Need help calculating my first deal.

Member since 2026 · 1 post · 0 votes

Hello my bigger pockets family. My name is Vladimir. I'm new to real estate and investing and I was wondering is there anyone in the area that has an understanding of the Broward County area that can help me. I primarily need to know how to calculate the comps and everything so I can know if I am getting a deal for sure. I found a triplex for a 300k and was wondering if it makes sense to look into or not.

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G. Brian DavisPro Member
Investor · Hatboro, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 852 votes
1d
I’d definitely look into the triplex before deciding whether it’s a deal or not. $300K by itself doesn’t tell you much.
Start with the rents and expenses. Find a few similar triplexes or nearby properties that have actually sold, and compare the price per unit, condition, rents and location. Then run the property based on realistic rents and expenses, not what the seller says it could do.
If you can, find a local investor-friendly agent or property manager who knows Broward County. They can be really helpful when you’re learning the local market.
Don’t worry about knowing everything before you look at your first deal. Analyze a lot of properties. That’s how you start getting a feel for what’s actually a good deal.
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Stacy RaskinBusiness Member
Lender · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 500 votes
1d
Deciding about whether to buy an investment property, it's important to take a look at recent sales which you can do through online platforms. Looking at the most recent sales that are most similar and closest to your property is helpful as that is what the appraiser will be looking at during the purchase of a property.
Also finding out what your likely mortgage payment will be along with your property taxes and your insurance. Finding out if there is an HOA. Not as likely if not a condo but some single family residences have them. So finding out your basic expenses for the property.
Deciding if you will manage the property or hire a property management company is another factor as well. If you hire a property management company, figuring out the likely cost for that.
Looking at what condition the property is and when will you likely have to replace the roof, etc.
Learning about state, county and city level landlord tenant law is important so you know what you're responsibilities are.
For rents, those can be harder to find but looking through rental listings as well as talking to local professionals can be helpful.
This is not an exhaustive list of things to consider-these are some important items to analyze.
The more research you do and the more you really know the market, the more confident you will be when analyzing potential investment properties.
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Jeremy White
Member since 2026 · 1 post · 0 votes
1d
Totally get it — comps are a big part of knowing whether a deal actually makes sense. I track recent public-record activity (probate filings, tax delinquency signals, permits, and a few other categories) so investors can see what’s happening locally without digging through county sites themselves.
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Arman AhmedPro Member
Real Estate Agent · Columbus Cleveland Dayton, OH · Member since 2024 · 2k+ posts · 917 votes
16h
Quote from @Vladimir Victor:
Hello my bigger pockets family. My name is Vladimir. I'm new to real estate and investing and I was wondering is there anyone in the area that has an understanding of the Broward County area that can help me. I primarily need to know how to calculate the comps and everything so I can know if I am getting a deal for sure. I found a triplex for a 300k and was wondering if it makes sense to look into or not.
Before deciding if the $300K triplex is a deal, I’d run the comps, realistic rents, expenses, financing, and cash flow all together. Don’t let the purchase price alone make the decision. And if Broward numbers are tight, it’s worth comparing some Midwest markets too. The Midwest markets have lower entry points in many areas, so you may find more deals that actually pencil out.
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Dan NelsonBusiness Member
Real Estate Broker · Chicago and Kansas City · Member since 2016 · 80 posts · 62 votes
2m
Vladimir, welcome. You do not need anyone to hand you the answer on this triplex. You need four numbers, and you can find all four yourself this week.
1. What the three units really rent for. Not what the listing says. Open the big rental sites, find apartments with the same bedroom count within a mile, listed right now. That is your rent number. If the listing claims more, run your math on the real number anyway. Sellers price hope. You buy math.
2. What it costs to run. Taxes (look up the county's actual bill, not the seller's old one), insurance (a landlord policy quote takes one phone call), water, trash, any common electric. Then set aside a slice of rent every month: I use 5% for vacancy, 5% for big future repairs, and 3% for small stuff. The building will spend that money whether you planned for it or not, so plan for it.
3. What the loan costs. A loan officer will turn price, down payment and today's rate into a real monthly payment in five minutes, free.
4. What is left. Rent minus costs minus payment. If that number only works when you believe the seller's rents, the building just answered your question.
On comps: for a triplex, the honest comp is other small multifamily sales nearby, and price per unit is the quickest sanity check. Any agent who works these buildings can pull sold 2 to 4 unit buildings in that zip in minutes. Ask for that, and ask them to walk the numbers with you.
Run this on the $300K building tonight, then on four more this week. After 20+ years of buying rentals, I can tell you the skill of running numbers fast is the whole game, and it is very learnable. The first one takes an hour. The fifth takes ten minutes.
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