All Forum Posts by: Pat Lulewicz

Great consolidation of information of a market that is underappreciated by  most investors. I know a lot of retail buyers who moved from Raleigh and Durham to Burlington and surrounding cities lately because of the price point and ease of commute to both metros - Greensboro and Durham/Raleigh. Commercial development is up in and around that area, including Elon, Graham, and Mebane. In aggregate, those must make up about 100k in population, wouldn't you say? Elon U packs a punch locally. A lot of infrastructure improvements on and around I-40 which has made traffic at gas stations near the on/off ramps horrendous! 

Curious @Jared Trindade, to my point about commuting simplicity along I-40 to both metros, does any of your research or sources speak to employment - large employers, industries, etc? I'm curious how many people are: A) flat-out retired so doesn't matter, B)  work locally in, I'm assuming, manufacturing, blue-collar jobs, and other local small business, or C) commuting to and from work in either metro but living there for home price?

Love the good work on our wonderful markets.

To second @Brennen Thompson point specifically for the Triad of North Carolina - Facebook groups are good intros. The consistent wholesalers will post their stuff on there regularly so you get a feel for who's churning out deals.

To @Corina Eufinger point, NC boasts some great beaches: Wilmington, Surf City/Topsail, Oak Island and Emerald Isle. Everyone of course knows about the Outer Banks because of the show. Personally own a STR in Wilmington, and 90% of our in-season stays are folks from around the country taking their families on vacations.

Definitely a great cash flow play in Greenville, but its a speculative appreciation play and that can deter a lot of LT investors who want to be able to compound their money. I invested in a similar tertiary town in IL, when I lived there, which was primarily students and blue-collar manufacturing. Saw almost no appreciation in 4 years (granted that's a small timeline to play over) but steady cash flow. Had both types of tenants - students and blue-collar. At the end of the day, everyone just wants a solid and safe home, to have any immediate maintenance handled timely, and be left alone. To a point made, proper screening will take care of a lot of issues. I think these are phenomenal base-hits with the right hand-holding to know which street/neighborhood will be appropriate for a low-touch investment.

I always stress that people decide on the type of life they want and not necessarily "hot" zip codes. If you hate where you live but the investment properties are great there, is it really worth it in the grand scheme? You can usually live in a favorable location for your lifestyle and either commute to a property or hire folks to do all of the heavy lifting for you. Happy to connect to learn your personal preference and goals, as well as the professional/RE ones, and help guide you towards a location that would be conducive for both aspects.

Great summary, Jared. I think you're absolutely right about the fact that patient capital can have a field day in High Point. The economics for a good renter-heavy market are there, but it has to be delivered at an acceptable price point. Although the crime statistics don't paint the town in a great light, being in the city gives you an entirely different feel. I'd argue that you can find pockets of this activity in any town just like the pockets of High Point you're referring to. Downtown Durham and East Downtown Raleigh are "viewed" the same way as what you're referring to in High Point; I'm sure Fayetteville has its fair share. Main St has undergone massive redevelopment, the city now has a baseball stadium and team next to a Food Hall, and a great hospital in the middle of it all. 

As far as the type of investor, I would NEVER tell a newbie investor that it isn't a good market. My 2nd rental property in NC was in High Point and I regret not buying 20 more at a time when I could scoop up BRRR deals at $30k/door, before out-of-state investors heard about the market. Even these days my last purchase was a B-class home for $154k in the NW side of town and secured a $1,600/m tenant. Like any market, it's street-by-street and emphasizes the need of having professional help with your first or second, so you can get a hang for the market if you aren't local.

Hey Saajan - investor and Realtor in the Triangle. Would love to grab a coffee to talk and drive around town to show you some areas and homes, as our schedules allow. Shoot me a PM and and we can coordinate.

Are you keeping her deposit and last month? In that case, makes you whole through the end of her lease, and you can start looking for another resident. If I misunderstood and she's only paying you 3 months and keeping the rest, if y'all sign a termination agreement, that should give you free and clear ability to look for another tenant immediately and through end of March while already having the income from those months.

If she truly is willing to pay 3 months of rent to leave, going through eviction wouldn't do anything for you financially, however it would show up on her record so other landlords know (you took one for the team).

There's definitely other creative options to work through this situation with the tenant if you want to send me a PM to spitball a few

@Chris Tarpey about 3 months later, just curious how the STR is doing?

Reno complete, furnished and on the market? Did Reno and Furnishing go as planned around$25k-$30k? Any surprises?

How's the demand been for (what looks like) a 2/1 bungalow downtown going into the off season?

STRs in Wilmington, NC. Summer was 98% booked (we stole a few days for ourselves), fall around 75% and winter is about 50%. In-season is folks from across the entire county. Off-season proves to be primarily in-state folks that are weekenders who are visiting family or just want to get away from the metros for a few days. Holidays provide a little bump in avg occupancy (6 day avg vs the usual 2 or 3 day weekenders in-season). 

To figure this out without your own data, I'd call STR property managers and get an idea of what they're seeing in their X Bed, X Bath houses (based on your personal criteria).