Name: Christi Gilhoi
Holdings: Two single family houses
Christi Gilhoi was working at the University of California in San Diego when she started looking to invest in college real estate. But the communities near her home were simply too pricey.
Her brother recommended that she look into an asset management company called Meridian Pacific Properties, which purchases properties for investors. The only issue: The company was buying properties far from Gilhoi's San Diego home -- in Memphis, Tenn.
At first, she had her reservations but eventually she changed her mind.
"Three big factors convinced me about Memphis," she said. "It was a college town, it was a big medical facilities town and it was a FedEx town."
The three economic mainstays would keep the housing market there stable, she figured. And the homes were affordable, too. According to the Coldwell Banker College Home Listing Report, Memphis had the lowest average listing price of any college town in the country, just $89,244.
Through Meridian, Gilhoi bought two houses in the summer of 2010. "I bought them sight unseen, which I wouldn't recommend," she said.
Meridian works with local property managers who oversee the homes, supervising maintenance and seeing to repairs so Gilhoi doesn't have to. So far, everything has worked out.
One of the homes cost $93,000. Gilhoi rents it for $995 a month and even after paying management fees of about 10% of the monthly rent and taxes, she clears $400 a month. She nets about the same on the other house, which she bought for $110,000 and rents for $1,050.
She plans to expand her holdings over the next few years. Next time, though, she plans to check out the properties first before she buys, just to be on the safe side.
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