Realtor · Kansas City · Member since 2020 · 28 posts · 17 votes
Hi everyone, I am new here to BP and have just made my first investment purchase in the North Collinwood area, close to Waterloo. I live in Kansas City and I purchased this Cleveland SFR with a tenant in place, the numbers were great and they had been there almost 9 years. Two weeks after I made the purchase I was given notice that the renters were leaving at the end of the month. I have a feeling the seller was aware they were not renewing and decided to sell at that time. Clearly, I am disappointed but will take the time once they are out to fly up there and do some much needed repairs to the home before renting out again. I am in desperate need of finding honest and fair electricians, plumbers, HVAC, exterior repair, painters, etc.
I will also be adding another 2 or 3 properties to the Cleveland area and will most likely need a good property manager as well.
Investor · San Jose · Member since 2018 · 46 posts · 65 votes
6y
Hello @Rebekah Bloom, I am sorry to hear about your trouble. Few points from my own experience in Cleveland so far.
1. It is going to be almost impossible to find a property manager who cares about your property as much as you do, specially if you are just starting and don't have too many units with them, having said that I agree with @Robert Matelski, you defiantly need to have one specially when you are out of state investor.
2. Depending on how much of rehab you are planning to do to the property some it might be a wise decision to go out there and spend sometime and take care of those rehabs yourself before handing it out to a PM. The reason is two fold, one, some PMs don't accept a major rehab and two you will end up paying around %10+ on top of the cost of the contractors to the PM to managing the rehab for you. So if it will be a small few thousand $ rehab maybe its worth it to use a PM otherwise, it might make sense for you to be out there yourself and take care of this.
3. Keep in mind that right now because of the weather in OH, it might not be easy to get contractors to come out specially if you are planing to do anything to the outside of the property. Inside might be easier.
4. When I started looking for PM in Cleveland area, i put together a list of questions that I asked them, and since revised it. If you want message me and I will send it to you.
5. I also worked with couple of Contractors so, if you decide to do the work yourself, message me and I will share the contact with you.
Rental Property Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2018 · 214 posts · 270 votes
6y
I would recommend you hire a Cleveland area property manager ASAP and put this into their hands. They can properly secure the house following the tenants' departure, winterize it, coordinate utility account transfers, and source vendors to address anything that needs to be done to the house prior to marketing it for another tenant. Trying to manage this yourself is basically an open invitation for pretty big problems (e.g. break-ins/vandalism, frozen pipes/water damage, etc.) -- failing to hire a property manager in an effort to save some $$$ when you're not local AND you're not intimately familiar with the market is almost always a penny-wise, pound-foolish move.
Thank you @Robert Matelski.. I am literally on that right now. It will take some time to weed out the good from the bad. Trying to find someone that is honest and genuinely cares about taking care of the home and tenants seems to be more difficult than I had thought in the Cleveland area.
Contractor · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2014 · 123 posts · 115 votes
6y
Call Rob LaCivita at Deanna Property Management or Jad Boudiab at B2B Realty. Both are solid guys/companies that will help you take care of your investment. Good luck!
Investor · San Jose · Member since 2018 · 46 posts · 65 votes
6y
Hello @Rebekah Bloom, I am sorry to hear about your trouble. Few points from my own experience in Cleveland so far.
1. It is going to be almost impossible to find a property manager who cares about your property as much as you do, specially if you are just starting and don't have too many units with them, having said that I agree with @Robert Matelski, you defiantly need to have one specially when you are out of state investor.
2. Depending on how much of rehab you are planning to do to the property some it might be a wise decision to go out there and spend sometime and take care of those rehabs yourself before handing it out to a PM. The reason is two fold, one, some PMs don't accept a major rehab and two you will end up paying around %10+ on top of the cost of the contractors to the PM to managing the rehab for you. So if it will be a small few thousand $ rehab maybe its worth it to use a PM otherwise, it might make sense for you to be out there yourself and take care of this.
3. Keep in mind that right now because of the weather in OH, it might not be easy to get contractors to come out specially if you are planing to do anything to the outside of the property. Inside might be easier.
4. When I started looking for PM in Cleveland area, i put together a list of questions that I asked them, and since revised it. If you want message me and I will send it to you.
5. I also worked with couple of Contractors so, if you decide to do the work yourself, message me and I will share the contact with you.
Specialist · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 666 votes
6y
@Rebekah Bloom 1st mistake buying without a team in place..Its all about your team
BTW, whenever I buy a property that is occupied I get 3 months of rent from the seller escrowed with my title co. (unless Govt tenant ) to be released each month as the tenant pays . If such a great tenant whats the issues right :)
Realtor · Kansas City · Member since 2020 · 28 posts · 17 votes
6y
@Bob Prisco within minutes of posting this week I had so many incredible people reach out to me with referrals and recommendations. Through the post and kind people, I was able to pull it all together.
Hello @Rebekah Bloom, I am sorry to hear about your trouble. Few points from my own experience in Cleveland so far.
1. It is going to be almost impossible to find a property manager who cares about your property as much as you do, specially if you are just starting and don't have too many units with them, having said that I agree with @Robert Matelski, you defiantly need to have one specially when you are out of state investor.
2. Depending on how much of rehab you are planning to do to the property some it might be a wise decision to go out there and spend sometime and take care of those rehabs yourself before handing it out to a PM. The reason is two fold, one, some PMs don't accept a major rehab and two you will end up paying around %10+ on top of the cost of the contractors to the PM to managing the rehab for you. So if it will be a small few thousand $ rehab maybe its worth it to use a PM otherwise, it might make sense for you to be out there yourself and take care of this.
3. Keep in mind that right now because of the weather in OH, it might not be easy to get contractors to come out specially if you are planing to do anything to the outside of the property. Inside might be easier.
4. When I started looking for PM in Cleveland area, i put together a list of questions that I asked them, and since revised it. If you want message me and I will send it to you.
5. I also worked with couple of Contractors so, if you decide to do the work yourself, message me and I will share the contact with you.
Best of luck
Hey can you share reliable contactor info please!!
Real Estate Broker · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2018 · 227 posts · 133 votes
4y
Congratulations! That's a cool area over there! I have a few contractors I can recommend that have entire crews of guys that can help with what you're looking for. I can also give you some really good feedback on some property management companies in the area to stay away from.