520k increase in value. Today was a Good Day.

[Shiloh Lundahl]

12-plex in Tucson, Arizona. Purchased August 2020.

Purchase Price: 680k

Repairs: Around 50k

Raised rents from $500 to $725

Today the appraisal came in at 1.2 million.

Today was a good day.

[Natalie Schanne]

@Ben Leybovich - Congratulations on your successful sale.

Can you tie that result to your black roof choice or to your brilliant branding and operations instead? I think you’re very smart and obviously you can achieve good financial results for yourself and your investors.

I did not criticize you. Most people think dark roofs are more attractive than light colored roofs and most residential homes have dark roofs. I gave constructive feedback on your team’s design choice when you asked for feedback and you’re welcome to ignore it. Any professional can prove to you that changing a light roof for a deep black roof on any property will increase ongoing cooling expenses, potentially as much as 20%. When I look at aerials of Phoenix Arizona, less than 10% of roofs are black. In 100+ degree Arizona, I think that having a hot apartment would especially suck, especially if your AC goes out. In Jersey my AC will not cool more than 20-30 degrees lower than ambient.

I believe you would have gotten the same sale price result regardless of what roof you chose. A rising tide (increasing multifamily values) floats all boats.

I can put 99 cent laminate in a flip house or an apartment building and sell it for double. The average buyer or renter doesn’t seem to notice. Especially if I’m not holding it long term, I don’t care if I create maintenance issues down the line from my aesthetically pleasing or low cost choices. Every house I’ve seen with laminate has cupping issues within 5 years and it’s usually torn up and thrown away within 10 (or is an eyesore).

I’m an engineer so I approach things from a life cycle cost efficient perspective. I worked for the Navy and Army doing multimillion dollar energy efficiency projects. We upgraded systems because over 30 years, a 96% furnace is better than an 80% one, especially if you’re paying the bill.

I’d rather spend double to put in premium LVP or solid hardwood because I’ve seen 100 year old properties in Philadelphia and elsewhere with original solid hardwood. My properties now have hardwood and tile flooring and have very low ongoing maintenance.

One company that I really respect is PMC Property Group based in Philadelphia. I met their founding owner multiple times. He got started making condos out of historic buildings in center city. They made a name for themselves converting properties such as historic office skyscrapers into apartments (especially in Pittsburgh) and recently have been building all new construction apartment towers. I can find very few news articles announcing they sold anything. They buy, rehab and hold. They use different materials and build for longevity because they plan to hold their properties and they want low lifetime expenses and rents. It’s just a different model.

When you live with your design decisions instead of selling off your “flips,” you choose differently. It’s one of the reasons I didn’t go work for a merchant developer after my real estate MBA. I didn’t like that they would always choose lower cost, crappy construction because they expected to stabilize the property (rent it up to 95%+ within 2 years) and immediately sell it. They didn’t have to live with their choices as a long term owner.

I don’t expect you to listen to me. I would appreciate if you didn’t insinuate my ideas are worthless just because they don’t align with your choices. I hope you continue to have the amazing success you’ve had financially. I am betting $100 this post is going to get me a snarky reply from you. :(