Carlsbad, CA · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
MODERATOR: LET ME TRY AGAIN. IF YOUR POST HERE IS ANY SORT OF AD, NO MATTER HOW SUBTLE, IT WILL BE REMOVED!
MODERATOR: PLEASE POST PICTURES ONLY OF HOUSES YOU'VE PURCHASED INTENDING TO HOLD. DO NOT POST PICTURES OF HOUSES YOU ARE OFFERING FOR SALE.
There's been a lot of talk of sub $30k properties, so I thought it would be an interesting idea to post some pictures of what $30k buys in different parts of the country.
So here's a picture of a 2 bedroom house. I don't have the outside picture, with all the snow I just wanted to run inside the house. These are after pictures. Rent will be $800-$850. Tenants pay all utilities including lawn maintenance and snow removal.
I don't provide appliances anymore. If they are there, then we give them to tenants as-is.
But here is my finished Richmond Home (my most recent)
Just want people to know: Just because its a Working Class Neighborhood (WCN for short), does not mean you have to skimp on the repairs and renovation...I paid 25k for this property, and put about 25k in new repairs (big ticket items needed, more than I put in the past, but if it needs new anything, I repair on the front end, not back end). Previous rehabs were 10k for 35k property, and 23k for 13k rehab.
This is an excellent post @Sharad M. , because the visual does so much for people to understand whats available, abundant, and cash flows well. I'll post more tonight.
- I'm constantly astounded at what people do and how they can possibly sleep at night. I also believe in karma or whatever one wants to call it - they'll get theirs at some point. What goes around definitely comes around.
@Ann Watkins
- I'm constantly astounded at what people do and how they can possibly sleep at night. I also believe in karma or whatever one wants to call it - they'll get theirs at some point. What goes around definitely comes around.
So true, but you know what... I credit her and her lack of ethics with being one the negatives in real estate that turned into a positive. Her and another agent are two of the reasons I got my licenses. So out of bad actions actually came good!!!
This thread is giving me life. I have a $50k threshold but have to say these homes are simply darling and make sense for buy/hold and flips!
Oh well my break is over...back to the day job! Bye ya'll!!!!
@Ann Watkins that is awful that happened to you. The fraud that was committed makes me angry, because these deceitful people give the real honest investor a bad reputation and image.
Yes we provide great HOMES for people. That is my saying. I don't provide houses, I provide HOMES! After all, Home is where the Heart is. (now let's see if the person I speak of steals that as well).
At least the person that did me wrong, didn't go as far as your agent, but they are still active, and I am just finding out the wrong they did. Others have now seen them for what they are, and are just as angry as I am. Sadly the person is here on Bigger Pockets.
I want to see more photos of deals gone right! Let's get the positive rolling!
This is my 3rd property. 3/1 purchased for $27k. Pictures are from the actual listing I bought from as Flickr ate my other photos. Water shut off was leaking so we needed to put in a water line and I rented a Rug Doctor to clean the carpet for about $1550 in rehab to rent for $800/mo. During the first tenant I did have to replace the sewer line for $2500 and the bath tub for $1000 (don't just check the plumbing connections, make sure there are no cracks in the back of the tub where the shower hits). From looking at other properties since this purchase, I could easily turn the addition on the back from a family room to a 4th bedroom.
The mls logo on one of the pictures indicates that at least one of the properties is in the Fort Worth IN area. This thread is about properties under $30K. I'd be just as interested in a thread about the tenant pool and issues with rents under $600/mo. In my experience there is so much that isn't working for most families with less than $600/mo for housing. A family of 4 paying $500/mo for housing and making only poverty level income of $24K a year has a low housing cost to income ratio, but they are usually barely getting by....because it's poverty.
Property #4, 2 family with 2/1 each with a bonus sun room. Purchased for $33k (does sub $30k per unit count for this?), put $20k into it with about $10k of that work being optional-I had the boilers and radiators removed to install forced air heat and central A/C and made the switch to all-electric units. Not the best current financial move but this is located in an up & coming area so I wanted to be ready for a higher level of tenants coming in the future. Needed a new sewer line ($2500) and stack ($1800), pulled up carpet and refinished hardwood floors in both units ($3000), painted, new floors for the kitchens and added some upper cabinets over the stoves. As a bonus, the property sits across the street from the most famous frozen custard place in town ($150 and 10lbs). The lines were out the doors when I first offered it for rent in June of 2012. I politely turned down a bribe to rent to one guy and it has been rented to the same tenants since for $600 each unit. Rents could be higher but the area is in a weird spot right now, being pulled up by nearby renovations but still hanging on to the old ways.
Here is a taste of baltimore folks! Purchase price, 13k, all in costs 23k (flooring, painting, new furnace, roof, windows, plumbing). Please note: The reason I think I have had great tenants is because I take pride in my rehabs, making the homes sturdy and long lasting, but keeping them at a standard I would live in (honestly, its taking some time to just think about paint colors, really, a softer skillset). If I renovate a home in a WCN or high end area, you will get a HOME. I think this level of integrity makes a huge difference. Love this thread!
@Lisa Phillips - without giving away your farm areas, what are the traits of a
WCN?
I know you mentioned in your podcast (great, btw) about not too many loafers hanging around on the stoop during the day. Any other quick screen items for a WCN?
@Ann Watkins I was thinking about the realtor you had. Did you report her to her state licensing board? While Karma gets a person, never hurts to give Karma the jump start.
I certainly did in my case. The person is about to find a world of nightmare will hit him soon. I mean did it hurt me to ensure that my community is getting the proper tax money? Properties are taxed different if they are owner occupied or rentals. You have to sign a statement at closing if it will be a primary residence or rental. I called my friends at the County Assessor, this person has a few he claims he will live in. oops!
As a landlord I want to ensure that all tenants are safe and stop having "Slumlords" out there. So of course, I wanted to see if the rehab work was done correctly and with proper permits. Yikes, guess the building and inspection department was very happy to have me call to find out NONE of the properties ever had permits pulled.
There is more, but yes KARMA does strike, yet we need to stand up for our profession. Like in baseball, other players need to speak up, and some are, about how steroid and PED cheats like Alex Rodriguez taint the game, hurt them professionally and financially and that the game needs to be clean. We must do the same. If people continue to do things "under the table" and fraudulently, it just makes it harder for those of us that do it right and have done it that way for YEARS.
@Christina R Thanks. I'll send you a colleague request, you can tell me which ones you attend and maybe get their contact info. Although, with traffic in the DMV being what it is, sometimes I get scared off if its during the work week and its in Maryland. 10 mi can be so far....
@Lisa Phillips I completely agree with you. Providing safe, comfortable housing does make it easier to attract a better quality tenant. When we rehab we often put in slightly higher quality kitchen cabinets, vanities, etc. I also pay attention to the details such as molding & trim, closet organization, etc. People notice and really appreciate it. Having said that, I still consider location, location, location to be primary.
It's amazing what's out there for under $30K isn't it! This is a great thread.
@Lisa Phillips Did you put in that kitchen? That looks like an old chimney going through the middle of the counter & cabinets. I like how the kitchen cabinets and back splash are laid out with that there. I have seen many kitchens with the chimney in the middle and most just have the stove in front of it sticking out really far. Did you cut the counter around it and how did that go? That is a great idea that I'm going to incorporate in the future!
Maybe BP needs to start a Picture category where people can share pictures of their flips and rentals to pass on ideas and to get inspiration.
I have hundreds, but here is one more, just a single photo for now. Before and after, This isn't a SFH but a 2 unit I scored for 10k.
I am looking forward to meeting all the Chicago investors at the networking meeting tonight. We can share more deals with each other!
ON this one, it is side by side townhomes, and both are rented for $700/month. Total Gross income is $1400. Tenants pay own utilities except water and sewer.
Just hate I was late to the party and couldn't have picked up more. One thing that's kinda strange to me is how so many people talk about how it's safer to invest in more expensive neighborhoods where home prices are higher and rents are higher. i.e. where homes cost $100,000 and rent for $1,300. vs $30,000 and rent for $650.
From my perspective I see the 75-125K price neighborhoods being much more volatile over the next 10 years+. In my area most neighborhoods in that price range are trending downwards as the homes age and the majority of the Owner Occupants lack the financial resources to properly maintain a home. These people should realistically be renters, but thanks to easy money policies they are home owners.. They are still basically renters but with no landlord to call when things need fixing.
I think in 10 years these B neighborhoods will be C, just as the C neighborhoods were A/B 10-20 years ago. I think the C neighborhoods will probably still be C and may revert back to B as the low prices attract investors.
@Dan G. you will forgive me for not sharing their location. You can see in this thread why. I will tell you that the Dollar is the same in Indiana as it is in Illinois. I have partners, lenders, etc from many states, why? because money is money.
Eliza - Thank you. I am very pleased with the number of people who have posted here.
I am sorry to hear about your bad experience with that one agent. Did you report or complain to her broker?
But I like your positive attitude to move on and look forward to the future opportunities.
When I first started out, I struggled going through different contractors, agents, etc., but I am very fortunate to have a great team in place now to help me build and grow my business.
You just gotta hang in there and keep working towards your goal.
@Account Closedand @Sharad M. thank you for the encouragement!
I did not report her and she is her broker, and it was too long after the fact. When this happened I was not a realtor and no longer living in Houston. So when I moved back here and became a realtor is when I was able to figure out what she had done.
I won't lie...it still bothers me, I drove by that house today and thought how elated I would be to say I still owned my very first house. I've even approached the current owners about buying it but they don't seem interested. Which is where I have to separate sentimental feelings from business. The house looks like it needs a lot of work. There are multiple window units so I'm sure the HVAC is gone and they've added all sorts of rickety looking sheds in back.
Not to say I wouldn't address all that if I could get it back at the right price. It's in a very strong working class neighborhood or let's make that WCN (thanks @Lisa Phillips girl you Rock!) and I own two other homes in that neighborhood, so if I could I would.
It's one of those places you can buy a foreclosed home for $40-$50k ,put in less than $10k and rent it out for $1200...and I have for years. But BUT...the homes retail for high $90s as they are all brick, mostly 4-2s with big yards and very close to I-45 thus downtown. So it's a very desirable location.
Agreed. To me the point of this discussion is to understand that you can build wealth one house at a time by investing in low priced houses and you are not necessarily buying in war zones.
When I graduated from college, my net worth was ($2,000) and I didn't do anything special, but just saved part of my income and invested in these properties and once you purchase the first couple of properties, you start seeing a snowball effect. You get addicted to it. You will get approached by people with money and help you build your portfolio.
I will be honest that I was very fortunate to be buying at the right time when prices were really very low. Prices have gone up since I started investing, but the houses are still priced at a level where you can get good ROI.
hey bpers, with respect to how much you invest to fix up. I am leaning towards Lisa's philosophy. It makes sense and literally cost only cents more to provide best option on block. A lot of experienced bpers are advising cheapest crap for improvements. I don't think they understand how hard average people work....and to come home to a decent quality place after a long day will make tenants last way longer. Heres is an example of spending a few cents more per square foot. It is not done yet with baseboards yet...but this was only 39 cents more and probably the difference between getting A tenant versus D-.