Census Data Shows Great Investment Opportunity in the Tri-Cities Area

Recent released US Census data indicates that the number of vacant homes in East Point, College Park and Hapeville increased significantly since the previous census conducted in 2000. Even though the number of occupied homes declined in all three cities additional homes were constructed in East Point and Hapeville.  The chart to the right illustrates the number of total housing units in 2000 and 2010, occupied homes make up the majority of each city and are illustrated by the darker sections of each bar, the lighter section are the additional vacant homes.  The number of occupied homes per city are directly correlated to the number of residents living in each city:

	Total Population		Change
City	2000	2010	#	%
College Park	20,382	13,942	(6,440)	-31.6%
East Point	39,595	33,712	(5,883)	-14.9%
Hapeville	6,180	6,373	193	3.1%

Without a doubt the foreclosure crisis has significantly impacted East Point, College Park and Hapeville.  Within the metro area East Point has the 2nd highest vacancy rate at 22.6% with College Park coming in 3rd with a 21.8% vacancy rate. Hapeville had the 7th highest vacancy rate at 17.6% just behind Atlanta’s 17.6%.  There were a total of 63 cities counted within the Metro Atlanta region.

This high vacancy rate means there is a large amount of inventory to be absorbed and prices in the Tri-Cities area will likely continue to remain low. Though there is a silver lining, this is a prime market for the smart real estate investor.  Current real estate trends indicate that it is a tough area to “flip” homes, however, the rental market in the metro area is continuing to gain strength.

The rental market is strong since very few apartment complexes have been built in recent years while most low-income housing projects have been demolished.  This decrease in supply along with the increased demand for rental units due to high foreclosures are pushing rental rates higher and higher. The smart investor can purchase real estate to fix-up for rental property and get positive cash flow in record time.

On the flip-side, if you are someone who has been renting with a good employment and rental history along with good credit, this is the time to buy your first home.  There’s no doubt your rent will be going up this year and right now you can get a mortgage with rates as low as 4.65%.  Interest rates are expected to go up throughout the year, in fact they have already gone up once and are currently in a dip before going up again in the coming weeks.  So, whether you are looking to buy or rent this year it is only expected to get more expensive as the year goes on.

In order to assist investors and homeowners take advantage of the opportune time to buy and invest in real estate, Your Guy for That, Dustin Drabot, will be conducting Investor Seminars and First-Time Home Buyer Seminars in the coming months.  To receive notification of when these events will be held and receive advanced registration, please complete the form below.  Seminars will be starting soon!

Posted In : College Park, East Point, Hapeville, Investment Real Estate, Metro Atlanta, Real Estate

This entry was posted on Monday, March 28th, 2011 at 8:42 am. and is filed under College Park, East Point, Hapeville, Investment Real Estate, Metro Atlanta, Real Estate. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.