All Forum Posts by: Susan Maneck

 You are describing communism.  This is not what America was built on.. Nor should it be where America is headed.

 I suggest you read Adam Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments. Yes, the same Adam Smith who laid down the principals of Free Trade Capitalism. Capitalism was intended as a rejection of Mercantilism and the imperialism and tariffs that went along with it. He did not oppose social welfare legislation. 

Quote from @Barry Pittman:

Being in the poorest state in the union (Mississippi), this has been a topic of discussion for our development team, creating/building affordable housing. Is there a need? Most definitely. However, I believe the right company, operating with a very focused ideology, could make this happen without creating government expenses. At least, that's our goal.

I lived in the Jackson metro for twenty years and I can't speak for the rest of the state. What I saw was not a need for additional housing (Jackson's population is shrinking not growing) but a need to rehab existing housing. What I'd like to see is an expansion of a Section 8 program which is too rarely used where tenants are subsidized to buy houses rather than rent them. 

 I've never seen any Dem suggest government ownership, except for the handful who identify themselves as Democratic Socialists. 

Quote from @Matt Myre:

My early thoughts are that expanding downpayment assistance while mortgage rates decline and still failing to build enough supply will only drive housing prices higher.

I have to agree. I like Kamala Harris but I'm not sure I agree with her economic plans. Either the economy is good as Dems have been saying or it is not. If it is good then why are we messing with it? Just raise the minimum wage and let the Fed do the rest. 

I can tell you to avoid 39209 zip code because it's a war zone. 39204 and 39213 aren't much better. The best neighborhoods are Bellhaven, Fondren and the Northeast side (39211) but they are more expensive. I tend to favor 39212 and 39206 because properties are still relative cheap and the ROI is high. If you have questions about specific properties contact me privately and I'll tell you what I think. I'm in California now myself but I lived in Mississippi for 20 years and bought all my properties during the recession and nearly all were in walking distance from my own house.

Quote from @Carlos Quiros:

I wanted to gain insight about this market.

How are you all doing cash flow wise, roi wise in this market. 

How much is the average turn key single family home/duplex in Jackson, MS C+/B- areas?

taxes/insurance costs?

Any insight would be helpful

 Hi Carlos, 

In terms of cash flow, Jackson can't be beat. In terms of appreciation, not so much. All of my properties are in C neighborhoods. Chris is right about it varying from street to street. But in the neighborhoods where I invest and have lived, you can still buy a 3/2 with a two-car garage on a 1/4 lot for less than 80K. Taxes and insurance are somewhat high relative to the value of the properties. There is no Prop. 13 here! Also, much of Jackson is in a flood zone, so you need flood insurance as well. Unless you are buying in the Fondren District or Bellhaven, I would avoid duplexes. They don't attract the best tenants and are often overpriced. If you want a small-multi look for a larger house with a guest house (or ADU has they call them in California) and then try to rent it to an extended family.

warmest, Susan 

Quote from @Orhi Tahi:

Quote from @Susan Maneck:

As David B. mentioned foundation problems are endemic to Mississippi so, which is why I don't recommend real estate investing to out-of-state buyers who can't check out what they are buying. Many house are in flood zones. I will sometimes buy the latter, but never the former. Also, I don't buy houses with active leaks. The dangers of mold are just to great here. 

@Susan Maneck ty for sharing all those great insights. For foundation problems, do you see houses with good foundation can still be at risk due to the Yazoo clay and significant rain ? Just trying to assess if I will be ok in the future assuming my inspector is giving me green light for the foundation now.

 In my experience it is the newer houses that are more likely to have problems. If the foundation hasn't moved in fifty years it probably won't. But you are right it is the clay underneath that is the problem, not the way the foundation was built. For that reason you want to know if the neighborhood as a whole has this problem.

Usually it let's you message after you do a connect. I'll send you my regular email. I'm not sure what you are planning to do with these empty lots. I don't know whether it is still the case but for awhile the city of Jackson was selling empty lots for just $50 if you presented a plan for what you wanted to do with it. 

Quote from @Sylvia Castellanos:

Susan, thanks for your reply. I note your comment that

“during the Recession assessed values were higher than you could actually sell a property for.” As it happens, I have been researching parcel of land in Harrison County, MS. I was stunned by how much the county government assessed vacant lots for. Here is a sampling. The first number is the percentage of an acre.

.08 $11,500

.32 $18,400

.16 $17, 078

.18 $22,608

.19 $26,032

I get it that the size of the lot is only one of several factors in determining the property’s value. Still, these are numbers I didn’t expect to see. Can you shed any light on this?

 Well, I'm only intimately familiar with the situation in the Jackson Metro area.  Where I buy houses the average lot size is about a quarter of an acre. The county assesses those lots as worth about 10K, but when houses burn down in the neighborhoods where I have houses, the rarely rebuild them. The best way to get rid of an empty lot there is to donate it to Habitat. As least then you can write off what the County claims the property is worth. Mind you, all of my properties are worth more than their appraised value now, but during the Recession the City Manager got the bright idea that the way to easily raise revenue was to raise the appraisals, and they ended up higher than the resale value of those properties. 

I've never gone that route because I find it just too risky. A lot of properties in Mississippi have foundation problems and if you buying property that way, there is no way of knowing. It sounds like they want to get as close to the assessed value as possible, and I remember that during the Recession assessed values were higher than you could actually sell a property for. Also, you get a quit claim, not an actual title.