Strong Demand for Affordable Rental Properties Should Attract New San Antonio Investors

As the economic recovery gathers steam, many real estate investors in Texas are finding that there is even stronger demand today for affordable rental properties than a few years ago.

The San Antonio economy is doing well with low unemployment rates, rising wages and a growing population.  But there are signs that the prices of new and existing homes in San Antonio are taxing the budgets of middle-class families. Many of them have good incomes, but may not be able to afford rising home prices and down payments.

Last month, the National Association of Realtors stated that the sales of existing homes in San Antonio dropped 2.3% in April 2017. Prices have continued to surge, and sometimes multiple offers are coming in on some affordable homes.

The increase in prices in the last few years of existing homes has somewhat exceeded the rise in wages. So, how is this good news for investors?

Well, investors interested in buy and hold properties and high ROI investment properties in Texas should strongly focus on rehabbing under market value properties and renting them out.

There are plenty of San Antonio families who have enough cash to pay for a rental deposit and $1000 per month in rent, but lack the down payment or income to qualify for a mortgage. In our owner finance market, we are seeing many people who have the income to afford the mortgage payment, but simply lack the cash for the down payment.

This means there is a serious opportunity for the rental property buy and hold investor. Also, with San Antonio properties increasing substantially in value, the buy and hold rental property investor will have a serious chance to increase their equity.

Here is a really nice buy and hold rental property deal I am featuring:

Address: 106 and 110 Dewitt, San Antonio Texas, 78210

Description: Location Location, just south of downtown, short distance to the river walk and the new San Pedro creek river walk extension project (multi-billion dollar inner city revitalization): properties are going to double in value in the next 5 years. Both homes need to be converted into 3 beds 1 bath: estimated repairs for both projects: 80K-40K each, purchase price for both investments: 80K, Max After Repair Value: 119K each or 230K for both, Package deal.

Price: $80,000 cash

Exit Strategy: I recommend buy/remodel/rent then resale in 5 years

The under market value San Antonio investor can buy both for $80k and rehab each one for $40k each. You should be able to rent each property for more than $1000 each. And the increase in equity due to their location will make this a very high ROI investment opportunity.

 

 

5 Common Problems With Buying Rental Properties (Which Is Why I Don’t!)

Are you a wanna-be real estate investor? Many people do indeed dream of owning under market value rental properties and someday earning positive real estate cash flow from them.

However, before you consider buying under market value investment properties, you really should think about what you are getting into. Being a part time landlord is usually a lot more hassle than many realize.

I am a full time real estate investor in San Antonio investment properties. At one time, I owned more than 100 San Antonio rental properties. I have deal with rental property problems many times and I have since stopped renting out properties and now I make real estate cash flow in another way without maintenance…..

But I am getting ahead of myself! Here are the common issues I’ve seen with rental investment properties:

  • Repair costs: If you are going to rent out your California investment property or Texas investment property (or wherever it is), you will most likely need to spend a good deal of money to make it ready to rent. Any damage to the roof, plumbing, foundation or electrical systems could cost a lot to repair.

This can especially trip up the part time landlord who has a full time job and has bought rental properties for real estate cash flow. Odds are you are not an expert in rehabs and you could easily overspend on fixing up the house.

Depending on which state you are buying your investment properties, you could have landlord and tenant laws that mandate that you add safety features to the house, such as handrails, peephole in the front door, adding a firewall, and a lot more.

  • Getting repairs done: As a rental property investor, you are going to have repairs that have to be done fast. Back when I was a landlord 10 years ago, I had water heaters go bad. Sometimes the house got flooded and I had to spend a couple thousand dollars to clean it up. Of course, the after hours plumber can cost you $100 per hour or more.
  • Collecting your rent: If you are lucky, you will have good tenants who always pay on time. But oftentimes, you have tenants who are late. This is an especially big problem if you buy your rental properties with mortgages. I never buy my under market value properties with mortgages, only cash.
  • Dealing with pain in the neck tenants: Eventually you are going to have to deal with tenants who damage your house or cause problems with other tenants. I once had a tenant who almost burned the house down. Of course, you will also have to deal with evictions at times, which can be problematic depending upon your state. In some states, the tenant can stay in the house 60 days or more without paying rent!
  • Keeping the property safe: If you rent out properties, you could be at risk of being sued if someone is injured on your property. You must keep the home maintained so that there are not potential accidents.

The bottom line on rental properties for me is to not invest in rental properties. There is simply too much hassle involved in them to make it worth my time. Been there, done that!

How I Invest in Below Market Value Properties Without Repairs

The way that I invest in San Antonio investment properties today is to buy my under market value property in cash, do $10,000 or so in rehab, and then seller finance it. This type of investing has four big advantages:

  • I have no mortgage. Yay!
  • My occupant is buying the house on terms from me. That means they maintain the property and do all of the repairs. Double yay! If they choose to not repair it, that isn’t my problem. I merely hold the note on the house.
  • I enjoy pure real estate cash flow in my under market value San Antonio properties. No expenses! Is this cool or what?
  • Because I buy investment property in Texas, foreclosing is very easy. I get the house back in 60 days and resell it again. I have resold the same house three times before: $5000 down, $800 per month.

Of course, this type of real estate investing takes CASH. But if you have an IRA or a 401k, you can often invest in these under market value houses.

Below is a great example of the type of investing my out of state investment property investors and I do.

55

The house above in on West Poplar Ave. in 78207 in San Antonio. It is a newly completed San Antonio investment property that was bought the the California investor for $44,000 in October 2015.

We conducted $10,000 of rehab on the property and put it on the market in December 2015. Total cost to investor was $54,000. It was resold in late January 2016 with the following terms:

  • $83,000 sales price
  • $5000 down
  • $627.61 per month ($800 per month PITI)
  • 9% interest
  • 30 year note

Total return for out of state property investor is 14% ROI. If you are interested in out of state investment property that earns 10-15% ROI with no maintenance, please contact us.

Below are more rehab pictures:

poplar 1

NEW 7 NEW 8NEW 9 NEW 10 NEW 11

NEW 1 NEW 2NEW 3 thumb_IMG_3598_1024 thumb_IMG_3600_1024

NEW 5 NEW 4

Based upon this 14% ROI return, I think you can understand why many of my investors from out of state USED to buy San Francisco investment property, San Diego investment property, Seattle investment property, and Los Angeles investment property. Now they mostly buy San Antonio investment property.

5 Reasons I Like Owner Finance Investment Properties Better Than Rental Investment Properties

I’m a 21 year expert in San Antonio investment properties, and for the first eight years, I mostly did rental investment properties. However, during the market crash of 2008, I converted most of my under market value properties to owner finance investment properties.

That was a great decision! Today I am a financially retired owner finance investment property owner ((San Antonio – one of the best cities to invest in real estate). I have found that owning owner finance investment properties is generally better than rental properties.

If you are not very familiar with owner financing properties, sorry! I’ll explain:

  • Some people want to buy a home rather than rent, but they lack the credit to get a traditional loan. One option the under market value property investor has is to ‘be the bank.’ That is, you the under market value property owner can write a mortgage yourself to your home’s occupant.
  • The same terms apply as when you get a mortgage from a bank. Payments are made over time with an interest charge, taxes and insurance must be escrowed.
  • In my under market value properties with owner financing, I charge 10% interest, 30 year term. My buyers may refinance when they like.

Here are some of the advantages of owner financing for the below market value property investor (pay attention, out of state investment property searchers!):

  1. Owner financed investment property can sell very quickly to your buyer. There is no bank involved, so after you do your due diligence on the buyer and get their down payment, you can go to closing right away. Once I have the buyers’ proof of income, I usually close on my owner finance investment properties in two weeks.
  2. Owner financed investment property has a very good rate of return because you have no maintenance costs.
  3. Owner finance investment property has a lot of peace of mind because I do not worry about what the next repair on the house will cost me.
  4. In Texas, owner finance investment property is easy to foreclose on. If the buyer defaults, I repossess the house in 60 days and resell it.
  5. Owner finance investment property is very attractive as an out of state investment property, because you are not a landlord. You just collect your monthly payment from your buyer electronically each month. It is great passive cash flow for the out of state investor.

The above advantages of owner finance investment property have made me quite wealthy at the young age of 38. I strongly advise all under market value property investors to consider owner financing instead of renting.

Now, if you are an out of state property investor, you might wonder, what would this mean for me? Well, let’s take a look at this San Antonio under market value property:

edison front

  • Address: 2229 W Hermosa Dr. San Antonio, TX 78201
  • Year Built: 1948
  • Description: Below market value property sale, 2 beds 1 bath, 769 sqft, lot size: .14 acres yearly taxes: estimated repairs: 35K (convert to 3 BR).
  • Max After Repair Value: $129,000.00.
  • Cash Price: $69,900.

Your cash outlay for this under market value investment property would be $105,000. The rate of return for an owner finance investment property here would be ~11%. Your monthly income would be $900 per month after you pay taxes and insurance.

You have no other expenses.

Meanwhile, if you rent this property, you will also net approximately $900 per month, but you will also have a property management fee of approximately $95 per month, plus repair expenses of $500 to $1000 per year. Your ROI will drop to approximately 10%.

Of course, some under market value property investors buy Texas investment properties to enjoy depreciation and writing off expenses for tax purposes, and there is nothing wrong with that! Personally, I prefer the pure passive cash flow from owner financing investment properties.