Wilkes-Barre Multi Family (Scranton, Washington, Kingston: mortgage, real estate, debt)

[movie]

Hi!

The company I work for, C3I, has recently opened a call center there and I am interested in moving to the area.

I am currently on assignment in India. I leave here in July. I've been looking at multi family homes in Wilkes-Barre.

I understand this is an up and coming area. I'm looking for the best possible deal as I don't have a whole lot of money to buy, but can make a modest down payment. I'm hoping a multi family home (2 units) will make it so I can rent out one, live in the other, and have the income from the other unit help me toward the mortgage.

I am willing to move in to a neighborhood that is working toward improvement and contribute to that. I just want to be sure things are moving in that direction. I would hate to end up somewhere that is crap now and will be in 5 years.

Can anyone help me in this regard? I need to know what streets/area you as residents of Wilkes-Barre would recommend as "forward" kind of places and which ones you would steer clear of.

I'm looking for something in the 100k range. I know it's low, but I don't want to end up like so many and over-extend myself.

Any help any of you can give me will be highly appreciated.

I'm a good neighbor, I think from what I've read here I'll be in the best company to be found.

Any advice or thoughts on this would be appreciated. Anyone with any experience with purchasing a home with another unit to rent who may want to share some of their experience would be welcome as well.

Thanks in advance.

[FightinPhils]

100K low??? In Wilkes-Barre you can probably buy a Taj Mahal for 50k at this point. Easy walkability to pawn shops, Rent-A-Center, check cashing places, KFC, and six pack takeout stores with a wide assortment of 40 oz. bottles of malt liquor.

Honestly, if you can spend 100k on a double house....look at Scranton....much more liveable.

[W-B proud]

Yah, South Side Scranton what a beautifol area LOL. I've never seen a bigger concentration of welfare people, and Jerry Springer castaways in my life, then I've seen down by the Mr. Z's. Lined up with thier Access cards, sitting on benches looking all welfarish. I don't know what you're bragging about Mr. Krabs, because Scranton isn't Beverly Hills!

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Originally Posted by MrKrabs

100K low??? In Wilkes-Barre you can probably buy a Taj Mahal for 50k at this point. Easy walkability to pawn shops, Rent-A-Center, check cashing places, KFC, and six pack takeout stores with a wide assortment of 40 oz. bottles of malt liquor.

Honestly, if you can spend 100k on a double house....look at Scranton....much more liveable.

I've been to the Taj Mahal, LOL.....I don't think 100k would cut it. If you ever get to come to India, I would steer you toward buying the Red Fort. Way more fun to visit, and I can see it being a blast to own, in my opinion.

I'm sure not every neighborhood is like that. I've not had a need for a pawn shop yet and my food choices are pretty limited here....it takes 45 minutes to get to a KFC...walking distance to KFC sounds like heaven right now.

My company moved to Wilkes-Barre. There are reasons for that. I've had occasion to talk to people in on that move and from what I understand, the forecast for Wilkes-Barre is very promising.

I'm willing to work with it. I'm hoping to hear from people who live and work in the area and have positive things to share about it and can help me avoid the areas that they would.

If you had to live there, where would you live?

I thank you for your reply and it's not that I don't hear what you're saying, but I know there's usually more to a place than what you can see from the outside looking in.

If living here for the last 8 months hasn't taught me that, nothing will. ;>

Be well.

[W-B proud]

Originally Posted by movie

Hi!

The company I work for, C3I, has recently opened a call center there and I am interested in moving to the area.

I am currently on assignment in India. I leave here in July. I've been looking at multi family homes in Wilkes-Barre.

I understand this is an up and coming area. I'm looking for the best possible deal as I don't have a whole lot of money to buy, but can make a modest down payment. I'm hoping a multi family home (2 units) will make it so I can rent out one, live in the other, and have the income from the other unit help me toward the mortgage.

I am willing to move in to a neighborhood that is working toward improvement and contribute to that. I just want to be sure things are moving in that direction. I would hate to end up somewhere that is crap now and will be in 5 years.

Can anyone help me in this regard? I need to know what streets/area you as residents of Wilkes-Barre would recommend as "forward" kind of places and which ones you would steer clear of.

I'm looking for something in the 100k range. I know it's low, but I don't want to end up like so many and over-extend myself.

Any help any of you can give me will be highly appreciated.

I'm a good neighbor, I think from what I've read here I'll be in the best company to be found.

Any advice or thoughts on this would be appreciated. Anyone with any experience with purchasing a home with another unit to rent who may want to share some of their experience would be welcome as well.

Thanks in advance.

Check out Parsons, East End, Brookside, Northend, Miners Mills, Lee Park and Georgetown all are good neighborhoods. Stay clear of South Wilkes-Barre, Iron Triangle, Parts of the Heights. Definatly check out downtown, that is the next up and coming spot in Wilkes-Barre. Check out the classifieds in The Times Leader or The Citizens Voice newspapers. They both can be accessed online. Good Luck!

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by W-B proud

Yah, South Side Scranton what a beautifol area LOL. I've never seen a bigger concentration of welfare people, and Jerry Springer castaways in my life, then I've seen down by the Mr. Z's. Lined up with thier Access cards, sitting on benches looking all welfarish. I don't know what you're bragging about Mr. Krabs, because Scranton isn't Beverly Hills!

There's a difference....the bad sections of Scranton are the exception, not the rule. Wilkes-Barre, on the other hand, is pretty much all ghetto. The only nice area seems to be Wilkes' campus...and most of those nice old Victorians are now either university buildings or offices. Even downtown W-B during the day, when you would expect more white-collar and working people to be around...is mostly welfare dirtbags waiting for the busses and taxis and trying to bum smokes and money off of people walking around. Downtown Scranton during the day is mostly professional people.

The downfall of W-B is all the out-of-town riff-raff that has moved in. And all the building projects and downtown revitalization in the world is not going to change the fact that a lot of big city Section 8 people have moved in. They will still be there.

My biggest fear, though, is that Doherty and his driving Scranton into the ground with debt and corruption will eventually have this city looking like Wilkes-Barre. It doesn't take long, because only about 20 years ago, Wilkes-Barre was a nice city and had a much nicer downtown than Scranton.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by movie

If you had to live there, where would you live?



.

If I had to live near Wilkes-Barre...I would look into Kingston or Forty Fort. Close enough to W-B without having to live in the ghetto and put up with the crime.

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Originally Posted by MrKrabs

If I had to live near Wilkes-Barre...I would look into Kingston or Forty Fort. Close enough to W-B without having to live in the ghetto and put up with the crime.

Funny you should mention Kingston as I keep getting houses in that area when I do a search.

I wasn't sure about Kingston. Again, because I don't know the area at all. This is helpful to me. Thank you!

[movie]

Originally Posted by W-B proud

Check out Parsons, East End, Brookside, Northend, Miners Mills, Lee Park and Georgetown all are good neighborhoods. Stay clear of South Wilkes-Barre, Iron Triangle, Parts of the Heights. Definatly check out downtown, that is the next up and coming spot in Wilkes-Barre. Check out the classifieds in The Times Leader or The Citizens Voice newspapers. They both can be accessed online. Good Luck!

Thank you. Also very helpful. What streets are downtown Wilkes-Barre? Can you name a few?

[W-B proud]

South st, Northampton st. Franklin st, River st, Ross st, North st, Washington st, Pennsylvania ave, Union st, Market st are a few. (p.s. W-B's Riverfront is undertaking a massive overhaul it's going to be complete by the end of this summer) anything along River st., W, River st., Riverside Dr. is probably gonna become prime real estate when the project is completed. I'd definatly check out these areas. It's also in close proximity to the downtown colleges Wilkes and Kings. So it'll be a young, nice neighborhood).