City requires General Contractors for all buildings over 2 units. This is a head ache. The other issue is utilities, if you get stuck paying a bunch of utilities, than that could get costly.

Be sure to confirm with the city the unit count before you buy. and Also make sure the unit is not condemned. 

I am usually local so please call me if you are serious about a property and I will meet you and walk through. I have a large network of professionals in the area so I could help with almost anything. 

Tenants are pretty plentiful in Scranton, the City's distresses state has designated it as a huge rental population.

Feel free to message me for a phone number.

And good luck with everything!