All Forum Posts by: Melanie Johnston

Hi @Adam Sherwood, we in Phoenix look forward to welcoming you.

When you are thinking about what the best areas to live/invest in are, it's a good idea to start with your budget. Then you can ask, what are the best areas in my price point?

Metro Phoenix is a large area (almost 15,000 square miles) comprised of several individual cities. Even the city of Phoenix itself is a patchwork of different, distinct neighborhoods representing every economic profile possible.

Basically, there is something for everyone here. Talking with a lender to find out where you land on purchasing power will help narrow your focus to areas likely to yield the best results for your budget.

Once you know your number, I am more than happy to share my experience and recommendations.

There are lenders on BP who are also investors. I am working with a BP investor who has worked with @Art Shalomov for 5 SFH purchases this summer alone. He's a great resource and will take the time to answer your lending questions.

Feel free to ask me anything.

Melanie

@Avery Bustamante Welcome to investing in Arizona! SFH have been the most popular way for OOS investors to get a foothold in Metro Phoenix. BP investors I know have purchased 10 homes to long- and short-term just the last few months alone.

Once you known what price range you are pre-approved for you can start to see the best opportunities/locations within your budget.

Plus there is good news for investors this week. Here’s a news clip an investor-friendly lender/investor I know shared with me:

“The Treasury Department and FHFA announced Tuesday that they are suspending certain requirements that were added in January to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs) between Treasury and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Under those requirements, Fannie Mae had restricted its acquisition of loans secured by second homes and investment properties to 7% of its total single-family acquisitions and applied stricter underwriting to those loans.”

Lots of opportunities in several areas golf the Valley!

@Andrew Lavier You will get the best, detailed answers by going directly to the source! So I looked through my emails and found that Avalara/MyLodgeTax is having another free webinar/deep dive on how they help STR operators. Here is the registration link:

https://www.avalara.com/simpli...

Hope this helps!

Melanie

@Hechen Gao both are good strategies in well-performing areas!

Melanie

@Nic S. There is a Facebook group devoted to AZ STR owners. It provides real-world insights into what it's like to own/manage an STR here. Check it out (I'm not affiliated with the group): https://www.facebook.com/group...

@Jesse Watson Thanks! I really enjoyed working with you guys. With that great house as your foundation, I'm looking forward to helping you find the next one!

@David McHenry Jr. you are very welcome. Best of luck!

P.S. There is a Facebook group for Scottsdale STR operators. Always a great resource!

Hi @David McHenry Jr. when was setting up my Airbnb in Scottsdale, I chose to use the service Avalara/MyLodgeTax to do my tax reporting. As part of their service, they applied for my Transaction Privilege Sales Tax with the state for me.

There is a monthly fee, but you can check it out here and see if it would help you: https://www.avalara.com/mylodg...

Also, they have a lot of good information on their site for STR owners and operators.

Hope this helps!

Melanie

@Brendan Miller I think what's valuable too is corporate FOMO. "Wait, where is Facebook going?"

How much data did their experts consider/crunch before they chose Mesa over Texas cities? Tons. And other companies know this.

As a former reporter for The Phoenix Business Journal, I think it bodes well for the Southeast Valley/Metro Phoenix being elevated on the consideration lists of other companies.

Happy investing!

Well this is big news. More good jobs coming to the Metro Phoenix area.

CoStar is reporting on a new $800 million project to be built in Mesa. Investors I know, who have purchased single-family homes in the area, are thrilled.

Here are the deets:

By Randyl Drummer
CoStar News

August 12, 2021

Facebook plans to build its first Arizona data center in an $800 million project in Mesa, Arizona, that underscores the growing popularity of the greater Phoenix area as a technology hub.

The 960,000-square-foot facility is expected to support 100 permanent jobs and up to 1,500 construction jobs to build what the technology company said will be "an important part of the global infrastructure" that brings Facebook apps, including the hugely popular Instagram and WhatsApp, to billions of people around the world.

...

Facebook paid $123.2 million for roughly 360 acres to build the center at the southeast corner of South Ellsworth Street and Elliot Road east of Loop 202 in Mesa, which is 18 miles southeast of downtown Phoenix, according to CoStar and public sale documents.

The company said it considered numerous sites over several years before deciding on Mesa.

“Mesa stood out as a great location for a number of reasons," Facebook Vice President of Infrastructure Rachel Peterson said in a statement. "It has great access to infrastructure, opportunities for renewable energy development, strong talent for both construction and operations and great community partners.”

...