Thoughts on neighborhood just South of Brookside park?

Question

I just got my 2nd property under contract in Indianapolis! It is a duplex that is just south of brookside park (and north of 10th st). The plan is to BRRRR. Any thoughts on the area/neighborhood? To me it looks like a solid C neighborhood with potential gentrification in the future.

Thanks in advance!

Ryan Mullin · Answer

The main thief lives on the 1300 block of N. Dearborn (DM me if you want is exact address  :)    You have to basically catch them in the act.  Simply safe alarms are a MUST. Keep track of serial numbers on furnaces, ac units, etc..   use a very permanent marker to label your tools, ladders, etc.  maybe even scratch it in so they can't erase it.  Having our contractors company info on one of his ladders was the only thing that "proved" that it was stolen goods.  Same thing tho..   selling on Facebook.  Cops really didn't want to get involved but our contractor got all detective and finally got the guy arrested.  Of course just a couple weeks later the same dude steals our AC units...   contractor finds them in the garage at 13** dearborn, same guy that went to jail already.  the cops give our ac units back but no arrest for the second go around because we didn't catch him in the act!?!  Which I really don't understand because I though "possession of stolen goods" was a thing.  Very frustrating but I will say that over all I give IMPD an A+ for all the crap they have to put up with and they really do usually do an excellent job IMO.

The area is rough and has its problems, but its also steadily improving.  Dont let that one jerk (and his friends) ruin it for everyone.  On the flip that we had all those problems we still sold to a very happy home owner, made a decent profit and moved on.  We manage 15 or 20 units in the neighborhood and they all preform very nicely.

Patrick Cruse · Answer

I can confirm that it is a rough area, but I am hopeful that it is improving. I think a big part of the potential for improvement is the positive impact that the Paramount School of Excellence is having on the community. I recently renovated a property very close to the school and we had some very brazen break-ins. It is a bad problem in that neighborhood that as soon as work starts being done on a house or if it is vacant the break-ins start happening. The first time they broke in, they kicked in a barely attached basement window and stole the old water heater and of course left the water running. I bought 6 new basement windows and some fake security cameras and left them hidden in a bedroom closet for my contractor to install the next day. My mistake, because they broke in that night and stole the new windows and cameras before they were installed. I bought new windows basement windows (again) and had my contractor pick them up this time so he could install them. They kicked in a new basement window this time, but I had the door from the basement going upstairs deadbolted shut. Now they were trapped in the basement! No big deal for these animals though...they just busted through the drywall at the top of the basement steps and out into the kitchen. Sheesh, these guys were relentlessly. I eventually had steel bars put on all the main level windows, barricaded the basement windows, installed a plywood front door (like HUD homes commonly have on their front doors), and installed SimpliSafe cameras/alarm system. No issues since then, but you had better take plenty of precautions secure the house and don't leave any materials or tools at the job site. I called the police and they basically just said "ya, we know this is a problem, but not much we can do". I talked to another investor that had stuff stolen and found it for sale on Facebook and the cops still wouldn't help him, for some reason.

I'm hopeful to have tenants in my house soon, but it's been a rough process so far. I think once it's occupied it will be much less of an issue.

Good luck!

Josh C. · Answer

@Bret Winegar

Little flower is nice, but definitely some rough area right by Sherman. East of there is better. But if the numbers work, and you can take the occasional big turnover it can be solid.

Good luck

John Adams · Answer

This area is definitely turning around. Beautiful improvements are being seen and felt just east of Rural Street and north of 10th .  There are pockets near there were the entire street will be turned over if you can get in.  Some of the houses are not actively for sale so inquiring further might be worth you time (that has paid off for me in the past).  West of Rural Street is selling land for 90k which makes it feel like the cheap homes and lots are gone at this point since most of the risk is no longer there.  The Brookside neighborhood is definitely on it's way up.  Just remember what Holy Cross looked like.  Just thought I would add to this post since the last post was over 2 years ago and  the area has improved a lot since then.  Still lots of opportunity.  Just a matter of getting your hands on some of those Idle properties that are just setting there for one reason or another.

Art Perkitny · Answer

@Bret Winegar, as others have suggested the area seems to be on the rougher end.

Taking a look at the relevant data, the area south of Brookside park is being ranked as a D on an A to F scale, suggesting that the perceived investment risk is rather high in this neighborhood.

I would be looking for high yields to make taking on this risk worth it.

I would also like to add that the area has seen some improvements over the years as other have stated as well.

Since 2015, the location has gone from an average F rank to D. If this trend continues, the investment could end up being rather lucrative.

I have included a link to a gif showing the location grades of the neighborhood and surround areas from 2015 to 2018. This should give you a better idea of where the area is heading and how it's trending.

Gif Map Link

Hope this helps!

Ross Denman · Answer

Ryan knows his stuff and specializes in these areas. We had similar problems on Dearborn on the 1100 block last year. Multiple break-ins and thefts and the neighbors were making it impossible to lease the unit. Personally, I hear more violent crime near Sherman Dr than any other part of town. I think that a lot of the problematic residents in the area are being pushed East due to the gentrification of the near East side and they are consolidating in the middle between Rural and Irvington. The western edge of Little Flower already seems as if it's deteriorating. Not that it's a big deal, but I've been solicited in the area a few times. There was a murder in the street on the 1100 block of Tuxedo just a couple of weeks ago, shootings at bars and in parking lots, drugs, theft, gangs, prostitution, etc. There will be a good upside here one day, but I really recommend letting the locals invest here for now as there's a lot of opportunities for problems and you'd want to make sure that you have a responsive team.

Bret Winegar · Answer

@Jaron Walling it is between Rural and Sherman, closer to Sherman.  Not good as in avoid like the plague?

@Tchaka Owen High crack usage sounds alarming.  We haven't closed yet.

Jaron Walling · Answer

That's a good assumption.

I live and invest in Irvington but I like that area. It's pretty rough but the NEAR (Near Eastside Area Renew) is helping things out.  18th Street Brewery is coming in the future... fingers crossed. What's the cross road? Anything from Rural to Sherman it's not very good IMO.

Patrick Cruse · Answer

It was a big house. 2400sf plus a full unfinished basement. It was a somewhat large rehab and we certainly finished it nicer than the houses in the surrounding area. I have met two great neighbors there so far, which is always nice. I am planning on renting it out section 8, because I found a family on section 8 that has a lot of children that attend (or will be attending) the Paramount School and they want to stay in the area long term. Once it is occupied, I'd be happy to share more details about the rehab, costs, etc.

Bret Winegar · Answer

@Art Perkitny.  thanks that GIF is extremely helpful.  I'll take a closer look at your website as well.

Thoughts on neighborhood just South of Brookside park?

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