All Forum Posts by: Matt Jones

@Bryce Nurding LOL, it sounds like Pensacola hurt you my friend.  I disagree with the bulk of your points(downtown Pensacola is thriving and home prices there are mostly between $200 - $500 per sq ft these days, also North & East Hill are two of the more expensive areas of town and only a mile or two from the city center) but to each his own

@Ray Jaramillo Pensacola is booming right now with people relocating here to be closer to the beach. We are seeing quite a few retired folks and people with the ability to work remote moving into the area and we are seeing a lot of out of state investors that want to invest money here. Real estate prices have been increasing, the downtown has really grown and is becoming a tourist attraction separate from the beach. AirBnb's are doing very well in the area but the bulk of local short term rental properties are near a major attraction such as Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key or Downtown. The University of West Florida and NAS Pensacola are also draws that bring in out of town guests and could make for a good STR. Depending on where you are on 9 mile you may not be very convenient to any of the major attractions. Right now we seem to have a shortage of places for people to stay so you could be successful anywhere but I would consider the long term viability less certain with a higher chance that your 3 concerns could limit income/profitability for you.

@Reden Dionisio Yes, I have a title company, lenders, handymen, plumbers ect that I work with regularly since I like to buy fixer uppers.  As far as the purchases I'm a real estate agent so I generally find the deals myself but I have bought from wholesalers before and have a few people that bring me potential deals as well.

@Reden Dionisio Yea, I'm an investor and a real estate agent in Pensacola and the nearby areas.  I moved here to house hack a 4plex in 2015 and I liked it so much I stayed and started selling real estate and buying more rentals.

Nice deal, congrats!  Pensacola is a great market for buy & hold and renting by the room can be a great way to maximize rental income.  If you pay utilities rather than bill them back to the tenants you might have an opportunity to go up on rent next time you sign a new tenant,rental rates have really gone up around here lately.  

Check with Cynthia @ Tim Wise Prudential or check with Jordan at Goosehead.  If the property isn’t in good condition you can always get a cash value or builders risk type policy with Tapco or Lloyds.  

@Jessica Parker we do rent our townhome most of the time but we are using it for ourselves for a week here and there that adds up to about a month out of the year. Insurance, occupancy & pricing are probably just enough different that it would be worth talking with someone that has Airbnb units in the areas you mentioned. Reach out to my friend @Jerrod Mink, he is doing a great job with Airbnb’s near downtown. I sold a home to an investor in April that’s right downtown and is already outperforming all of the rental projections we had done so I know that demand is still very strong.

Hey @Jessica Parker the answer to your question will differ depending on if your looking for something at the beach or in town.  Which did you have in mind?  My wife and I own a townhome at the beach but several of my past clients and friends own in town so I’m happy to shed a little light on both and connect you with one of them for anything I can’t answer.  

@Justin Rush Pensacola is a great investment market for long term buy & hold, flips, wholesaling & short term rentals. We have a strong base of investors and wholesalers that are generally helpful and can help you source deals in addition to what you'll find on the MLS. My primary investment strategy is long-term BRRRR investor but my wife and I bought our first airbnb last year and it is going really well. I am also a Real Estate Agent and I'm seeing more demand for airbnb's from buyer's and renters. Covid, the lack of housing inventory and probably the increase in the number of in town properties used for short term rentals have really put a squeeze on long term rentals and driven rent prices up significantly which is offsetting the higher price of properties here and helping investors stay profitable. If you settle on the Pensacola Market(Pensacola, Gulf Breeze, Perdido Key, Milton, Pace, Cantonment, Navarre) I'm happy to share some attorneys, property managers, handymen, ect...

@Jessica Parker I may have some small & medium mobile home parks coming available soon 

@Jeff Morelock I haven't had to waive any inspections all together but I am advising buyers to shorten the inspection period in many situations. I also discuss strengthening EMD, reducing or eliminating any seller concessions and writing their offer on an as-is contract. For buyer's that are financing, having a strong pre-approval and a lender that is capable of closing quickly is important too. In Pensacola my lenders can close faster than the survey companies can complete a survey in this crazy market. Also, as the agent I try to make the offer as clean and streamlined as possible and I think it's very important to write your best offer up front in many situations these days to try and avoid bidding wars where you can.

In the Pensacola area market we are starting to see some things that you hear about in bigger markets and the west coast like agreeing to pay over appraised value, an increase in cash buyers and homes selling for way over the list price($70k on one that closed last week, that's unusual here) so maybe waiving inspections will be a necessity soon but I have several buyers under contract and none have waived inspections so far.  No offers on my listings this year have offered to waive inspections either.  

I know several local wholesalers that require an upfront non-refundable EMD of about $5k which feels a lot like waiving inspections. Certainly that impacts investors here but that has been going on for a few years.

Downtown Pensacola real estate is booming and downtown multifamily is in very high demand.  It sounds like you will probably have a very nice profit with the property so I think it’s smart that you are asking this question.  If you plan to hold the property very long term(20 years) then taxes are less important but if you think that you might not keep it that long then locking in your profits while the market is high and you can do so tax free is a reasonable strategy.  Having a large amount of cash and no definite timeframe also gives you a better chance to get a good deal on your next investment than working within the rigid timeline of a 1031 exchange.