Investment Property ?

Look at the prices similar apartments are renting for..

I suggest you go back in time to the 1990s.

If you do not plan on managing it yourself, interview management companies, who shoudl also be able to assist you in your search.

Also, plan on putting a lot down if you are not paying all cash.

If you can find the right property this could be a good strategy if you don't intend on selling. As an investment property you could depreciate the property over time and convert the cash income into tax free income plus retain an inflation hedge in that rents over time do increase, the past decade not withstanding..

andrea, do not forget to count in upkeep of the apartment, painting and 1 month out of 12 months vacant time in your calcs. Investment properties are still difficult in Manhattan unless you own a full building which gives you benefits of scale and ability to hold out for the right rent as long as majority of your apartments are rented. If you have a view that prices will appreciate above inflation, prices are reasonable relatives to rents.

Can't you get a studio for $300k nowdays? It will rent for $1600.

300 Mercer raises an excellent point. You need to know who you are before you do this. Are you a land-lord? Not everyone wants to deal with new tenants every one to two years, a vacant apartment, and the responsibility of effecting repairs or deal with the managing agent if the tenant becomes an issue in the building(e.g. smokes, is unruly, has a dog that harasses other residents etc).

Being a landlord in NYC might be the easiest place on the PLANET to do so.
Millions of educated professionals with good credit.
And zero outdoor maint like roof, yard, deck, basement flood, etc.
Go for it. It's a no brainer if you can afford it.
Get a sucker renter to pay off your mortgage.
The apt will fund your entire retirement.
CASH COW

>1 month out of 12 months vacant time in your calcs

1 month out of 12? That's even more turnover than inododo would expect.

>The apt will fund your entire retirement.

All for $300K?

hburg, Most people estimate the rent to be what a rental building is able to charge in their investment property break-even calcs. However, individual owners in order to get the same rent need to have the flexibility to keep their apartment vacant during slow periods. Rental buildings can easily afford a few percent vacancy before they lower the rent as they do not want the new lower benchmark. In addition, rental building are better marketed and well known in the broker community leading to faster rentals. As an individual, if you are able to rent 12 months a year over a period of say 10years, that will be unexpected profit rather than something one should expect and base the investment on.

I'm with MAV. Put more down.... Oh wait put less down. Oh wait charge more rents. Oh wait wait for interest rates to rise so you can charge more.

Grow a goatee and introduce yourself as Hans from the Netherlands.

And in most states it is perfectly legal to love your cow, but except for Texas you are not allowed to fk your cow.

I think it is still possible to make money as an investor on a studio but one of two things need to happen.

1. You need to buy a place that is undervalued because it needs serious renovations AND you can do those renovations (or know someone that can) on the low cost side. Maybe you can find a building where the price per foot is less than the average for the building (or similar studios in the area and the building) but it is because of the need of renovations.

2. You need to find a tenant that will pay on time and perhaps stay for a long time.
If every year you have to take the apartment of the market for 15-30 days in order to paint (cost) and clean, it will hurt your cashflows.

There are a lot of people who need apartments to rent. Find a building undervalued and low maintenance/common charges, it is possible to do.

How long would you think holding a property for investment will provide you the highest returns on your investment?