All Forum Posts by: Ryan Evans

I don't own in Tacoma yet, but all the Pierce County multifamily investors I've met are pretty keen on the area long term largely due to the big-scale economic factors. Tacoma is going to be a different city in a few years once all the major apartment gets going, the link comes through, UWT expands, and also with the older government workforce in Olympia retiring, I see it as a good place to rent to the new workforce that will be working in Olympia but doesn't want to live there yet still wants to be close to Seattle. 

If you're looking for 5+ years holding then I say it's worth a serious look!

I can only speak for myself, but I'd rather spend a few extra weeks, even if that means some lost rent than have pets. You'll find the right tenant eventually. Sure, you can get a pet deposit, increased rent, etc., but they can quickly wipe that out if you have carpet and/or nice upgrades. Loud dogs can create issues with neighbors, and pet hair means more strain on your HVAC as well. Then again, you might have zero issues. To me, it's just about minimizing the unknowns, but that's just my two cents! 

@Ryan B. and he showed me around some neighborhoods and a couple of his properties. Thanks again for that Tim :) 

And I can't say I know the first thing about Milwaukee. But it's worth noting that one of the things I like about Cleveland is the large number of duplex. Same story out in chicago and a few other markets. 

Welcome @Ryan B. what part of cleveland are you looking at? 

Thanks @Al Williamson sounds like I've got to just put the time in and do it right!

Hmm those are some good points @Max T. . Even if he pays some rent and I pay him the money back for maintenance, at least there's a paper trail. All the paperwork is a pain in the butt, but I know that's nothing compared to what could potentially go wrong!

I've got a property with an unused detached garage and a next door neighbor looking for storage space. He's offered free monthly lawn maintenance in exchange for using the garage to store his Salvation Army donations, tools, etc. 

Seeing as I'm going to be running it from out of state and probably under property management, it makes sense to me to utilize the space and not pay lawn care fees. 

I'd love to get some thoughts on the best way to formalize an agreement like that. Should I do a month to month storage unit lease agreement laying out the ground rules like not disturbing the tenants and using it as a workshop? Then a second agreement for property maintenance? 

Is there a way to make a legal arrangement for something like that? I want to make sure it's on the up and up to not run into legal issues or if he's not holding up his end of the bargain i can kick him out. I want to make sure I don't have insurance issues as well since he's not licensed. Would love to get some opinions! 

Cheers @Roger P. I haven't been through that area, though I've gotten a lot of recommendations to check out Ohio City. Seems to be another one of the trendy up and comers. 

I got a property just a couple blocks from the Waterloo Arts District. Everyone I talk to tells me how quick this place is turning around so it looks like it's turning out to be a good call. With the renovations I'll be all in at around 32k on a 2000 square foot, 4 bed 2 bath duplex. It's not ready to go yet, but I'm already getting offers of around $550 a month for each unit.

Welcome to the area @Jason Weible ! I'm new to Cleveland myself. The map James wise put together is an awesome resource. I'm from Seattle and my first trip out the Cleveland I did nothing but drive around for a week straight looking at neighborhoods. Especially coming from a part of the country that doesn't really experience much blight, I was really wowed by how "block by block" Cleveland can be in some areas. You might find a great deal on a block surrounded by nice houses, but that one block has tons of blight and vacant lots. 

I flew out from Seattle to see it for myself and that was such a good decision. Hopefully you're planning on coming out and seeing for yourself! I really liked the lakewood area and old brooklyn. Brooklyn is a bit rougher, but I can see it really turning around so it might be a good time to help make that happen. Since I've been out it Cleveland the last couple weeks, everyone I talk to is telling me how Tremont is the place to be for nightlife and such so that's another area. Also, I'm personally looking at properties around the waterloo arts district in north collinwood. That's another area that is really turning around and drawing a good crowd!

I've been doing a fair bit of research lately and I've seen a lot of economists breaking down the reasons for a predicted downturn. It seems the GFC has many people thinking we're in for another similar event, but many others are simply implying we're headed towards a weakening US dollar which can have some overlap with a housing crash, but it's really a separate type of event in some ways. It probably is a good time to look at investing overseas, but that's a separate topic alltogether.