Thoughts on Petersburg?
Hello! I'm located about two hours north of Richmond but have spent some time researching to area. I'm interested in SFH to be LTRs. Anyone have any luck in Petersburg? If not Petersburg, then where? Thanks!
Don't go in just because of the allure of the price level. It's a low income market and the prices are low accordingly. There are folks making money in Petersburg, but typically they know the market very well. If you do decide to jump in, come down and take some full weekend tours of the area. Get a good feel for the area so you know what you're looking at.
I live in Richmond but I don't invest here, for what it's worth.
In general, for out of town investors-- I agree with @Taylor L., stay away from Petersburg.
It's easy to get enticed by low prices, but if you don't know the area, it likely won't work in your favor. I see it a lot, people buy there-- think it's just like Richmond, don't really understand the amount of neglect/work is needed, don't understand the culture, and often end up with evictions and frustrations not worth the extra income.
I live in Richmond and invest in Petersburg. There are still a few areas/streets that you couldn't pay me to take the house, unless you're down there-- you won't know.
If you do decide on Petersburg, go for 23805, that's the nicer area and the prices reflect it! Check out Hopewell, South Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, those are less of a gamble as they have better schools!
@Leora Merrell
No one in my circles has been very excited about Petersburg. Yes the houses are dirt cheap. Mainly because not many people want to live there. Although there has been some success with the immigrant community. Most of them dont seem to care. One of the teachings I got from Biggerpockets is "Scary houses attract scary people." One of the local meetup hosts says his max offer for a house in Petersburg is $5,000. I hope this helps.
I would go with @Linda S. suggestion and check out the areas she suggested. I have rental homes in Colonial Heights and Hopewell and both are much better real estate markets than Petersburg. It is getting tougher to find decent cash flowing deals for SFH in Colonial Heights but in Hopewell there is still a lot of opportunities.
@Sudhanshu Singha
Sent you a PM, I've started looking into Hopewell and would like to connect and get your insights!