The teenage girl was on NBC News couple of nights ago. She buys foreclosed houses. She started with $6,000 and bought her first house, at the very young age of 17, then rent it out. As I had a very nice trip to LV recently, I have been trying to find a way to visit LV on a regular basis. This story gave me the idea that I can do the same thing and have a good reason to visit LV every month. I am not looking for real work or to make money so I hope to keep it simple. Possible?

What man will do for pussies!!! LOL

Hundreds of distressed houses in LV are purchased daily by REAL investors who are in it for the long haul....suck it up....you'll be better off staying at the Wynn, throwing $100 into a slot machine and doing the pay for play girlfriend.

Vegas real estate at the lower middle of the market has a transient user base....that's a polite way of saying it's not for those without deep pockets.  Guys who make this model work purchase 600 units at a time and have the infrastructure to support the maintenance that is needed ....

Stay away dude...

As I stated in my post, I am NOT looking to make money. I am just looking for a reasonable justification for my visit to LV. It can justify 1 or 2 visit just to check out the possibility. I don't think we are thinking the same thing. I only need to buy 1 and rent it out without too much work (so I can spend the time to play instead). That can make it reasonable for me to visit LV on a regular basis. I hope you really understand me now. Do you still think it won't work? Do you think that i can't even find 1 foreclose house?

If your looking for an excuse to come to Vegas more it seems pretty reasonable and you can still make a few $ buying and renting houses.  The supply is certainly more limited than it was so the margins arent the same, but there are alos signs of a bottom so the risk is a little less than it was.  Obviously there are inhereant risks and renters can be brutal so be careful - get a good agent who can do the rental math before you buy.

Do people just believe everything they see ??

She bought a house for $6000 ....... foreclosure or not I doubt there is a house for sale at $6000.
Oh that was her down payment ...... then how did she get the rest of the money ?.
at the age of 17 what credit does she have ?
what proof of income does she have to pay the bank back. ?
This story makes no sense at all.

but the media , they like to spin things the way they want .......so they can give people like you great ideas

Sweetie if it was that simple everyone would be doing it ........ oh wait , it was that easy that is why we are in this real estate mess.

Even if you buy a foreclosure at an auction , it will costs way more then $6000.
I am in real estate, so I know.
just your mortgage payment , property taxes , fire/house insurance ,........not to talk about maintenance for the house ( and the older the house , the more maintenance it will need )
all that is more then what it can cost you for a room at a hotel.

and even if you buy a house there is no guarantee you will find a triple A renter .
You may find a renter , but you want to be sure it is a renter who can pay their bills.    

But don't you just love those TV shows , that make everything looks so simple and easy.

But hey , it's nice to have dreams
xoxo CindySpice

It would be a nightmare to be an out of state landlord without using the services of a local property management company here. Since they take care of everything (including evictions), there would be no need for you to come to town regularly. Most home rentals have a 1 year agreement. You probably want to inspect your house in person every time renters move out to see what shitty shape they left it in and evaluate. It's so much fun.

I would look for a different excuse to come here once a month.

Based on your post your primary reason for investing is to "have an excuse" to visit.  If you had a real estate investment in LV part of your visits would be tax deductible.  They would be considered part of the business activity and be included in the expenses that net against the income.

The primary means of profiting in real estate is through tax deductions and appreciation. You should try to make the income and expenses net out to brake even to maximize the tax deduction, and invest the cash flow into maintenance and improvements to maximize appreciation in value.

Some rules to follow are:

1) Choose the real estate location in the best area you can afford: ie a condo on the strip as opposed to a low income rental in North LV.

2) Chose a reputable rental agent to manage the rental, someone that can screen tenants, collect rent and evict when necessary.

3) When buying depressed real estate hire a home inspector, and a good project manager to oversee repairs.

4) Screen contractors carefully and keep all business arrangements documented with a formal contract. Find a real estate lawyer.

5) Crunch the numbers thoroughly. Try to anticipate all expenses, and include a regular set side for repairs and replacements.  Google real estate "pro forma", you should find several guides to utilize.

With your stated goal being to "find an excuse to visit", and you're posting on a "party board", maybe you could organize a "partnership". If ten guys came up with $5k each, each with something to bring to the table, experience, skills, credentials, they could form a limited partnership, developed a credible business plan, obtain financing (you will need over $200k) and find a property to invest in.  Visiting twice a year to check on your investment, and have a partnership would be reasonable.