MARKET SPOTLIGHT: Investors Still Finding Success in the Middle
OKLAHOMA CITY: A SWEET SPOT FOR INVESTORS
Right now, Oklahoma City is probably the biggest sweet spot for an investor than it’s ever been in the past. We’re a little bit more on the conservative side at around 3 to 5 percent appreciation.”
Population growth, job opportunities and low unem- ployment are driving demand for housing in Oklahoma City as well, attracting a lot of out-of-state investors in the process. “Right now, Oklahoma City is probably the biggest sweet spot for an investor than it’s ever been in the past,” said investor Toby Brown, president and CEO of The Brown Group Properties. “We’re a little bit more on the conservative side at around 3 to 5 percent appreciation.” “The barrier of entry is quite low to buy in at the $100,000 price range, making an easy opportunity for in- vestors to get in. There’s a lot of buyers at that price range. The beauty of Oklahoma City is the diversity of product. There’s a lot of investors targeting historical, older neigh- borhoods. It’s also providing opportunities for flips.”
TOBY BROWN
than at the top of the market. It’s still a seller’s market to a certain degree and that’s good for flippers. If you buy right in a good area where there are good comps, it helps generate cash.”
According to data reported by ATTOM, at the retail level the median sales price for the metro area was $147,750 in the first quarter, a four percent increase
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA
from the same quar- ter last year and up
ST. LOUIS: PATIENCE IS AVIRTUE As co-owner and managing broker at the St. Lou- is Real Estate Society, Riahna Kastner focuses on working with investor clients. Over the last de- cade, she has seen interest in the metro area
51 percent from its post-recession bot- tom price of $98,000 in the fourth quarter of 2008. Flips accounted for 6.5 percent of
from out-of-town investors increase. “St. Louis is an interesting market,” Kastner said. “In the last three years the number of out-of-town investors has exponentially grown. Now inves- tors have to be a lot more patient. Inventory is in extremely short supply on the investment side. Even two years ago investors were flocking here because we have lower prices than the east and west coasts.” On the retail side of the busi- ness, the median sales price for a home was $167,000 in the first quarter of 2019, up 8.7 percent increase from a year ago, and a 53 percent increase from the metro’s post-recession bottom price of $109,000 reported for the first quarter of 2012.
total home sales in the fourth quarter of 2018, a 10 percent annual increase. Like- wise total distressed sales as a percentage of total home sales were down 9.5 percent on an annual basis for the metro area during the first
quarter of 2019. The number of properties with foreclosure filings in the metro area also showed a significant decline between the first quarter this year and last year, down nearly 33 percent. Although traditionally a buy-and-hold investor, Brown has flipped properties over the past 16 years and continues to do some of it currently. “The competition is intense because the property selection is not as grand as in the past,” Brown said. “A lot of people are trying to get in – more at the bottom
“Most of the clients I’ve worked with were buy-and-hold from the beginning. I’m still working with flippers, especially those who do the
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