Skip to content
Philadelphia Real Estate Forum

User Stats

2
Posts
0
Votes
Patrick Duque
0
Votes |
2
Posts

Has the 50% rule or 2% rule worked for you in Philly?

Patrick Duque
Posted Jun 23 2019, 18:11

Hi All,

I am interested in investing in a rental property in either Philadelphia or it's surrounding suburbs. I am still in the learning period (reading books, going on this forum, articles, etc.) and have not yet pulled the trigger on a property yet. As I was reading the BP book on Rental Property Investing, I started wondering whether the 2% or 50% rule actually works for this area? Or if these rules don't work, is there a "rule" out there that can help with filtering out potentially good deals?

Thanks!
Patrick

User Stats

38
Posts
32
Votes
Neal A.
  • Philadelphia
32
Votes |
38
Posts
Neal A.
  • Philadelphia
Replied Jun 24 2019, 09:05

No -  the 2% rule doesn’t work. If the rules DO work you’ll find yourself in the worst parts of the city. 

I would recommend you crunch numbers available from Redfin and Zillow to get a gauge on rental numbers and costs to buy real estate In philly.

User Stats

3,926
Posts
4,380
Votes
Jason D.
  • Rental Property Investor
  • St. Petersburg, Fl
4,380
Votes |
3,926
Posts
Jason D.
  • Rental Property Investor
  • St. Petersburg, Fl
Replied Jun 24 2019, 09:15

@Patrick Duque yes, both of those rules work. Finding a good property that meets them will be very tough

BiggerPockets logo
BiggerPockets
|
Sponsored
Find an investor-friendly agent in your market TODAY Get matched with our network of trusted, local, investor friendly agents in under 2 minutes

User Stats

2
Posts
0
Votes
Patrick Duque
0
Votes |
2
Posts
Patrick Duque
Replied Jun 25 2019, 13:16

@Neal A. @Jason D. 

Thank you both for the reply! I guess I will have to start playing around with the numbers and see if I can come up with a method to more quickly sift through properties.

User Stats

30
Posts
12
Votes
Cedric Zebaze
  • Brewerytown, PA
12
Votes |
30
Posts
Cedric Zebaze
  • Brewerytown, PA
Replied Jul 11 2019, 15:34

@Patrick Duque Start studying the cap rates. What actual return do you want on your investments? 

Do you want a property that act like a bond or stock? low risk- low return or high risk - high return or something in the middle? 

Once you figure out that number, are looking to force appreciation($10,000+) or buy something close to turnkey($5,000-$8,000 for cosmetic move in ready)