2020 is almost over and it's been a year for the record books. Even for my portfolio, I took the leap into short tern rentals this year and bought a house in Corolla. The purchase process was by far the most complex I've undertaken, aggravated by how hot the market is across the Outer Banks. 

I'd be glad to share the juicy details but I'd also love to hear about YOUR forays in the Outer Banks in 2020, or in fact anywhere in North Carolina's markets like Charlotte, Asheville, Greensboro, Raleigh.

What did you purchase? Did you achieve your goals for the year? Any details you can share about the deals? (type of investment and why, sale/purchase price, financing used, rent/profit). And finally, any shoutouts to any professionals that helped you and you would recommend to others?

Daniel, I’m curious if you bought your property before or after Covid?  We don’t buy in the outer banks nor do we buy vacation rentals. Sorry I can’t help there. We just buy 100+ unit apartments. 2020 has definitely been an interesting year. A lot of people and capital leaving urban core areas and migrating out to the suburbs. Definitely didn’t see that coming. Restaurants being ordered to shut down and about an eighty percent reduction in air travel. I’ll be curious how some of these economic shock factors play out in the coming years. 

We only picked up one single family home this year. Nothing crazy but a good ROI so no complaints. Hope everyone did great and stayed safe.

I picked up a double wide trailer on pilings in Kill Devil Hills on the Outer Banks for 160k. Pretty good deal in these times. Definitely needs work but we should be starting drywall next week. 

I sold two this year, Kitty hawk and KDH. Bought a lot but waiting until January to close on two more. And odd year but tons of activity in this current seller's market.

I'm currently under construction on a 7 townhome ground up development project in Kill Devil Hills NC. 

Originally I was building these for year round rentals as we are in desperate need for long term housing on the Outer Banks to say the least. However with the curveballs that 2020 has thrown us, I'm considering going with short term rentals.          Short term rentals would provide much better returns but doesn't help with the housing issues in the community.  It would however help propel me into other projects the in the future that I can provide for long term rentals. 

Any thoughts / feedback is appreciated!  

Originally posted by @Jonathan St.Leger :

I'm currently under construction on a 7 townhome ground up development project in Kill Devil Hills NC. 

Originally I was building these for year round rentals as we are in desperate need for long term housing on the Outer Banks to say the least. However with the curveballs that 2020 has thrown us, I'm considering going with short term rentals.          Short term rentals would provide much better returns but doesn't help with the housing issues in the community.  It would however help propel me into other projects the in the future that I can provide for long term rentals. 

Any thoughts / feedback is appreciated!  

I don't know enough about the market to compare STRs with LTRs, though I'd agree STRs can be riskier but can also generate higher returns. 

I can recommend touching base with a vacation property manager in the region, they can tell you about STR demand for new townhomes and would happily generate a no-obligation income projection, which you can use as a data point to compare. In fact I'd talk to two or three different ones.

I can give you the contact details for the property manager I'm signing with (it's early days but I'm quite happy with them so far). I know they manage SFRs as well as THs / bungalows.

Glad to see some great activity! I think OBX is one of the few last great coastal opportunities left.

Hope to see more 2020 experiences in the post. I'd guess that if you sold you probably made a decent margin, and if you bought I think there is steady tourism and more appreciation to be had. Of all things, the pandemic has created strong pent up demand in the area, and this was one of our biggest concerns. The avg "sold" price is up nearly 30% from 2019 (e.g. $560k vs. $430k in Oct last year), and market veterans say 2020 will finish stronger than 2004, one of the best years on record.

My wife and I had been looking into investing on a beach house in OBX to take the family a few times a year. For us it's a 4-5 hour drive, it's not crowded with large hotel chains, can still find properties with 10%+ returns, and it's beautiful and authentic. So after dealing with a couple realtors we found "the one" (could not recommend David enough) and locked in a semi-ocean front home that sold at the pre-GFC peak for $1.1m. It's also in great condition and has a large lot and water views.

So we put in an offer in July and closed in October, for about $760k after concessions. Getting an inspector and an appraiser in Jul/Aug of 2020 was like finding water in the desert, despite the fact it's a small market and everyone knows everyone. I also financed it with a piggyback loan (10% down no PMI) and that took managing a few curveballs. The initial 45 days to close quickly turned into 3 months.

An interesting concept is that in OBX a) most if not all furniture conveys, and b) any income from guest stays after you buy are yours, regardless of when they were made. This last point makes sense but it's also fascinating, because buying in April will get you immediate cash flow, boosting returns, but buying in October will mean operating losses until the next season bookings start to come in -which I had to account for in the numbers. Meanwhile property prices don't necessarily fluctuate accordingly...

We bought 3 more units in Hendersonville.

Sold my mother's house in Black Mountain (Asheville area). We rehabbed it first and that was definitely worth it. RE agent was Emily Welsh at KW and I can tell you that she is about the hardest worker I've seen in real estate.

I am definitely a novice when it comes to NC investment. I have sold an investment property in West Des Moines, IA (TH) and made an offer on a 15+ years SFH (first investment) in Charlotte. Planning to close in Jan'21. Hopefully, I can learn the market tactics and anticipate to grow in 2021-22. I am super excited....

Originally posted by @Andrea W. :

Sold my mother's house in Black Mountain (Asheville area). We rehabbed it first and that was definitely worth it. RE agent was Emily Welsh at KW and I can tell you that she is about the hardest worker I've seen in real estate.

Great to hear, Asheville is a fantastic market I hope to be able to explore for STRs one day. Hardworking agents are hard to come by in my experience, although thus far I've only been on the buy side, and I always have lots of questions and high expectations. 

In the OBX David Weybright is the absolute best I could have hoped for. He's a local entrepreneur, humble, and knows the area and its history like the back of his hand -which is invaluable when researching about land subdivisions, flood history (high risk factor in OBX) and market trends. He works relentlessly for investors, whether it's to get the right answers or unlocking value. 

Originally posted by @Ram RRS:

I am definitely a novice when it comes to NC investment. I have sold an investment property in West Des Moines, IA (TH) and made an offer on a 15+ years SFH (first investment) in Charlotte. Planning to close in Jan'21. Hopefully, I can learn the market tactics and anticipate to grow in 2021-22. I am super excited....

Fantastic! Best of luck in the coming weeks and for 2021/2022. Charlotte is another very interesting market, for long term rentals at least. Vibrant city with solid growth and employment hubs. Can you share what kind of gross rent multiple you are expecting once you get a tenant in (gross annual rent / purchase price)? Are you planning to rent it through an agent?

@Daniel Alvarez - thanks for your wishes, I need them :)

Based on my analysis, my anticipated gross annual rent is $21,600. Being this my first investment property, I want to see if I can self-manage this property. Further, I live in the same neighborhood, down the street from my investment property. We will see how it goes with self-management. Thanks!

Bought a 1930 concrete craftsman bungalow in Saxapahaw, NC for 26k. Currently renovating.