Investing in Raleigh-Durhum area

[Antra M.]

Hi, 

This is my first post so please bear with me :)

I am based in Bay area and want to acquire my first rental property. I was thinking about Raleigh Durhum area. Looking on Redfin, it doesn’t seem like I can get a cashflow property(its like minimum 250k+ with rents less than 1500). Maybe If I can break even.

My question is - 1. Is it a bad idea to buy and hold a property when i just break even because the rents might increase in couple of years.

2. If yes, what regions of Durhum/Raleigh to avoid? And which areas should i look into?

Thanks in advance

[Dawn Brenengen]

Hi @Antra M.! I get a lot of investors here from much more expensive markets like the Bay area.  If you are looking for cash flow, there are better markets than Raleigh. However, I think the Raleigh area is about to explode, so the appreciation should be pretty good.  Yes, a 250k property is probably going to rent for about $1400-1500, but I do think rents will likely go up shortly as well.  There is a real demand for both purchases and rentals right now.  

There aren't many must avoid areas in Raleigh.  Durham can be a little more hit or miss, but you can tell a lot from google street view as you're evaluating.  I'm happy to offer specific thoughts on anything you like, but a good rule of thumb is if it's cheap, it's in a terrible neighborhood.