48219 and 48235 (Detroit, Dearborn, Inkster: for sale, insurance, loft)

[animatedmartian]

I wouldn't personally go with Section 8. Not saying every applicant would be a bad one, but once you do get a bad one you'll regret it regardless of how much money you're guaranteed to get.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by AdemH

I may even just flip and put it back on the market. I'm seeing houses sold for 35-50K in the same area in the past month or so. Decisions. Decisions. Hmmm.

If you go this route, you might not get a return investment as quickly as you think. This is still Detroit; the municipal government is going bankrupt, the crime is out of control, and the job market is pretty weak. Not exactly the most desirable city in the country and those prices are like that because of the above mentioned reasons.

[AdemH]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

If you go this route, you might not get a return investment as quickly as you think. This is still Detroit; the municipal government is going bankrupt, the crime is out of control, and the job market is pretty weak. Not exactly the most desirable city in the country and those prices are like that because of the above mentioned reasons.

You know Martian, the thing with me is this. I'm dealing with cash money. I'm not taking out any mortgages. So I don't have to worry about a monthly bill on top of my head. Even if the house stays on the market for 3-6 months I'm cool. As long as I make a profit at the end, I'm happy.

The only thing that worries me is the fact that the longer the house is on the market, the longer criminals have to break in and gut the place.

[AdemH]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

I wouldn't personally go with Section 8. Not saying every applicant would be a bad one, but once you do get a bad one you'll regret it regardless of how much money you're guaranteed to get.

My brother-in-law has a property on Section 8. He's had good tenants every time around. He thanks God every day because he knows it's so rare for that to happen. lol

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by AdemH

You know Martian, the thing with me is this. I'm dealing with cash money. I'm not taking out any mortgages. So I don't have to worry about a monthly bill on top of my head. Even if the house stays on the market for 3-6 months I'm cool. As long as I make a profit at the end, I'm happy.

The only thing that worries me is the fact that the longer the house is on the market, the longer criminals have to break in and gut the place.

Yea that's really the big thing. Otherwise you'd have no problem getting a profit. But it's kind of a catch-22 because people aren't moving in due to crime but it's easy to get enough money to flip a house.

But yea, in the end, it's your judgement call and most people would just say to avoid Detroit altogether. Trust me, there's more than a few stories of people flipping houses only to have thieves come in and basically make their investment a waste. There's some success stories, but as far as I know, they've all been mostly downtown.

[AdemH]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

Yea that's really the big thing. Otherwise you'd have no problem getting a profit. But it's kind of a catch-22 because people aren't moving in due to crime but it's easy to get enough money to flip a house.

But yea, in the end, it's your judgement call and most people would just say to avoid Detroit altogether. Trust me, there's more than a few stories of people flipping houses only to have thieves come in and basically make their investment a waste. There's some success stories, but as far as I know, they've all been mostly downtown.

Thanks for the advice dude.

[jackmichigan]

Do you live in the area? If not, you should NOT "invest" in anything in Detroit. 35-50K is a VERY HIGH price for an investment property in this area. The key to investing is to buy low (distressed properties) and sell high. You can't make much money by buying an expensive house, and you're putting more at risk by doing so. I bought a number of houses in Detroit years ago--and the market, price-wise, is about the same today (while conditions are worse)--and I usually paid less than $10K for a house.

Renting in Detroit can be a nightmare, regardless of whether you go Section 8 or not.

[AdemH]

Originally Posted by jackmichigan

Do you live in the area? If not, you should NOT "invest" in anything in Detroit. 35-50K is a VERY HIGH price for an investment property in this area. The key to investing is to buy low (distressed properties) and sell high. You can't make much money by buying an expensive house, and you're putting more at risk by doing so. I bought a number of houses in Detroit years ago--and the market, price-wise, is about the same today (while conditions are worse)--and I usually paid less than $10K for a house.

Renting in Detroit can be a nightmare, regardless of whether you go Section 8 or not.

I don't live there....yet. I have a lot of friends and relatives that moved to Southfield within the past 18 months. They are all trying to convince me to move. I think I'll only move if I can start flipping.

That's exactly what I wanted to do, get some distressed properties and hook them up. I'm looking to sell in the 35-50K range, not buy.

What are you doing with those houses now? Are you renting them? Sold them? Have they been broken into at all by criminals?

Again, thanks for the input.

[MS313]

Well unless you have your family members check on it and maintain it on the regular basis then I would just wait until you moved here, honestly it would be the smartest thing to do, Detroit or not, I personally wouldn't blindly invest in any place I haven't seen for myself.

[jackmichigan]

Originally Posted by AdemH

What are you doing with those houses now? Are you renting them? Sold them? Have they been broken into at all by criminals?

I rented them out for a while (mostly near Dearborn), thinking renting was the way to go...but I made more money when I sold them, all qualifying for long-term capital gains. A couple houses were broken into while I was repairing them, so it's important to keep a constant watch on any property and, preferably, have someone living there as soon as possible (even during the renovations). Since I'm easing into retirement, I only have one tenant-occupied house left to sell--which I hope to sell soon.