Rental Property Investor · Lexington, MA · Member since 2015 · 42 posts · 39 votes
Hello Folks: I am trying to make a checklist in which I want to include almost all the points to be considered in buying a Multifamily or an Apartment complex of 40 or more units. This checklist can anyone use to quickly evaluate in moving forward in the deal or just leave it. Request from the experienced Multifamily Family Investors to provide their inputs. At the end, I will make a final Checklist using all the inputs.
Rental Property Investor · Prairie Village, KS · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@Adrian Fajardo - The quick and dirty expense ratio will vary both by market and by building age. Also it's pretty important to know what is submetered and what you are paying for. Buying apartments is not as easy as some would make it seem. You need more than a basic rule to be able to buy an apartment and make money!
If you PM me I will send you my complete 27 point checklist. This is just a checklist from one of those 27 points with the items that I request from the listing broker. Note that this is specific to LA. If I posted the whole checklist it would be too long for a forum post.
Current Rent Roll
Copies of all leases including rate, security deposit, lease terms, unit number, start and end date
Notices of 30-day rental increases (under rent control can only be raised 3-5% per year). 3% if tenants pay their own utilities, rents can be raised 1% if the landlord pays for gas, and 1% if the landlord pays for electric. So master-metered buildings the rents can be raised 5% a year under rent control. For Section 8 tenants the rent increase notice is 90-days. It is important to make sure appropriate rental increases have been served to tenants.
Proof of any additional income such as laundry, parking, storage, etc.
Any balances due, tenants with late payments still due
Identify any existing evictions in progress
Certificate of Occupancy from the City of LA
9a Property Report
Natural Hazards Disclosure Statement
Copies of all current insurance policies and insurance company contact info
Loss run from the insurance carrier (my insurance broker requires this from seller)
Copies of ad valorem tax statements covering the Property for the last twelve (12) months, if any
Copies of electric bills for last 12 months
Copies of gas bills for last 12 months
Copies of water and sewer bill for the last 12 months
Copies of trash bills for the last 12 months
Copies of any vendor service contracts (common ones include landscaping, interior cleaning, laundry, fire alarm monitoring, and pest control)
Copies of any environmental studies affecting the property, if any.
A list of anything that will not convey with property (common items include laundry machines and appliances owned by seller)
Copy of current management agreement
Copies of all existing surveys of the Property, if any.
Copies of all warranties for appliances, equipment, utilities, roof, paving, pool, etc., if any.
Copies of the last three years’ profit and loss statements
List of all capital expenditures in the last 3 years
Date of systems updates, if known (plumbing, electric, roof, HVAC)
Preliminary Title Report
Copies of the most recent title insurance policies, if any.
Hello Folks: I am trying to make a checklist in which I want to include almost all the points to be considered in buying a Multifamily or an Apartment complex of 40 or more units. This checklist can anyone use to quickly evaluate in moving forward in the deal or just leave it. Request from the experienced Multifamily Family Investors to provide their inputs. At the end, I will make a final Checklist using all the inputs.
Thanks in advance for your value able inputs.
It’s really up to you. You have have to determine your own buying criteria based onage and type of property, condition, location, tenant demographics, income, expenses and occupancy. At the end of the day it’s a business so it needs to pay for itself plus a delta and or offer upside. The degree of upside and delta is entirely up to you but examine in detail the things I mentioned above for a start.
Real Estate Broker · Kansas City Metro · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
6y
@Syed Naqvi quickly find income and expenses and rent roll (past 12 months). From that, plug into a calculator such as a rental property calculator (google that keyword), plug in the income and expenses and see how it cash flows for your return requirements (cap rate, IRR, CoC or on a per unit basis). For 40 units or more I would look for something that cash flows at a $100 per unit after all expenses. So, in this case around $4,000 per month. If you can get close to that, probably a good deal, if you are far away, probably not a good deal. Just my two cents for my market in Kansas City- yours may be different.
Rental Property Investor · Lexington, MA · Member since 2015 · 42 posts · 39 votes
6y
Thanks to all of you for your valuable inputs.
I am still trying to make a checklist. I'll start making a list here soon, and all are invited to add or amend it to make it a useful tool for everyone looking to buy an apartment complex. Thanks !!!
Many checklist "points" can be pulled out directly from the books on MFH investing. I suggest to start reading such books as Lindahl's "Multifamily Millions" or Galinelli book on "what every real estate investor needs to know...", etc...
Rental Property Investor · Killeen, TX · Member since 2017 · 337 posts · 100 votes
6y
@Alex Olson Very informative. Thank you. I'm trying to evaluate properties myself. Would I have to have the property under contract in order to get the information you mentioned?
@Alex Olson Very informative. Thank you. I'm trying to evaluate properties myself. Would I have to have the property under contract in order to get the information you mentioned?
No and infact I wouldn't buy it if you don't have the info I mentioned!
@Alex Olson Very informative. Thank you. I'm trying to evaluate properties myself. Would I have to have the property under contract in order to get the information you mentioned?
No and infact I wouldn't buy it if you don't have the info I mentioned!
Thank you for getting back to me. I'm kinda lost in what to do. How do Investors quickly filter out apartment complexes? Do they use a conservative percentage to determine expenses? I can figure out the income part but I'm having trouble getting an estimate for the expense.
Rental Property Investor · Prairie Village, KS · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@Adrian Fajardo - The quick and dirty expense ratio will vary both by market and by building age. Also it's pretty important to know what is submetered and what you are paying for. Buying apartments is not as easy as some would make it seem. You need more than a basic rule to be able to buy an apartment and make money!
If you PM me I will send you my complete 27 point checklist. This is just a checklist from one of those 27 points with the items that I request from the listing broker. Note that this is specific to LA. If I posted the whole checklist it would be too long for a forum post.
Current Rent Roll
Copies of all leases including rate, security deposit, lease terms, unit number, start and end date
Notices of 30-day rental increases (under rent control can only be raised 3-5% per year). 3% if tenants pay their own utilities, rents can be raised 1% if the landlord pays for gas, and 1% if the landlord pays for electric. So master-metered buildings the rents can be raised 5% a year under rent control. For Section 8 tenants the rent increase notice is 90-days. It is important to make sure appropriate rental increases have been served to tenants.
Proof of any additional income such as laundry, parking, storage, etc.
Any balances due, tenants with late payments still due
Identify any existing evictions in progress
Certificate of Occupancy from the City of LA
9a Property Report
Natural Hazards Disclosure Statement
Copies of all current insurance policies and insurance company contact info
Loss run from the insurance carrier (my insurance broker requires this from seller)
Copies of ad valorem tax statements covering the Property for the last twelve (12) months, if any
Copies of electric bills for last 12 months
Copies of gas bills for last 12 months
Copies of water and sewer bill for the last 12 months
Copies of trash bills for the last 12 months
Copies of any vendor service contracts (common ones include landscaping, interior cleaning, laundry, fire alarm monitoring, and pest control)
Copies of any environmental studies affecting the property, if any.
A list of anything that will not convey with property (common items include laundry machines and appliances owned by seller)
Copy of current management agreement
Copies of all existing surveys of the Property, if any.
Copies of all warranties for appliances, equipment, utilities, roof, paving, pool, etc., if any.
Copies of the last three years’ profit and loss statements
List of all capital expenditures in the last 3 years
Date of systems updates, if known (plumbing, electric, roof, HVAC)
Preliminary Title Report
Copies of the most recent title insurance policies, if any.