All Forum Posts by: Alex Deacon

@Luke Mccandless Fantastic idea. You should check with the lender on this ASAP. There is a possibility they would not. What you could do is buy the apartment complex with the bank loan and purchase the land separately. if the owner would agree then buy it for $1. If they are uncomfortable with that then make sure the contract states that both parcels must be bought simultaneously . They may be concerned that you would buy the parcel for $1 and walk away from the apartment.

first check with the bank before you go an complicate things. Perhaps it wont be an issue at all.

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@John Townes @Samantha KleinJohn I have sold hundreds of properties. Adding over a roof with a good dimensional shingle will not devalue the property one bit. it may reduce the life of it from 25 years to 20 but thats it. if its in really bad condition you may have to tear off the old roof but if its not it could save you about $1,000 in tear off costs. Samantha is correct also especially if its your own home. Spend the extra $1000 or so and do it right. Its really up to you and your comfort level.

if the roof already has been layered over once then I would for sure tear off both layers.

@Bill S. @Todd Hannebaum To ad to Bills comments you can also try to get the sewer snaked and maybe that will last you a couple more years. Possibly it wont work at all. if it works try getting sewer line insurance. Its about $15 a month and perhaps if it clogs a year from now some or all of it would be covered. Plumbers can also install a sewer liner which is much less expensive but cant be used in all applications. try to get the clog open for now so you can at least get estimates. Bill is right you could be looking at $10k and I just had one that cost me $20k. all my profit on a flip went literally right down the drain. Plumbers estimates will vary tremendously. The cheapest is not always the best either.

@Erik Nosich You should add them to the lease and potentially raise the rent. If you are paying any utilities then they will possibly be higher due to more water and electric being used. also any adult should at least be on the lease and have a criminal background check ran. The son could be an ax murderer. You just dont know so its good to at lease get their names on the lease and do a criminal BG check at a minimum

@Art Maydan In general a contract isn't enforceable unless its signed. I dont practice Law but we do manage 650 units. We tell each and every prospect this. Until we get the security deposit in our hands and it has to be money order or certified check then we will not hold the unit for you. Once we approve your application you must get us the deposit. If another application comes in and is approved and they get us their deposit before we receive yours then you lose and they win. All of our security deposits are non refundable if the potential tenant backs out and doesn't rent the place FYI. 

@Account Closed I would strongly suggest you get your license. if after a year or two you decide its not the right thing for you then you can let it expire or put it into escrow. Its not expensive to get and keep a licenses and just one sale commission would pay for it for two years

for every 50 deals only one will work out to be a good choice. Be selective especially at the early stages of your career.

@Jason Schimer Jason I think there will always be a market for this. Having done this for 25 years I am always in that market. With that being said sometimes its a lot easier than other times and all markets are different. One thing to remember is dont over leverage or over extend yourself and play it ultra safe until you get really good at sensing the market and looking at indicators of whats about to come. There is no way to predict for sure whats around the bend but keep your ear to the ground and eyes focused on good solid investments, sticking to the basics and never giving up.

@Rashawn Stevens Rashawn it sounds like this deal is a dud. Just keep searching until you find one that makes sense. When you are new you wouldnt know a good deal from a bowling ball but just keep at it. It may take years before you find the right deal but eventually you will be buying 4-5 deals a month like myself or 10-20 deals like some folks I know that I aspire to be like. be patient grasshopper.

Good Luck