Topanga, CA · Member since 2016 · 3 posts · 0 votes
Hello,
I live in Los Angeles, CA and am strongly considering purchasing a rental property in Michigan, my home state, in a town ~3 hours away from my home town.
A couple questions:
1) Does anyone own rental property in Grand Rapids Mi?
2) To anyone with an out of state rental income property, will you share your experience with property management companies? Any pointers - I have blind spots and likely do not even know all the questions to ask.
Details:
*Willing to spend ~$180k; Prepared to put 20% down on a Grand Rapids rental property
*Not seeking a fixer
*Will need to hire a property management company
Goals:
The obvious: passive income
Duplex, triplex or single family w guest unit
Purchase a home with tenants already occupying and generating rental income
Top-of-mind concerns:
*Winters in MI wear and tear on roof, pipes
*Cost of property management, costs to heat
Tenant selection, How-to from Los Angeles to MI
*Offer / escrow process How-to from Los Angeles to MI
Hi @Melissa Lieb. I live in Culver City and started looking into Grand Rapids last year. (When prices were much better :) ) Bought 2 properties there earlier this year.
You can find a list of questions to ask property management companies in the Files section of BP. You could also probably enter in the search bar and find similar in the forums.
I interviewed a few and chose United Properties where I work with
@Tim VandenToorn who it looks like you may have been in touch with.
A great local agent and fellow investor who also helped me a lot is
There were also a handful of other Grand Rapids investors from BP who were extremely helpful with tips and advice. Hit 'em up with your questions - one of the reasons I chose Grand Rapids was the level of support I received from local investors.
@Melissa Lieb I would love to help. I own properties in Grand Rapids, and manage over 500 others.
In regards to your "Top of Mind Concerns" Winters can be hard here in Grand Rapids. Typically the issue we run into with old homes as it relates to roofs are ice dam issues. We like to put 6 feet of ice and water shield on our roofs instead of the typical 3 feet when we install a new roof for this reason. Insulation and ventilation is the other answer, however these solutions can be very difficult and expensive.
I can send you privately the cost of our management services. You will find this is competitive throughout the city. When selecting a property management company it comes down to the services that are offered just as much as the price. You will find we offer many services other management companies do not.
The cost of heat only matters if your unit is vacant during the winter. We don't allow any of our leases to expire in Dec, Jan, or Feb for this reason.
Your PM will handle the tenant selection
Connecting with local realtor involved in purchasing investment properties will handle the offer, escrow and closing process. Your involvement will be minimal in this process.
@Melissa Lieb - great questions and legitimate concerns. My wife and I rented out what had been our primary residence in Washington State after relocating. We rented it for over 5 years before selling it when the real estate market recovered. Prior to that I had co-managed 95 properties and have been in the real estate industry full time since 1985.
Having a PM company will be critical to your investment success. Be sure to check references...present and past. Just like a screening a tenant...contacting their previous landlords (often the current landlord isn't the best source) to see what issues there may have been. Contact previous clients to see why they are no longer with the PM company. This no doubt will be difficult to do, so check the BBB for complaints...even Google the company name to see what comments people may have published.
I would go with a company that has the time to manage your place...bigger isn't always better. That said, bigger companies may have more resources available to help support the maintenance of your rental. So there are pros and cons to big and small companies alike...do your own due diligence.
If the PM is managing other properties in the area...ask for the current rental rates, vacancy rates, typical maintenance costs for a year, etc. You may even throw out some hypothetical situations (in a phone interview) to see how they respond, their response will often help you know if they are truly experienced .
Read the PM agreement you sign carefully. Make sure you have an out if their service sucks. So...you need to have a back up PM company that you've already talked to that you are comfortable with...so you don't miss a beat.
What happens if you cancel your agreement with the PM? Check the termination clause.
Those are just a few things to consider as you screen the PM companies.
Hi @Melissa Lieb. I live in Culver City and started looking into Grand Rapids last year. (When prices were much better :) ) Bought 2 properties there earlier this year.
You can find a list of questions to ask property management companies in the Files section of BP. You could also probably enter in the search bar and find similar in the forums.
I interviewed a few and chose United Properties where I work with
@Tim VandenToorn who it looks like you may have been in touch with.
A great local agent and fellow investor who also helped me a lot is
There were also a handful of other Grand Rapids investors from BP who were extremely helpful with tips and advice. Hit 'em up with your questions - one of the reasons I chose Grand Rapids was the level of support I received from local investors.
Jason Carter thanks for the mention.
Melissa Lieb I would love to assist you in any way I can to find you a property that will cash flow and cause you as few capital expenses as possible, through selecting the right property for you. I cannot offer you any insight on Property management companies in Grand Rapids unfortunately, as up to now, I have managed my own units.
Would be happy to set up a Voice Call or FaceTime and talk through your needs and what the GR market is doing right now.
Feel free to contact me if you'd like to set something up.
Paul