anyone own an Apartment building for profit

[BandAid]

I want to retire....
What can you tell me about owning an apartment building,was thinking of buying a building and hopfully not have to "work as hard" as I do now,would hope after the mortgage is paid for each monthand building bills paid,that I would have at least $2500 to put toward my home and not have to bust a nut to get ahead...I can get a paper route (J/K)

Please tell me the pros and cons of this...



Have about $100K - $150K to put down..prolly more near $100k

Thanks again///

 

[Drac0nic]

Far as what I've seen I work in the rental industry. They're good investments if you're not making payments on the places, otherwise you'll just get by (I've got a friend of mine that knows this the hard way) Overall though, if you've got a 4-plex and rent for 5-6 bills a month that's still a full return in 4 years assuming perfect rentership, I'd be more likely to say 5-6 years though, due to misc. expenses and "dead time"
I'd be sure to check about building regulations in certain areas they can be a bastard.
Another thing is this, be really careful about your tennant selection, If you have a bad tennant they can move you from moola to a hole real quick. It usually takes about 3-5 months to evict someone from what I've seen here, even though this can vary from state to state probably. Bad tennants also tend to tear your property up a lot worse then good tennants. No matter how good they are there will probably be a few wear and tear areas regardless.
Another thing is maintinence; If you've got skills you can save a pile of cash, otherwise you'll be hiring out every time something breaks, can eat profits quick. Most any general home repair skill will come in handy, you may be legally obligated to hire people for certain jobs though such as plumbing or electrical.
The last thing I'll mention is location. The fellow I work for is 1.5 hours away from here, which means that he has 3 hours car time MINIMAL when he works on something down here; Do yourself a favor and make it so you're about 10-20 minutes away if physcially possible.
I've heard of property maintinence companies, for X a month they'll take care of problems with the property. This may be the way to go, if you're not wanting to put a buncha labor into it.
Overall I'd say it's a decent way to make money if you're fiscally responsible, have some home repair skills and decent people skills.

 

[BandAid]

I do all my own home repair ,I also work in the trades,I do HVAC,electrical,and plumbing.so my only fear is roofing,,well not fear,but its a back breaker....oh and I dont plant flowers
But I plan on being the primary person taking care of th ebuilding..
thanks Dennis

How much do you need up front $$$

 

[we4turbo]

I sent you an email

 

[BandAid]

Originally posted by we4turbo
I sent you an email

Let me know if my email went thru to you ,I have had problems lately...
Dennis

 

[Pronto]

My boss is into real estate on the side. He has a about 4 slum buildings. All I hear is sinks clogged and drug busts. He has to call on everyone's bank account to see if they have sufficient funds for the check to clear so he doesn't bounce them. I know eventually the value of the buildings will go up but I wouldn't want to deal with the morons he has to squeeze for his rent. I think buying a house and fixing it up and flipping it would be easier. At least you wouldn't have to get called in the middle of the night because a drunk boyfriend kicked in a door at one of your units.

 

[we4turbo]

I did get it.

David

 

[Little6pack]

Dude your real estate depends on 3 things LOCATION, LOCATION & LOCATION.

As Pronto mentioned you will become a daddy to adult children if you buy in the worng section of town or wrong town period!

You will not work any easier in fact you will work harder keeping the place up.
Your Kids (if you have any) will reap the rewards by the time the place goes up in value.

Suggestions:
Buy in nice sections, Buy small maybe a 4 or 8 unit building that is managable.

Buying a 10 plus building
or one with an elevator you better have a pipline to $$ in case things break.

Another route is buy a few 1 bedroom condos in different locations. This will keep the tenannt to a single person or maybe a couple.. NO KIDS.
Once you go multi bedroom & kids come to the place you need to be careful for Lead paint, kid flying out the windows, etc, etc.

I am not knocking real estate just trying to lead you in the right direction.

With the money you have buy into a real estate Fund (REIT). that will go up over time & you will have no work to do.
The REIT funds own Malls, buildings, commercial properties, Hotels, Apartments all over the USA. Overtime all the REIT locations will go up in value. That is where I put my $$