[JohnHAdams]

I have been buying in Ft Myers, Florida due to the hammering of their real estate market. The problems in Florida are:
termites are a constant worry (justified too)
insurance is too high, the major insurers do not do Florida
property tax for landlords is high in my opinion
economy is so bad that it can be real tough to find paying tenants
55"/year of rain is hard on roof longevity...and devastating if a roof fails
2000 miles is a long drive if I want to fix up a home

I live in Denver and keep thinking that Las Vegas investments may make more sense. It is only 750 miles, an easy days drive.

I feel that people will always think of Florida when retiring and this gives the state more "investment safety" by my way of thinking.

Las Vegas needs a pretty decent economy to do well I would think.

I like to buy fixer uppers and experienced realtors are often loathe to "get involved" with lower value homes.

So I decided to ask for city-data opinions?

Thanks in advance...

[LVPoker1]

First Las Vegas is a huge retirement place too. Not like Florida but it does have that going for it.

I own a houses in two states. Both are worth just over $200,000. According to Zillow the LV house worth $200,000 would rent for $1525, the one in Rapid City, SD, a place with one of the best economies in the country the house would only rent for $1050.

Of course Zillow isn't exact but I think the rental market is doing fine here.

[swagger]

Originally Posted by LVPoker1

I own a houses in two states. Both are worth just over $200,000. According to Zillow the LV house worth $200,000 would rent for $1525

That's a pretty high rental estimate, unless your house has AT LEAST four bedrooms, is in a decent area and has something "special" going for it. There's a glut of rentals on the market right now, and unless there's something somewhat unique about yours that adds a lot of value to it from a renter's perspective, I doubt it'd actually go for that much.

We just rented a 4br house with a pool for $1200, with yard and pool maintenance included. The owner had originally listed it for over $1500, and we talked him down from his current list price of $1300. There's just too many rentals on the market to assume that you can get top dollar.

OP - I would LOVE to have the money to be buying up homes here right now. The market will come back, but probably not to the levels seen just before the crash. Not for a while, anyway. If you can afford to sit on the house for a while (due to the massive number of empty rentals right now) or would be willing to give your tenants a great deal, then I'd say go for it. If you'd be putting yourself in the position of needing to find renters right away, and need to keep the home occupied in order to cover the payments, then you might want to wait until the dust settles a bit more.

[Scott456]

I believe you can make a reasonable profit even if you buy a strip highrise condo. For example, an 800 sq ft studio (or 1br) can be had for $120K, HOA $550, rent out $1100/month, your monthly net is $450, annual 4.5% return, quite reasonable. and this is before you make deductions on expense and depreciation on tax.

[LVPoker1]

Originally Posted by swagger

That's a pretty high rental estimate, unless your house has AT LEAST four bedrooms, is in a decent area and has something "special" going for it. There's a glut of rentals on the market right now, and unless there's something somewhat unique about yours that adds a lot of value to it from a renter's perspective, I doubt it'd actually go for that much.

It is an upgraded 5 bedroom house in Summerlin within walking distance to the elementary school and a massive park. I thought it seemed high too but if you think about it the rental price is only .75% of the value. That is well within a reasonable range.

As for the highrise idea property taxes aren't included in the HOA is it? What about insurance? I'm guessing at least not taxes.

[JohnHAdams]

Originally Posted by Scott456

I believe you can make a reasonable profit even if you buy a strip highrise condo. For example, an 800 sq ft studio (or 1br) can be had for $120K, HOA $550, rent out $1100/month, your monthly net is $450, annual 4.5% return, quite reasonable. and this is before you make deductions on expense and depreciation on tax.

I have spent some time considering condos. The problem I have is that I can't load my car with tools and fix everything in a condo the way that I can with a house.

I don't have the time or patience to deal with HOA 'green lights' etc.

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by LVPoker1

It is an upgraded 5 bedroom house in Summerlin within walking distance to the elementary school and a massive park. I thought it seemed high too but if you think about it the rental price is only .75% of the value. That is well within a reasonable range.

As for the highrise idea property taxes aren't included in the HOA is it? What about insurance? I'm guessing at least not taxes.

Falling into the RE Agents calculation. An investor would include HOA, taxes, A property manager, insurance and a reserve. The reserve would range from 40% of rent in some of the more conservative views to 25% in some of the liberal.

Doing the straw man put forth this would make the property someplace between zero an five percent negative as an investment. You best be getting some good appreciation or it is a suicidal investment. I don't know any strip place at the moment that would be a good bet for substantial appreciation any time soon.

I would think it clear that any strip condo is a recreational buy...not an investment.

[LVPoker1]

Olecapt, do you think .75%/month is a good ballpark for rent in Summerlin? The homes in 89135 I have looked at on Zillow seem to be slightly above that but certainly not 1%.

[Willy702]

Originally Posted by JohnHAdams

I have been buying in Ft Myers, Florida due to the hammering of their real estate market. The problems in Florida are:
termites are a constant worry (justified too)
insurance is too high, the major insurers do not do Florida
property tax for landlords is high in my opinion
economy is so bad that it can be real tough to find paying tenants
55"/year of rain is hard on roof longevity...and devastating if a roof fails
2000 miles is a long drive if I want to fix up a home

I live in Denver and keep thinking that Las Vegas investments may make more sense. It is only 750 miles, an easy days drive.

I feel that people will always think of Florida when retiring and this gives the state more "investment safety" by my way of thinking.

Las Vegas needs a pretty decent economy to do well I would think.

I like to buy fixer uppers and experienced realtors are often loathe to "get involved" with lower value homes.

So I decided to ask for city-data opinions?

Thanks in advance...

Strange as it may seem in a slowing market, Denver investments are better at the moment than LV. I own two properties in LV that are rented, but live in Denver and marvel at how solid some of the deals are once you get outside the city of Denver. For one thing you can get financing in Denver without anywhere near the hassle of LV. There are plenty of sources of money requiring 3-5% down and rates in the 5s for investment properties, something you just generally won't find in Vegas. Plus when you buy a house in Denver now, you are in limited company as far as competing bids. Even as LV slows down its still often a murky bidding battle to get the best value homes. And then in Denver right now its never a problem to get a tenant with the tight vacancy rate, while LV requires you to be somewhat competitive in your rent pricing.

That being said its a good market in either city for those willing to buy and hold. The yields are pretty solid in both when you look at the right markets. Neither is assured of going up in price in the next 5 years, but if you can get into some of these strong cash flows and still end up at the same selling price in say 5-7 years, then you probably will be glad you did it because you'll have even better cash flow and a locked in 30 year loan at 5 to 5.5%.

[JohnHAdams]

I'm a cash buyer of fixer uppers. One needs to look at quite a few homes to find the "right investment."

Sometimes it takes a strong stomach. And a LOT of work.