All Forum Posts by: Alecia Loveless

@Isaac Passmore If this is your only rental I’m not sure I would want to put all my eggs in one basket by having 2 units in the same building.

@Ryan Tongue Just to be clear a few hundred bucks of cash flow on a duplex in today’s market is solid.

There’s no get rich quick scheme in real estate that I know of, it’s a long term investment strategy.

@Isiah Ferguson As previously mentioned figure out how they’re getting in and block the holes.

Once you’ve done that be sure to remove their food source. If they’re getting in the trash figure out how to keep them out.

I had a raccoon problem 3 summers ago and ended up trapping and relocating 4 and then when the tenants stopped leaving their trash out where it was easily accessible any remaining raccoons moved on somewhere else.

@Nir Heifetz People may argue this point but $200/unit cash flow is considered very solid in today's markets. Assuming you have also figured in CapEx, repairs and maintenance and vacancy allowances.

Focus on getting a solid tenant that wants to stay multiple years.

Some tenants that I inherited are going on 10+ years in their units. And the vast majority of tenants I’ve placed are still with me. I have virtually zero turnover annually which cuts down the costs of turning a unit.

Most of my SFH tenants have stayed an average of 3 years. If you've gone through 2 tenants in a year in a SFH you need to do a deep dive into why you're getting this much turnover.

@Ethan Ruttan If the units are in fairly good shape I would say there’s probably not too many markets you can get 5 units for $300K.

I’d do my best market research on what comparative market rents are and get all 4 units rented (or 3 if you plan to stay in 1 for a while) at market rent ASAP. I would definitely raise the rent on the family member that’s below market rate.

I never recommend renting to friends or family. It just makes issues.

@Susana W. Hi. I’m probably in the minority but I like the basic Biggerpockets rental calculator. It has its limits but you can get creative with it and do extra stuff. Free for first 5 uses then unlimited with Pro.

@Fillip Nelson My insurance company will no longer insure property that has fuses.

Would recommend the full rewire.

@Austin Byassee Hey Austin, you’ll likely need a minimum of 2+ years in your current field to qualify for a mortgage. 2+ years in the same job is even more desirable.

I’d recommend paying down the car loan first. Then focus on real estate.

@Deepika Prakash Pick one market and try to become an expert on it. This will help you gain a bit of an advantage in your investing.

@Ana Estima Try to get an independent septic inspector that is not part of a licensed septic company. The septic company has huge incentives to try to convince you you need their products or services.

My septic inspector gives me an overview of the system as well as information about how long he thinks it will last. He digs in the leach field to ascertain how much life is left in it. As well as looking at all other components of the system.