Looking for Properties

Hi everyone,
Driving in my town, I saw an empty-looking four-plex: No sign of life, some windows boarded up.

Pardon my ignorance, but if the property holds rental-income potential, why did it fall into disrepair and vacancy? I rent an apartment unit less than a mile from the vacant property. My complex is always full; the instant a tenant moves out another moves in (landlord has connections).

The vacant property, however, sits very close to the street and faces a big parking lot. Is this type of property worth pursuing? If it's such great rental property, why did it fall into disrepair and vacancy? I saw Dean's great info on how to locate the owner, should I pursue this?

Thank you!

You might have found a diamond in the ruff. There are many different reasons why the property is boarded up. It could be either the property was condemmed (hopefully not), or the owner ran out of money? Who knows! It's worth a shot, though.

Thank you, "thishousebuyer"!

I'm so glad you saw my question and replied!
I wasn't sure anybody would see my question because--instead of starting a new thread--I posted here, where my question related to the initial post.
In the future, should I start a new thread when posting a question?
Thank you!

You're welcome! It does relate to the original post. If you have new questions, you should post them new. If you have mulltiple questions about something in particular, you can post something like "I have questions about..." in the subject line, and put the questions there, too.

Where is this property located?

This sounds like it's definately worth looking into. Don't try to figure out why someone else couldn't make it with a property. Run the numbers on it and if it works for you that's really all that matters. A lot of these properties were purchased at the peak of the market and they paid too much for them or they just soaked it dry for cashflow and ran out, who knows. As long as the rents justify the price you should be ok. But remember you run the numbers different on cashflow properties than you would on a sgl fam flip.

Thanks to both of you!
I will/would find an investor to purchase the property.

At TotalViewRealEstate.com I see no nearby properties listed as multiple family units. It seems to only list single family houses! Is that what you are referring to, Shaun, when you write “remember, you run the numbers different on cashflow properties than you would on a sgl fam flip"

I read that rental property investors may not seek deep purchase discounts---because they seek monthly rental income. Are you referring to that, as well, Shaun?

In reply to “thishousebuyer”, it’s in the San Francisco Bay Area, California. Thanks so much for your insights.