Should I buy or not??

[Jimhassel]

I am thinking of buying a new house as an investment. I already own a house where I am living right now with my husband. Do you think buying a new house would be good as an investment? Please advice.

[disneysteve]

Not nearly enough info to answer that question. We'd need to know a lot more details about your finances as well as details about the property you're considering, how much it would rent for, etc.

[bjl584]

Being a Landlord isn't easy. There are lots of things to consider. But I agree that we need a lot more info before we can answer that question.

[amarowsky]

I just posted a thread about obtaining a loan for as cheap down as possible. Have you looked into a loan on your place yet, and if so what method did you find to be best for buying the 2nd property to loan out.

[chrisburke21]

Home Loan

I have to say I have been a landlord for years now and its not that bad. Knock on wood I havent had the devil tennant move in yet. Things to consider is what percentage of your portfolio is this property going to be, what is your investment roi, if something happens will this leave you in a bad situation, etc. Give us some more info and we will try and give you a better answer.

[siggy_freud]

There are a few things I've learned being a landlord for a little over a year. I'll share them in case you do pursue this avenue.

#1 - Don't give in to the tendency to buy cheap things for the home/apartment. Cheap things break easier, and will consume more of your time fixing. This goes for appliances, flooring, lights, door locks, etc. You don't have to go top of the line, but don't go for low grade.

#2 - Carpet is the enemy. Minimize the amount of carpet if possible. I used 50-year laminate wood flooring for the living and kitchen areas. Looks AWESOME, has the texture and finish of wood, and doesn't scratch or dent with easy. If someone spills something, so what? I use broad ceramic tile in the bathroom. I reserve carpet for the bedroom only.

#3 - Splurge on a deadlock with an electronic combination pad. They still can use a key, but if they call you because they've lost their key at 2am and are locked out, you can give them the pin and not have to make the immediate trip.

#4 - Buy some books/watch Youtube about the DIY stuff, so you're not paying expensive contractors for the simple stuff, like sink leaks, etc. The more you can do, the more you'll save.

#5 - If you can afford it, rent in a higher-rent market area. This will help minimize the chances of getting deadbeat renters, or renters that will trash the place. My rental is small, but very nice on the inside. It's not the cheapest per sq.ft in the area by any means, but I don't want the renter looking for the cheapest place.

#6 - If you can find places around private colleges, or schools known for graduate work primarily, that's actually a good market. Plenty of potential renters, and private school attendees, especially those in grad school, tend to be a lot calmer .

Good luck if you go down this route!

[snafu]

When we first married I was the on-site manager of a small apartment bldg. with DH doing nearly all repairs. It was a huge learning experience and as long as you are willing to devote the time, have the skill sets needed for regular repairs and have reasonable expectation renting a house has the potential to be a good investment over the long term. As mentioned, it depends on your financial figures. You will need to pay mortgage, property taxes, insurance and even utilities when the place is empty. Landlords need infinite patience and a significant emergency fund as Murphy's Law [anything that can go wrong will go wrong] seems attached to rental properties. Tenants who are reasonable during business hours turn into screaming weirdos if something malfunctions after 9 PM. It will be your fault if the landscaper fails to turn up on his regular day and an emergency when the external light bulb burns out.

[p_wyt_12]

I think it will be a good investment considering the value of real estate now if you want it to be rented. Just be sure to buy something around an area where everything is accessible and choose a tenant wisely.

[Ramose]

More information needed for any real answer but generically, investment properties are good if you are looking to diversify your portfolio. It is a big investment though so don't make the decision lightly. Also make sure you wouldn't be financially ruined if things went south.

[joshuaking]

#5 - If you can afford it, rent in a higher-rent market area. This will help minimize the chances of getting deadbeat renters, or renters that will trash the place. My rental is small, but very nice on the inside. It's not the cheapest per sq.ft in the area by any means, but I don't want the renter looking for the cheapest place.

I agree with this. I rented out a guest apartment in my house in a resort town, and had a great steady extra income. It was never hard to rent.

I would add also that I always insisted on great credit and a large deposit. I was willing to leave the apartment empty if I didn't get these things. I always thought it was easier to screen tenants at the beginning than to get rid of a deadbeat after they were in.

[thecollege123]

Hi there! My name's Andrew and I'm new here. I guess given with that kind of situation,it would be better to deeply reflect things first. Though you've said that you already have a house, and still want to buy a new one just for investment, it is quite a bit tactic. I agree that it could be your investment for future or anything you have in mind, but you really wont know what will happen next. What if you'll be needing the money for present use and already bought the house?. Yeah,you may sell the house, but to relieve you for any such hassle,I think it is better not to buy a new one anymore. As you might be thinking that the house could also be for your kid's sake or probably for your grandchildren, it would be nice somehow. Though, wouldn't it be quite fun to have their homes accordingly with what they dream to have for a house. And that will be giving them the chance to find for their own house. Yet to some, owning a house given by your parents could be quite touching and sentimental.In that case, it would be an option to ask your kids'opinion about it and if they'll want that kind of arrangement.

[thesimplemoneyblog]

Not nearly enough info to answer that question. We'd need to know a lot more details about your finances as well as details about the property you're considering, how much it would rent for, etc.

Not enough information to really help you out. However, in my experience, most people do not make good landlords (as you have to be willing to kick someone out of their home if they aren't paying rent), it takes a lot of time to find tenants, set a proper rental amount, and manage the property (though there are companies that can help with this that often take about 10% of the monthly income), and most people don't do the proper underwriting to determine if the property itself is actually a good investment based on all the carrying costs (interest, taxes, maintenance (usually significantly understated by most people), your time, and what happens if the property goes rent free for six months or more).