Developer · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 904 votes
9y
Varinder Kumar , I have a few rentals in the suburbs of Philly, which I think is a better market for cash flow.
Send me a message and I can share details.
Contractor · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2014 · 885 posts · 359 votes
9y
@Varinder Kumar I would not recommend Shamokin, it's a tiny town with enormous budget and industry issues.
As far as CoC 15-25% in Class B, I'm sure that they exist, but I don't think that those properties change hands very often. To get that kind of return below $250k, you're looking at class C at best, if you want options. Even at 15%, you'll have to cashflow $1k per month (30% of $250k as your 'cash' ... so 15% of 75k, or $11,250/year cashflow) ... that's 250-500/door per month, which is a LOT.
@Anthony Angotti is pretty much spot on with his 100-200/door cashflow outlook on rentals ... and as an out of town investor, you'll have to eat a management fee too, which will slim your choices even more drastically.
Would you consider moving up into a small apartment building? 5-19 units? You could potentially achieve your goals if you can gather a little more seed money up front.
Lender · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
In the Philadelphia region - The market is strong and stable at the moment. There are pockets that are tough and pockets that are gorgeous. You have to know where in Philadelphia you are interested in buying.
Investor · Dunmore, PA · Member since 2014 · 3 posts · 1 vote
9y
As someone who was born, raised, invests in and still lives in the Greater Scranton area I'll add a few thoughts:
I definitely do not see Scranton as a place where you will find many appreciation plays. Right now, prices in Scranton are very low because the taxes have been significantly raised over the past few years to the point where not many people want to live in Scranton. This includes renters. Of course there's always the give and take of just how low and desperate the seller is to get out of Scranton, but you'll have a difficult time either getting solid tenants or selling because of the property and wage taxes
If you're looking to invest in the greater Scranton area, I'd suggest looking for more buy and hold properties as you can get solid rents from multi families that are relatively cheap
A few neighboring areas that I'd suggest for multi-families in the greater Scranton area are:
Dunmore - may pay a bit more, but there's always demand for folks looking to move into the area. Marywood University and Penn State Worthington are both located here which makes for solid income if you want to go that route
Throop/Olyphant - Cheaper than Dunmore with similar rent. Low taxes. Some weird locations of flood plains
Dickson City/Blakely - Cheaper than the other two with solid rent, but may see a decrease in quality of tenant. Some weird locations of flood plains
Jessup/Eynon/Archbald/Jerymn - You can find some deals with very low taxes, but you're starting to get a decent amount away from Scranton and may have some difficulty filling vacancies with quality tenants.
Any who, those are my thoughts. I currently have places in Dunmore and Dickson City, and I've owned in Throop previously as well. I'd be glad to answer any more questions you have about the area.