All Forum Posts by: Sara W.

@Sara W. I invested in Cleveland and Memphis and I am seeing Cash on cash returns above 12%. The memphis property that I closed using Roofstock is COC at 18%. Let me know if you want to connect and chat about it.

That's awesome. How is your experience like with Roofstock? This is the post I read before posting on this forum and makes me a little hesitant to use Roofstock. I have heard that there is some sort of guaranteed now that Roofstock placed on its properties so maybe it will help mitigate some of the risks of investing from a long distance. 

https://www.biggerpockets.com/...

Hi Sara! We started out investing OOS into SFH BRRRR LTRs near a military base because it was much cheaper than Southern California. After the first 4, we moved to an area where the numbers make sense and has the same demographic (near another base). We are closing on our first local BRRRR later this week.

I don't see the need to be near the houses we buy and I actually won't even pick up the keys to this local house; our agent will pass them directly to the contractor.

As others mentioned above, it all comes down to the effort you're give that will determine OOS investing's worth to you. It does take some time to vet a team. Your returns will suffer more from the quality of deals you can find and less from the additional cost of a PM. You will lose a lot of off-market deal finding options and have to use wholesalers to find the best deals, with the additional cost of an assignment fee.

Simone is right in that this type of investing, local or otherwise, is not passive. It sounds like you've already seen that. But it can be a lot easier with the right systems in place. Investing OOS forces you to build those systems, which we find valuable. The PM will take their cut but it will leave you with time to focus on deal finding and funding.

I'm happy to chat about our experience so far if you want to learn more. Send me a PM!

Just PMed you, would love to chat with you!

@Sara W.

As an OOS investor for more than 9 years, I think investing in 1~3 hours driving range  is probably a better choice than  investing far away, in your case.

I wrote my own experience here  before:

As an Out-Of-State Investor for 9 Years… (biggerpockets.com)

Thank you for the info, will check out your post!
Living in an expensive market is a boon, not a curse. To make wealth passively, we must grab the appreciations.  Expensive markets usually mean high appreciation  potentials.  Even if the city cores are too expensive to invest, nearby still have more  appreciation potentials than lots of so-so areas.  Cash flows are for active investors, not  for passive investors.

@Sara W. I don't know your local market, however, I can imagine it is probably as challenging or more challenging than Denver, where I live. This is why I partner and I have changed asset classes and we are working on RV parks, rather than residential. We both have a background in single family, multifamily, and apartments. It could be as simple as changing what you invest in.

I am an advocate for learning about investing and investment property ownership in your own backyard, before looking out of state. The success stories you hear of investors buying into out of state markets revolve around either hyper-local knowledge of speculated growth or depressed housing markets where the values of homes have not kept pace with national appreciation, causing good cash flow. If these opportunities were really the golden geese some think of them to be, demand would drive their sales prices up. There is risk that you could buy into an area which is not growing, where property values may plateau and rents could compress. If your market is expensive, you may be best served to seek out opportunities in the area you know, because you will know where the growth is and what to expect in terms of appreciation. If net spendable cash is important to you, it may be wise to start as a passive investor, unless you want to do a lot of research into areas and asset classes of opportunity.

Yes, I did own some properties already in MA. The reason I was trying to avoid MA was because of the high price point and relatively ROI as well as the very tenant friendly law here in MA. But I do think I should start with a more local markets that I am very familiar with before attempting OOS.

@Sara W. I would say OOS investing is worth it as long as you mitigate your risks. Probably two of them that pop up management and market knowledge. As long as you have good boots on the ground teams to help you out and you know and understand the market, that should help you out.

I've syndicated apartment deals out of state; however, I picked markets that I had researched and could visit...either by a short drive or flight.