All Forum Posts by: Alan Asriants

In my leases tenants are responsible to pay for their own utilities and change air filters. I would educate the tenants on why certain practices of the unit might cause it to break. Educate them, give them time to remedy their mistakes. Gently let them know that if they continue to use the HVAC in this manner and it causes the unit to fail, they will be responsible for replacing it due to negligence. 
I would give them an example - if you have a garbage disposal and they clog it because they are putting too many things down it, its not the landlords or garbage disposals fault. 

What I do is first screen the potential renters before moving forward with a showing. I ask them 3 simple questions:
1. When do you plan on moving in? (You dont want someone looking next year)
2. How many people will be living there? (I believe PA is 2 heartbeats per bedroom) So you wouldnt want a family of 6 in your 1 bed
3. Do you have any pets?

If they pass the screening - then I pick a day, usually a weekend and host an open house and get all the potential tenants to view the property within a 2 hour window. 
Once I have people there I am looking at body language, car they are driving, but mainly how they are carrying themselves. I have found that the people who say the least are the most interest and most qualified. People who talk a lot and try to justify how good of tenants they are and how perfect this place is are usually full of ***. Not all apples are bad so don't judge, just a tip. I have found myself very surprised at times.
Cosigning helps, as they become financially responsible for the lease. Have the cosigner sign any additional Rules and regs, addendums, etc. 
Once you have a signed lease and security deposit in hand then I would take it off the market. Lots of people flake, don't take someones word for it until they give you all the payments and you hand them the keys

Hey Michael, at the end of the the day it depends where in Phila you are looking for. Some neighborhoods have some great returns but other draw backs. I generally aim for 10%+ CoC on my investments. I would be happy to connect and share with you my experience investing in the City. Fee free to reach out anytime!

 Bump off of Jamie! Philly has some turnkey opportunities in the $400k range. Happy to connect anytime and share my experience as well. 

It makes sense why the continued use of operating a church might be inefficient. Is there a possibility of rezoning? Maybe selling the land with a project/plan for redevelopment? I think its hard to find a buyer for an existing church and might be better suited for another use. I would consider its historical significance too. This is a tough one. Have you consulted a commercial broker?

Hey Spencer! I am an investor and agent in the Philadelphia area. I would be happy to connect. Reach out anytime!

Hey @Cate M B., congrats on the Baby! 
I am an investor and agent in the area and would be happy to connect. Feel free to reach out anytime!

Using credit cards for renovation projects is a smart way to save money. By opening a new credit card before a renovation project, you can take advantage of cash back bonuses and rewards that many credit cards offer. For instance, some cards provide cash back on home improvement expenses, which can add up quickly over the course of a renovation project.

I believe capital one offers a $750 cash bonus for using $6000 in 3 months. Thats a free $750, if you planned on spending that money anyway.

Another benefit of using credit cards for home renovations is the convenience factor. You can keep track of all your expenses on one card, making it easier to track your spending per project and organize your receipts for tax purposes. This can be especially helpful if you're working on multiple renovation projects at once.

Of course, it's important to use credit cards responsibly and pay off your balance in full each month to avoid accumulating debt and interest charges. But by taking advantage of cash back rewards and keeping a close eye on your spending, credit cards can be a valuable tool for saving money on renovation projects.

Hey Buyan, if you want I could help take a look at your property and we can run some comps together to see why they could be giving you that figure. 

If two appraisals came back at the same value, it seems like the first appraiser that came in at $250k might have been high in the sky. Again, until I know the address and the area, I can't really tell for sure. 

Feel free to reach out anytime

Yep you can still utilize an FHA loan. there are some guidelines and the lender will ask why you are moving from a Single family to a multi family for instance, but with the proper explanation you usually can justify it.

Talk to your lender and see how you can qualify for FHA in the scenario that you are in, if they know your file well they will be able to better point you in the right direction

long story short, it is possible.