I still have not acquired any rental properties and frankly I am still running into the issues I discussed at the end of my last post over a year ago. My local area is not priced appropriately for rental investment from what I can see; the rents that can be collected don't surpass the mortgage payments enough to leave a decent profit and any mishaps or repairs could push the monthly expenses well beyond what I would be collecting in terms of rent. The only areas where the numbers potentially work are dangerous crime-ridden areas that I would not want to invest in.
So, the next step has been to look into other areas to invest in. First I tried areas within a somewhat reasonable driving distance. I started with anywhere within a 2 hour drive of my home neighborhood. I would prefer closer, but if I had to it would be worth it to drive a few hours when I need to go to a property in person. Ideally once I get a property ready and rented out and the tenants settle in, I shouldn't need to constantly be driving out there. However, even with this large radius I am still having trouble finding anything with workable numbers in a reasonable safe neighborhood.
I am still trying to find something within that radius but I have also begun to consider more remote investing. The added complication is that if I go beyond a reasonable driving distance, I would need to rely on someone else (a property manager or property management firm) to handle tenant selection and any issues that arise with the property. Property managers also take a fee from the rent collected; the percentage varies depending on the area you invest in and the typical rents in the area. After I have explored this option further I will write up a post about it and discuss it in greater detail.
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