All Forum Posts by: Aaron Thivierge

Mehul, from your post, I assume a couple things:
a.) you have not done a deal with this particular wholesaler yet.
b.) you are unfamiliar with the market in which you are considering investing.
c.) you do not 100% trust the wholesaler otherwise you wouldn't be asking for details on how to vet this deal
d.) you are unfamiliar with how the USA real estate is recorded and where records can be verified on a particular property (taxes, insurance, utilities, neighborhood logistics (a,b,c,d class).  
e.) you do not have a real estate attorney or accountant familiar w/ US real estate law and process'.   

ALL of these pieces of the puzzle must be in place for you to be successful from afar investing. Otherwise, you run a EXCELLENT RISK of being taken to the cleaners for the money that you assign to others (wholesalers, partners, etc…). 

There was an EXCELLENT podcast number 89 w/ Engelo from Australia that answers every one of your questions..in a nutshell.  Are you familiar with the podcasts on iTunes? 

There is a fundamental TRUST issue that you have to have in place to make your arrangement work.  I am sorry for not answering your questions directly, but your post makes you potentially a very easy victim for fraud or at least a sucker for a bad investment.   Does this make sense?  

Lisa, that is a lovely kitchen: I love that "saybrook sage" green and would not paint it.   I think it's certainly preference, but if it were me, I'd ask the tenant.  The reason why (as mentioned) is when the living room is empty, there I no better time to paint...what a pain it would be after they move into that space.
Furthermore, I would email the living room picture to the tenant and ask them if they would prefer to keep it as is or make it all that neutral tan/ beige in that room.  If you painted it all beige/ tan without asking the tenant, they may be disappointed that they don't get that "lily pad green" contrast in the sitting room. Just my 0.02, but I'd check with your soon to be tenants to see what they'd like for the extent of their contract.  
Great job on that home and filling that vacancy!

I don't know which university has students independently wealthy (or parents naïve enough) to pay $1000/ month in rent.   I would recommend you research your local demographics to see what college students are literally paying currently. 
One marketing and R/D approach you could take is drive down to the local universities with a clipboard a piece of paper.  Talk to 300 students (this should take you about an hour) located in the commons or around the activity centers, dinning commons, gym, etc... ask them HOW MUCH they are paying for rent.  Use that as your market analysis and go from there.  I would expect you'll see between $250-$500 / month is about average.  

@Sheena Varghese

The way to tag someone on the post is a.) they must be on the thread to begin with and b.) type "@ then the person's username (no space between @ and the persons name by the way...)"...the person will then appear beneath the typing box in a blue highlighted font.  Simply click on that name, and they are "tagged" in the post and alerted via the message center on Biggerpockets.  Give it a try. 

One concern not mentioned is "single family home that has been converted to a duplex".  Is this properly permitted?  You need to consider your exit strategy before you purchase any real estate. 

What if this was duplexed from a SFH by a "skilled handyman" w/o permits? You will have a very difficult time selling it in the future if it's not legit (maybe that is why seller is refusing conventional financing)...

podcast number 88 w/ Matt and Liz Faircloth talks briefly about this idea (more of office space in a large building). 

 YES I would screen the tenant because their presence may or may not affect the other tenants who live IN the duplex.  What a shame it would be to have that space's tenant run off your good tenants. 

A lot of storage units are month to month, so that may be reasonable. Also, if the renter of that space gives you notice, how much preparation is there to get it ready for the next individual? a day maybe to sweep the floor +/- paint...

Yes, I would always do a formal lease, otherwise there is no layer of protection for you.   
To answer the deposit question: personally, I don't think I would charge a deposit for this storage space...especially w/ only $200 month.   Chances are if your tenants know about this space coming up, one of them is going to rent it anyway ( I would if I was renting 1/2 a duplex).  Just my 0.02...

way to go on this decision.  To anyone who has a blanket rule "I do not rent to felons" needs to be very grateful they were not caught doing stupid things as a teenager and 20 something year old.... I have zero criminal history, but it's only because my stupidity never caught up with me in my youth.  Case by case seems like a reasonable interpretation of one's rules.  Furthermore, in a podcast I was listening to while sitting at a park for lunch today, the term that was used was "ability to pivot". 
 

Wow, man! Great job. I am impressed that you have the dedication, desire to acquire knowledge, focus, persistence necessary to achieve success in REI. Way to go...keep this up and you'll be retired by 33 years old!

search 50% rule on biggerpockets. I would not move on this deal. 1st, a 2/1 has a pretty specific marketplace (no kids or 1 child max)... also, I do not see allocations for property management, vacancy (10%), repairs, capital expenses, THEN the PITI ...what's left over is cash flow. I would be surprised if this cash flows $100/ month long term. Sure, the 1st year or 3 it may, but for "buy and hold" investment, I just don't see how the numbers can work (putting aside speculation on appreciation).

Yifa, you must get on bigger pockets are research land lording, buy and holds, quadplex, etc.. .There is a WEALTH of knowledge on this website that could circumvent the problems you are experiencing.  My heart hurts for you as it seems you've jumped in two feet forward without the due diligence of knowing what this business entails. 
Do not accept any more funds from that deadbeat tenant.  If you have not entered into a legally binding allowance for him to continue jerking you around, move forward with your eviction process.  He started this crap on month number 1...can you imagine this horror story for 11 more months? It's not going to get better...until he's gone and a "screened" tenant is in that unit. 
Furthermore, search for the "ultimate beginners guide to tenant screening" on this website.