Will do! I actually may have a trip out to Dallas/FW in a week and 1/2 or so to do some due diligence on an apartment, but will let you know if I end up in the Austin area.
Can I ask where in Ohio? I'm working on a 13-house deal in Columbus right now personally, but it's iffy..
I'll be out of town the first week of September, but if you are in Dallas anytime before or after that, please let me know. We don't mind driving, maybe we could meet somewhere in the middle for dinner. Just not in West, TX! ;)
I have two SFH's in Akron. We've had the PM discussion before, that's really the key. The first PM was horrific. I fired him at the end of last year, and got a much more proactive person in place. He's a bit expensive, but he quickly was able to evaluate the properties and the market, and we repaired both properties. He works fast, evaluated them as good potential for Section 8, and within a month, both properties were filled and have been consistent this year. Not sure if I'm ready to do more in Akron, still trying to feel out if this is the PM I want to grow my business with.
I have maybe 13 doors in Dayton. Did a lot of shopping very fast, the numbers work out really well there. If you work w/the right people, you should be able to buy a HUD and rehab it for rental in the $25K/door range. Depending on the area, I'd say $650/mo is avg rent for a 2 BR SFH.
That being said, I had some serious setbacks this year after I fired my old PM. You were kind enough to refer me to a new PM, and he's been pretty good overall. In six months we did a ton of necessary repairs/rehab, and I'm at 100% occupancy right now. Attention to details is a bit lacking though, and I'm trying to figure out if I'm too big of a client and he's been trying to manage the new load, or if it's a character flaw. I have a backup PM ready if need be, but I really hope I don't have to switch PM's three times in a year! And if I do, let's hope it's the last time.
I have an amazing PM for my upstate NY rentals, but the numbers out there don't work out as well, so I'll eventually continue to grow my business in OH. Overall, the numbers are great, and there's room there to make some mistakes and still be OK.
What makes your Columbus deal iffy? I love to talk shop when it comes to land-lording, horror stories and all...