Emporia Kansas - Four Plex Horror Story
My wife and I live in Emporia Kansas and we bought our first fourplex back in March, and I figured I’d share our experience so far to get some advice from people who have been through something similar.
When we bought it, we moved into one of the units and started renovating it ourselves. The other three units came with inherited tenants from the previous owner.
It’s been… interesting.
One tenant turned out to be a convicted fentanyl dealer. Another never paid rent while living here, then disappeared in the middle of the night halfway through their lease because they were apparently running from someone. The third tenant has been fantastic and has given us zero issues.
The problem is that every time we think we’re making progress, something else pops up.
The tenant who left unexpectedly forced us to put our own renovation on hold so we could renovate their unit and get it back on the market. Our apartment still isn’t finished because of it.
Outside, the property needs a ton of work. The backyard is a disaster with old couches and junk everywhere. The pool has cracks in the shell, is full of algae, and has basically become an eyesore. The concrete around the property has several large cracks that need repaired, and the siding has significant wood rot which was actually the only major issue we expected when we bought the place.
On top of that, we’ve dealt with multiple A/C repairs, plumbing issues, and all the normal headaches that seem to come with owning an older property.
We’ve already spent thousands of dollars on repairs and renovations, and honestly, it feels like every time we fix one thing, two more things break. Right now, it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We knew buying a value-add property would take work, but we didn’t expect to feel like we were constantly putting out fires.
We’re committed to turning this place around because we really believe it has great potential, but I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t been discouraging at times.
For those of you who have bought value-add multifamily properties, is this pretty normal? Did you tackle everything at once, or did you prioritize getting units cash-flowing first and improve the exterior over time? Looking back, what would you have done differently? I’d really appreciate any advice or perspective from those who’ve been through it.
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OP great post.
1. Pause, meditate, whatever. When I was working full time and then came home would eat while working, work till 10. Repeat. But. Pick a time or moment in Sunday to look forward to. Mine was from 6 to 6:30. Take a shower and sit in my recliner. I looked forward to that every week. Yours might be take your dog to the park.
2. Your wife. Realize both of you signed up. But make sure you don’t push her and appreciate her efforts.
3. One month timeline. Put your head down for one month. That way you can see the end. There are always ongoing issues but that is normal. Whatever you can’t see getting done I. The next month find a different solution. Also what fits your budget.
4. Clean the exterior of the property first. Just muscle work. It’s summer. Hire some teenagers if needed. If you do t have a truck rent one. Rent a dump trailer. Get some help and not your wife to start cleaning exterior. See 6 below. Get an excavator with jaws to load this. Year the swimming pool down at the same time. Or if rear yard is totally weedy. Rent a skidsteer with both a toothed bucket and also grapple jaws. You will have the backyard cleaned in 2 hours. Then grass seed. Use grass mulch. Water.
5. Concrete cracks. If less than an inch. Get the expandable concrete putty and fill for now. If size able and on your property rent a powered jackhammer and break out. Level with some sand or gravel and put pavers down. When you have the money you can pay someone $10,000 later to pour concrete.
6. Swimming pool for a 4plex in Kansas!!! Year out and full in. Rent a mini excavator or skid steer for the day. If the backyard has a small rise or hill use that dirt. If not pay for truckloads of fill dirt. Do before winter. Put some stakes and construction warning tape around for now. If you can’t drive a dump truck to the back. Let your tenants know. Dump on your drive. Use skidsteer to move to pool.
7. Tell your current good tenant 1 month free rent if they can get a good new tenant.
8. Do college rentals.
9. The siding can be fixed later in the fall or early spring.
10. Pick summer dry work. And then winter work. Don’t try to do both at once.
11. I lived with a mattress, lawn chair, milk crates and a radio clock for a year in an apartment. Just prioritize your dollars and time. And thank your wife for the journey. Without lows, you can’t appreciate the highs. Enjoy the journey. Emporia is a great city. You have a good investment no matter what. You already have $20,000 of learning experience.