Posted by Rosendo on February 25, 2005 at 18:11:20:
Sounds like it’s ripe for the pick’in out there…As I suspected. I would like to speak with a good realtor you may know. I have to identify for 1031 in 45 days beginning Monday.
When you say good cashflow what kind of numbers are you talking about? I’m looking to net cashflow about 2k/mo this time around. I have 150k to play with. This is doable in MA.
I’m currently looking in MA. Good prices out there too but I’m concerned about the distance since I’m in San Francisco Bay Area.
I’m a Californian considering investing in the Phoenix RE market. Will anyone familiar with the PHX market tell me about the rental market and vacancy rates? I have access to vacancy rates by zip code, and they’re really bad, at least compared to my area, San Diego. It seems like the areas of PHX with multi-units seem to have the worst vacancy rates. Any insight into this brutal market?
Thank You
I use the MLS from Zip Realty online. Each MLS listing has a neighborhood data link with data on the number of owner occupied, renter occupied and vacant units in that zip code. What is scary is that many phoenix zip codes have more vacant units than renter occupied ones.
It’s difficult to estimate vacancy rates anywhere.
However, Phoenix does have an unusually high number of vacancies. This is mainly due to California investors rushing to Phoenix to buy cheap houses, only to find out it is very tough to rent them out. So, we have a case of 20% of the houses in some areas sitting vacant, while the runup in prices continues.
I looked in Phoenix in May-June last year but found that if I wanted a house, I would have to join in a bidding war. That and the vacancy problem scared me away from that area.
I am now investing in Austin and Salt Lake City. Email me if you have any questions about these places.
Posted by Rosendo on February 25, 2005 at 13:08:20:
Hi Kevin,
This was another area I was considering also. low prices + good rent prices and low vacany rates is what I noticed. My only concern was the job market out there. It was a bit slow out there last I looked about 6 months ago. Has it picked up any?
According to several people I’ve talked to, the job market has been picking up recently. However, I have not done my own research on this. I like Austin for investing because:
You can get very nice cashflow on SFR’s and multi’s, and prices are dirt cheap in many decent areas. Of course I’m coming from CA too!
It’s a beautiful place and there will always be demand in many areas of the city.
They are building lots of freeways and thinking of the future. They are also building a commuter rail that will go from downtown into North Austin and it should be done within 2 years.
There are direct, cheap flights from San Diego where I live. I don’t want to have to fly out there often, but it’s an easy 2.5 hour flight when necessary.
The area has been in a recession for a few years since the tech crash, and is poised to turn around.
Vacancy rates are all over the map in Austin. Some areas are around 6% while others are as high as 12%. Finding a good realtor was the key to my success, let me know if you need a suggestion.