Biggest Deterrents in prospective property

[Evan Alexakos]

Hello everyone,

What do you consider to be the biggest deterrents that scare you away from a property? 

[Mason Hickman]

@Evan Alexakos

Items that can’t easily be changed:

Right behind high voltage Power lines, busy roads, quirky layouts that require massive overhaul, property styles that aren’t consistent with the area.

[Paul De Luca]

@Evan Alexakos

Foundation/structural issues, awkward layouts, major sewer line problems, inheriting non-paying tenants, termites or other serious bug infestations.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Evan Alexakos:

Hello everyone,

What do you consider to be the biggest deterrents that scare you away from a property? 

The location. I'll buy the ugliest house on the block if the community is strong. I would not buy a nice house in a bad community. Location can make all the difference.

[John Warren]

@Paul De Luca send me all your deals with serious bug infestations lol. I can add them to the collection. 

@Evan Alexakos I like purpose-built rentals, so I steer clear of weird conversion type buildings where the building used to be one use but was converted. In the small multifamily where I focus as a broker this normally means old houses that were converted to duplexes. In the large commercial apartment buildings, I focus on buying, this normally means mixed use conversion deals with odd layouts. 

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @Mason Hickman:

@Evan Alexakos

Items that can’t easily be changed:

Right behind high voltage Power lines, busy roads, quirky layouts that require massive overhaul, property styles that aren’t consistent with the area.

Appreciative of the insight Mason, I didn't even consider something like power lines. But what is the best way to learn property styles: visiting other homes in the area or should I ask an agent?

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @Paul De Luca:

@Evan Alexakos

Foundation/structural issues, awkward layouts, major sewer line problems, inheriting non-paying tenants, termites or other serious bug infestations.

 Wow, I didn't know that you could inherit non-paying tenants; Paul, thanks for edifying me. 

I'll have to educate myself on the possibilities of inheriting non-paying tenants and bug infestations. 

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @Nathan Gesner:

Quote from @Evan Alexakos:

Hello everyone,

What do you consider to be the biggest deterrents that scare you away from a property? 

The location. I'll buy the ugliest house on the block if the community is strong. I would not buy a nice house in a bad community. Location can make all the difference.

 Nathan, credit to you for reminding me of the number 1 deal-breaker/maker in real estate: location. 

I've read about location slightly in Brandon Turner's book (The Book on Rental Property Investing) yet it didn't really sink in. In the future, I might consider whether I'd be willing to live in a neighborhood before purchasing property within it. 

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @John Warren:

@Paul De Luca send me all your deals with serious bug infestations lol. I can add them to the collection. 

@Evan Alexakos I like purpose-built rentals, so I steer clear of weird conversion type buildings where the building used to be one use but was converted. In the small multifamily where I focus as a broker this normally means old houses that were converted to duplexes. In the large commercial apartment buildings, I focus on buying, this normally means mixed use conversion deals with odd layouts. 

 John, thanks for edifying me on the dangers of rentals that were converted which, I assume, is not of the same quality as a rental built for multifamily. 

In the case of commercial apartments, do you find that odd layouts drive tenants away or that they can be ignored depending on the quality of the rest of the apartment?

[Mason Hickman]

Quote from @Evan Alexakos:

Quote from @Mason Hickman:

@Evan Alexakos

Items that can’t easily be changed:

Right behind high voltage Power lines, busy roads, quirky layouts that require massive overhaul, property styles that aren’t consistent with the area.

Appreciative of the insight Mason, I didn't even consider something like power lines. But what is the best way to learn property styles: visiting other homes in the area or should I ask an agent?

Yes, I would suggest visiting the area and asking an experienced agent in your area. For instance, log cabins and split levels sell at a discount in our area compared to capes and colonials. 

[Eliott Elias]

Nothing, deterrents should be used as leverage and should be negotiated. Everything has a cost 

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @Eliott Elias:

Nothing, deterrents should be used as leverage and should be negotiated. Everything has a cost 

 Eliott, thanks for the perspective. 

I was so focused on absolute deterrents that I forgot the value of utilizing them as leverage to gain a better bargain. 

[Carlos Ptriawan]

Quote from @Evan Alexakos:

Hello everyone,

What do you consider to be the biggest deterrents that scare you away from a property? 

 for me, homeless people/squatters, OMG this is a truly serious issue in California.  currently, in norcal there're only a few cities that's still acceptable from homeless invasion. There're few times 3x i have to call 911. some ca cities are truly worse than somalia.

other than that, typical issue, foundation issue/plumbing. for primary homes mainly layout and window.

[Evan Alexakos]

Quote from @Carlos Ptriawan:

Quote from @Evan Alexakos:

Hello everyone,

What do you consider to be the biggest deterrents that scare you away from a property? 

 for me, homeless people/squatters, OMG this is a truly serious issue in California.  currently, in norcal there're only a few cities that's still acceptable from homeless invasion. There're few times 3x i have to call 911. some ca cities are truly worse than somalia.

other than that, typical issue, foundation issue/plumbing. for primary homes mainly layout and window.

 Jeez, sounds like a real conundrum Carlos. 

Thanks for the heads up!

[John Warren]

@Evan Alexakos I wouldn't say that odd layouts and weird conversions are a 100% deal killer, but there are so many buildings to buy that you can easily avoid them 9 times out of 10. Maybe if the building is in a dynamite A plus location it is worth trying to figure it out?