Buying real estate in LR (Little Rock, Fayetteville: apartments, rental homes, condos)

[mabadger]

I am looking to invest in some real estate in LR (single/multiple family dwellings). What areas should I consider -- or NOT consider. Are house selling or renting faster in LR?

[Sam I Am]

Probably depends on the socioeconomic class you wish to appeal to. Good, inexpensive or reasonably expensive rentals are hard to come by. As far as houses, nothing looks real reasonable to me in LR right now, but I'm out of the rental market. I'd say Capital Heights and the areas south of Cantrell, north of I-630 and west of about the Rice/Dennison area...also out Markham by Burlington on the north side (don't know what that area is called - Santa Fe, Poinsetta, etc.), Treasure Hills, Briarwood and Broadmoor.

[Ira500]

Selling real estate in Seattle, I look at these gorgeous houses in LR in the Hillcrest or Pulaski Heights and think how absolutely reasonable prices look compared to Seattle, and wonder why everybody doesn't move there ( I like Little Rock, can you tell?)
But I guess it's all relative. I haven't been watching LR home prices for all that long, so don't know how much prices escalated in the past few years. In Seattle, prices have gone insane to unsustainable levels. A nice house in the Hillcrest neighborhood selling for 250,000 dollars would sell for 600,000 in a comparable neighborhood in Seattle, and wages aren't THAT much higher.

[Aporkalypse]

Originally Posted by mabadger

I am looking to invest in some real estate in LR (single/multiple family dwellings). What areas should I consider -- or NOT consider. Are house selling or renting faster in LR?

The market in LR is holding steady. The homes that are staying on the market are in Chenal and far West LR, generally those over $300-400,000. Older homes are doing well, even in areas of town (Heights, Hillcrest) with high prices. However, the rental market is better. As with most of the country you will get more in terms of rental income out of middle and lower income apartments, properties in the Heights and Hillcrest go at a premium but nearby areas in Midtown may still be good buys. There are some good bargain rental properties in or near downtown. Avoid Reservoir Rd in West LR, rental properties there are being dumped. Property values in Southwest LR are also depressed and there are some bargains there you have to take into account that poor quality of tenants there and the decreased potential for appreciation.

[Ira500]

My wife and I are going to retire and relocate in the next few years, and we both love Arkansas. We've got it narrowed down to Little Rock, Fayetteville, Hot Springs, or Eureka Springs.
What we thought about doing was buying a house and renting it out for a few years until we're ready to move in. In Seattle, that's totally a fool's errand right now because mortgage payments are sooo much higher than rents.
Can you achieve a positive or neutral cash flow buying a home in say..Riverdale or the Hillcrest in Little Rock and renting it out?
Or is it way out of whack like Seattle is?

[Aporkalypse]

Ira, you're going to do far better in Little Rock than the West Coast with rental homes, the market here is very similar to DFW and Houston. Most realtors in town here have a handful because it's virtually always profitable. Hillcrest is a good area for rental homes as prices haven't exceeded profitability too far and you have a solid stable of renters, particularly the UAMS crowd. I really like nearby neighborhoods - Hall High, Leawood, Stifft Station and Capitol View as the prices aren't as inflated as Hillcrest because they lack the "trendy" reputation yet rents are similar.

Hot Springs is an interesting market as it offers opportunities for vacation rentals. I know people who rent out condos for the two month racing season at Oaklawn to jockeys, trainers, owners, etc and it pays the mortgage for the entire year. Then summer rentals are just profit.

[Ira500]

Thanks, Aporkalypse, that was very helpful. I'm familar with Stifft Station and Leawood, but don't know Hall High. I've got more exploring to do.

[LivingInLittleRock]

Hi,

The market in Little Rock is very steady. It is very easy to rent out homes and apartments as well. With UAMS and UALR, young people are always eager to rent something in Hillcrest, Leawood, or Hall High areas. Young professionals like to rent single family homes or condos in Hillcrest, Heights, Cammack Village, Kingwood areas. You can't go wrong buying investment property right now.

I hope this helps!