Are you looking for investment real estate in Kansas City? As a buyer, you will need to do your due diligence on a house before signing on the dotted line. In our latest post, we will discuss a few of the online resources a Kansas City area investor should utilize before purchasing Kansas City investment property! We want to help local investors find the properties that are right for them!
When it comes to investment real estate, many people are going online to find the best available deals. Most of the information you need is public and can be accessed with a little digging. Below are 5 great places to find the information you need about a property before making a purchase.
Your Local MLS
While investors aren’t likely to find the great deals on the MLS, it can be a great place to find sales information, market history, trends, and other data that may be more difficult to find elsewhere. An investor can see what is being bought and sold and where. Getting access to your local MLS isn’t necessarily to find homes for sale, but to get all the data on what is being bought and sold. It will make diving into the numbers much easier than trying to source all of the information on your own.
Your Local Property Appraiser’s Website
The property appraiser’s website for your county may offer maps, sales history, ownership information, and property tax data. Each county’s site is a little different, so you might have to look around a little bit to find the data you need. You can also reach out to the county directly if there is something specific you are looking for and aren’t able to find on their website. If it is public information, they will let you know how to find it.
Google Maps
Using Google Maps can bring driving for dollars into the modern age. While you can still find great investment opportunities simply by driving the neighborhood, you can now do the same thing using Google Maps. You can use the street view function to drop down into the neighborhood to see what’s going on. What types of businesses are in the area and even real-time traffic data. Learning these kinds of details about an area can give you an edge when making a real estate investment.
You’ll want to make sure the images you view are relatively new. If the maps are a few years old, a lot may have changed. You should also keep in mind that you will only be able to see the front of the house. The backyard and inside of the home can be something different altogether.
HUD
Keep an eye on HUD homes for sale in your area. It can be a great place to find discounted properties that aren’t listed on the MLS for other buyers to see. You will likely have some competition from other investment buyers, so get your offer in right away. You will also need to be able to close on the house quickly, so have all your ducks in a row before buying a house in this manner.
Inman
Inman is known as one of the leading sources for real estate investment news. The site does require a subscription fee that some people may balk at the abundance of free information out there on real estate. However, Inman’s consistently relative content combined with there ability to report on the most current real estate trends, allow you to get your information quickly, without having to search the web for it. There are many agents who receive a free subscription to Inman as a member of their local MLS.
Peerstreet & Fundwise
Peerstreet and Fundwise are two great ways for the novice investor to get their feet wet with real estate investment. They are crowdfunding platforms that will allow even the most novice real estate investor get their feet wet by investing with many others into different real estate projects. Investing with these companies is very similar to investing in a REIT. You will be able to invest in real estate while leaving all the work to others. There are long term options as well as options that will pay out your dividends right away. You will have to find the plan that works best to help you reach your goals.
Going Offline…
There are many great online resources out there for investors who want to learn more about real estate and find the best deals available in the area. However, KCInvest.com can help to answer many of your questions about buying investment properties in the Kansas City area. By utilizing our local knowledge and experience we will help you to find the best investment properties out there, without having to worry about agent fees or commission costs.