Carlsbad, CA · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
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There's been a lot of talk of sub $30k properties, so I thought it would be an interesting idea to post some pictures of what $30k buys in different parts of the country.
So here's a picture of a 2 bedroom house. I don't have the outside picture, with all the snow I just wanted to run inside the house. These are after pictures. Rent will be $800-$850. Tenants pay all utilities including lawn maintenance and snow removal.
I don't provide appliances anymore. If they are there, then we give them to tenants as-is.
But here is my finished Richmond Home (my most recent)
Just want people to know: Just because its a Working Class Neighborhood (WCN for short), does not mean you have to skimp on the repairs and renovation...I paid 25k for this property, and put about 25k in new repairs (big ticket items needed, more than I put in the past, but if it needs new anything, I repair on the front end, not back end). Previous rehabs were 10k for 35k property, and 23k for 13k rehab.
This is an excellent post @Sharad M. , because the visual does so much for people to understand whats available, abundant, and cash flows well. I'll post more tonight.
Wow ... I'm a newbie in the intro phases of my REI career (saving for a down payment, reading every book I can get my hands on, etc.) and I stumbled across this thread. This is awesome! I'm in the Atlanta area and hope to be able to find some sub$30k properties of my own this time next year (I may go a little higher to the $45-$55k range if needed though). This has been a huge inspiration to me! @Sharad M. and @Lisa Phillips ... you two are AWESOME!
Quick question ... how are you all determining/learning the prevailing rental rates in your markets? Do you find that websites like Rentometer.com are accurate, or are you relying more on your own legwork (i.e. contacting others who are advertising homes for rent to see what they are charging)?
Thanks, and keep the pics coming. This is my new favorite BP thread!
Aaron, thanks for the kind words. $30k houses that I am buying need some work done to them, so by the time I am done, they cost me about $40k avg.
I look at CL to determine what the rent should be for my area.
@Aaron Lee Hey there! Rentometer works really well for me and the people I have mentored so far in this (North Carolina, Atlanta). I will back this up with Craigslist. When I make my final analysis, I use worst case numbers (about 100-200 below what the averages say), and If I still like the cash flow in worst case, then I will go forward.
@Sharad M. - what filters do you put into Craigslist to check rents? I know sometimes I will try to put in a specific address knowing darn well there are apt and other rentals in the area and very few to nothing will pop up and I'm thinking ?? I am probably missing a step. For example if I wanted to check rents in Laurel, MD - exactly what should I put in? thanks in advance for your assistance!
@Christina R. I look for rents for similar units in the area and go based on that. Another thing I did was call some local property management companies and asked them how much they were charging for their units?
I am not familiar with your area, but if the CL search doesn't return anything, call 3-5 local PM companies and tell them you have some rental units in the area that you are thinking of listing with them and would like to know what is the average rent for similar units in the area.
I did a quick search for Laurel, MD in your local CL and this is what I came up with:
CL rentals
Sometimes I have gotten more rental than I initially thought and sometimes less. Sometimes I end of adjusting the rent based on prospective tenants reactions to the house. I tend to start showing the unit before it's finished at a higher than avg market rent to see what kind of response I get and then adjust it based on feedback.
I hope that helps.
Edit: I meant to say I am NOT familiar with your area. I corrected it.
I pick this one up i believe for 24k and and have tenants .....as of July 1, I will be receiving $825 each unit....its a duplex......also it has a hugh attic space which i am keeping for myself when i come to town....looking for some remolding ideas...
I'll add another one of mine since this thread has been slow lately....
This was a sub $30k purchase at $25k but I'm a little over the $30k mark with my rehab. Block on slab 3/1 (tiny 3rd bedroom) rented for $900/month. My rehab consisted of a new kitchen and bath and other than that it was pretty much paint. The house has indestructible terrazzo flooring throughout so I left that. Everyone loved the kitchen and bath and I had more than 10 applications in the first weekend and I had a tenant moved in 5 days after putting it on the market.
We bought the note for this (Non Performing) for about 10k. After paying back taxes C4K and rehab we will be all in for around 20k. It is currently listed for rent at $795. (4bd, 2 1/2 Bath).
Location is Lansing MI near three colleges (not MSU).
I don't have interior photos because our PM is doing rehab this week. Will add them when they become available.
I see a lot of these homes do not have a garage. Is that not really a factor for an investment property?
So if we find one in a good area $110K to $140K where all most all the homes have a garage and the one up for sale at $15k needing $15k in basic rehab ( not adding garage or carport) could be a good investment?
OMG! These are all so beautiful. I remember living in rentals 35, 40 years ago, and they were all so nasty. They all had to be perfectly clean and totally clutter free [not even a coffee pot on the counter] to look anything less than totally filthy.
I have noticed that many of you are millenials. By what I can see, if you are even remotely typical ofyour age group, you are representative of a generation that is ambitious while still believing that even people with little money should live in a nice home. You all should be so proud of yourselves.
I'm sure this is making people in San Francisco, Manhattan, D.C. and the like quite jealous. We're all into this house for about $25,000 in Kansas City. It rents for $695:
I'm sure this is making people in San Francisco, Manhattan, D.C. and the like quite jealous. We're all into this house for about $25,000 in Kansas City. It rents for $695:
I'm speechless. I know it's probably relative to local wages but I would have so much play money if my I had my job here but the local real estate was at that price point.
I'm sure this is making people in San Francisco, Manhattan, D.C. and the like quite jealous. We're all into this house for about $25,000 in Kansas City. It rents for $695:
I'm speechless. I know it's probably relative to local wages but I would have so much play money if my I had my job here but the local real estate was at that price point.
Well I will say that that property is in a relatively rough area and it was one of our better deals. Still, I came from Oregon where the prices are much higher and sometimes I still can't believe how cheap some of these things can be.
I'm sure this is making people in San Francisco, Manhattan, D.C. and the like quite jealous. We're all into this house for about $25,000 in Kansas City. It rents for $695:
I'm speechless. I know it's probably relative to local wages but I would have so much play money if my I had my job here but the local real estate was at that price point.
My buddy works for JP Morgan in NYC, but he's transferring to Houston, and keeping his NY salary.. Nice!!! You would have lots of CF, but... you'd have to live there! lol
I love my life in my area, so that would be practically impossible for me. But it all depends on your circumstances..