One minute, we were ready to buy a rental property and the next minute we were priced out of the Charlotte housing market within weeks!
During the Covid-19 crisis, interest rates were the lowest it had ever been in history which led me to conclude that it was the PERFECT time to add to my real estate empire by snatching up another house. The problem was that everyone in the country had the same bright idea.
Buy A Rental Property in Charlotte?
Buying a house in Charlotte during the COVID-19 crisis was complete mayhem. People were buying homes sight unseen and without any inspections. They sent in their highest offers even if the house appraised for much less than what it was worth!
Investors with big bucks scooped up every affordable property right from under from the average working class family by submitting ridiculously high, all cash offers.
Soaring Prices Held Us Back
Home prices skyrocketed week after week, as inventory for homes dropped lower and lower. I had never seen anything like it. I was ready to purchase my third home as a rental property and after calculating the mortgage on the soaring home prices, it became clear that the cost of a 3 bedroom home in Charlotte, NC was too high for me to make any profit.
Before I jump out there and buy a rental property, I always like to know how long it will take to pay off the home . I also like to know how fast I can pay off the home by paying more than the minimum using an amortisation tool.
After doing those calculations for dozens and dozens of properties, it was clear that my husband and I had been priced out of the booming Charlotte housing market. It was undoubtedly a seller’s market.
I wasn’t willing to make the extreme money moves others had made, like cashing out our 401k.
It was rough! Low price point investors like my husband and I could not compete.
U.S. Real estate Market 2022
I have good news and bad news.
According to the experts, we will see continued increase in home prices in 2022. The good news is that there are markets across the country that are still affordable enough to buy a rental property. That property can increase your income and government programs can also help you house hack your way into an income producing property.
Other officials are not so sold on home prices being able to keep up this insane pace. Some are predicting that 2022 will be a better time to buy with the demand decreasing slightly.
Our Real Estate Search
The search for another rental property continues just not in the locations I had originally planned.
Now, I am setting my sights on up and coming areas rather than areas that have already seen a great deal of growth and rent hikes.
Our longterm goals are to purchase rental properties to increase our passive income over the next 5 years. The COVID-19 crisis really put a damper on those plans but where there’s a will, there’s a way.
To begin our search we will use a realtor website and input our search criteria including the home price. If we do not find home prices in our immediate area, we will expand the search location until we have a hit.
My recent searches have uncovered properties much further than where we currently live, but property management can help with long distance rentals by scheduling repairs and collecting rent for you.
Thanks to property managers across the country, no property is too far away that we can’t add it to our portfolio so long as the price is right.
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