A Proper Introduction

[Anthony Gayden]

I have posted a couple of threads, but I realize that I have not properly introduced myself. My name is Tony, and I live in rural Arizona near the southwest border. I became interested in real estate recently due to pay issues in my job, and a strong desire to supplement my income. It was very apparent to me that the real estate market in the small town where I live is very weak. Houses linger on the market for a long time, and many of them are very overpriced. This town of under 4000 people is saturated with rentals also, so the rents you can get for housing is very low.

My goal in real estate investing, is cash flow. I do not want to rehab or flip properties, I like rental cash flow. Seeing that where I live was not going to work, I began looking 1.5 hours away to Tucson for deals. I knew from the beginning that multifamily was my goal. I had no interest in single family, and though the cost of entry is higher, and it is a more difficult path, I decided to start with it. I also knew a few things from articles I read on Bigger Pockets, like the 50% rule and the 1% rule.

Anyway my specific criteria for properties is 4 units, 2 bedroom/1 bath minimum per unit, newer than 1980, recently remodeled, under $200,000, in a decent area, and fully occupied. The property also had to pass the 1% rule and the 50% rule and I wanted $100 per month income per door after all expenses. I quickly found out that Tucson was overpriced in terms of multiplexes for what I wanted to accomplish, but what I wanted could be found in the Phoenix area. Since I was already going to have to pay a property manager, it wasn't a huge step to look at the Phoenix real estate market.

Anyway, I had an offer accepted on a Phoenix 4 plex last week, and am getting started in the world of real estate investing. This week I am looking at a very inexpensive single family that might actually cash flow in this tiny town where I live if I manage it myself.