Investment Property in Swissvale? (Braddock: section 8, renters, buying a house)

[mdavis6890]

Hey everybody, I'm thinking about buying a house as a rental. Swissvale seems to be a good compromise between rents, price, and neighborhood quality.

I know it's not high end, but I can't afford any of the places that are. And the rents still seem high-enough compared to the price of the homes.

Right now I'm thinking about buying one of those largish houses (2000 sqft+) near S Braddock, a little north of the bus line.

Is this a good rental area in your opinion? I was hoping to get $1000-1200 for a nice, large 4-5 bedroom. Is that asking too much, or can families in this area afford that much?

Any other thoughts on my plan?

Side question: Are there any professional property managers that you've had a good experience with, either as tenants or landlords?

Thanks so much for your advice, and wish me luck!

Michael

[DaisyDaisy]

Where specifically on S. Braddock are you thinking?

[stburr91]

You are indeed correct that Swissvale is a good compromise between rents, price, and neighborhood quality. Margins can be good in Swissvale, but you have to buy in the right part of the borough. If you are talking about homes within a few block of the busway, $1000-$1200 may be a little high right now.

I can say this, the further south you go in Swissvale, the less desirable the neighborhoods become.

[mdavis6890]

One of the ones I was looking at is a couple of blocks from the busline. Another one is a little farther north, up by Calumet St.

Michael

[jimmyev]

Can you really rent a $12,000 house for $1,000-$1,200 a month?

[Uptown kid]

That's the bad side of Swissvale...

[Moby Hick]

Originally Posted by jimmyev

Can you really rent a $12,000 house for $1,000-$1,200 a month?

Sure. I'll buy you a $12,000 house any time you want to rent it for $1,000/month.

[Herodotus]

I manage a property in that area. You won't come near $1,000 there. $1,200 will put renters in much better area than that. If it's a 5 bedroom, you might get $850 through Section 8. If you don't want to deal with Section 8, you'll be hard pressed to get more than $800. That is not really a good area, that's why the properties are cheap.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by jimmyev

Can you really rent a $12,000 house for $1,000-$1,200 a month?

Well, my landlady makes about $1,500/month from our home, and it is only appraised at about $70,000. That's just how scarce housing has become in the East End while developers aren't moving quickly enough to keep pace by bringing new units to the marketplace.

[stburr91]

Originally Posted by Herodotus

I manage a property in that area. You won't come near $1,000 there. $1,200 will put renters in much better area than that. If it's a 5 bedroom, you might get $850 through Section 8. If you don't want to deal with Section 8, you'll be hard pressed to get more than $800. That is not really a good area, that's why the properties are cheap.

I agree, you aren't going to get $1200 in that area, but I just don't see that area staying the way it is forever. I don't know how long it will take, but I can see the area near the busway improving. The people willing to take a $12k gamble now, could see a nice return in their investment.