Madtown

 In my mind Madison WI has been the #1 place to purchase my first rental property.  I lived in Madison for a little over a year and have spent many a summer between those beautiful two lakes that make Madison an isthmus.  I also had my real estate license and worked for a property management firm for the year I was there, meaning that I have a lot of confidence in what I can expect from Madison when it comes to where to buy and what kind of rent to expect.  Each day I live outside of Madison is a day that I become farther away from the reality of its’ market because frankly, markets change, but I still have some eyes and ears there.

When it comes to my research for Madison I have a couple key things in place, I know some good property management companies, I have a Realtor I trust and I know some people who I would be interested in obtaining financing from.  Madison is a college town which is great because you are going to have strong rental market from the school.  There is also quite a few strong employers including Spectrum Brands, American Family Insurance, American Girl, and Epic, (a company I once applied to work for!).  The rental market there runs on an interesting rental schedule: most leases start on 8/16 and end on 8/14 leaving the city with a homeless day, 8/15. This information is critical in knowing where and what you can expect for a rental. 

On the flip side I also understand that there are some negatives to purchasing in Madison.  I do not plan on living there in the near future and if my family moves there is less of a reason to travel.  Also I think there property taxes are high!  It ends up being around 4% of what I would buy the property!  That is a serious drawback for me.  Since I would be an out of state landlord that can also be dangerous and more costly but I also see this as a benefit because I don’t have to deal with the problems.  Yet, my options in Madison are narrowed then to buying downtown or near east Madison.  Now I just sit and wait and watch the listings my Realtor sends to me…… even with the negatives, I really like Madison!