Buying in a local market

[Louis Siano]

In my area there is a city that has a bad rep for crimes, is lower income housing, etc. A new casino just was put up in the busiest part of the city, springfield Massachusetts and I’m noticing a lot of high end renovations happening around the area. I heard it was also a good idea to follow Starbucks as knowing where a good opportunity is/ an improving neighborhood and they even built a Starbucks next to the casino as well. I was told to stay away from this city due to crime rate but houses are so cheap and with the new casino/renovations I believe that the area will be exponentially increasing in value in the following 10 years... I was curious as to what thoughts are on the topic...

[Alex Whitmore]

On the Podcast you hear a lot of guests and investors refer to finding markets that are in the "Path of Progress", meaning the economy and community show signs of improvement. It seems like you have the advantage of being local and monitoring trends and seeing improvement (or not) first hand. If you are able to capitalize on a good deal in the area with exit strategies in mind, you could have something great. 

If crime is your concern, find a neighborhood that is less dangerous and/or up-and-coming. Another thing you hear on the Podcast is investors coming in and having a positive impact on the neighborhood and working with the police and the community to reduce crime and make it safer. It would be pretty cool to get in on the proverbial ground floor of Springfield Renaissance :)