All Forum Posts by: Alex Smith
Alex Smith has started 30 posts and replied 108 times.
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
I didn't realize you could hire a PA later in the game if need be. That's good to know. Thanks for commenting!
Originally posted by @Jason Bott:
@Alex Smith all great comments above.
One thing I would add is do not feel pressured to hire a PA now.
Give the insurance carrier a chance to adjust the claim. You can bring in a PA 60-90 days into it if you feel the claim is not getting settled fairly.
You’ll be in good shape with your father-in-law in your corner.
Best of luck with it
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
@Jonas mai @john mocker @breann Stephenson @jon arsenault
Thanks everyone for your input and help! My father-in-law is a general contractor and very experienced in dealing with rehabs involving insurance claims/money. Without letting the insurance company know that he will be the one doing my work, I plan to utilize his expertise and know that he won't lead me in the wrong direction. At this time, we do not plan to hire a public adjuster.
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
I love the points you've made and I agree that the knowledge I will take away from this experience will greatly exceed what I've lost. I've already learned so much and I'm just getting started in the claims process, etc.
My father in law is a general contractor and I plan to use his help throughout this process.
Originally posted by @Jonas Mai:
more points to add... once you get in the middle of a claim for yourself you will gain experience that IS very valuable for anyone with property (experience probably worth more than the10-20% your PA will take along with your chance to learn) . An insurance policy should in concept never need a public adjuster ... you can read it, its black and white a Public adjuster cant change it (if the ins company is acting in a way obviously contrary to policy and you call them on it and they don't change then yes get a PA) . I'm not saying you per say but many people I come across don't understand their policy, self involvement in the claims process will help you know what you want in the future.
I cant tell if your roof is flat or low slope...if it is code (depending on area and what code they enforce) could require additional insulation above deck or below.... this can be very expensive if it is required above deck...Take at look at your code upgrade coverage and ask your contractor about the codes in the area.
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
Thank you Caleb! Your clarification helped a lot :)
Originally posted by @Caleb Heimsoth:
@Alex Smith. Please keep in mind I am not an expert on this. I have a friend who works with public and insurance adjusters all the time, so if you want you can PM me any questions you have and I can relay them to him and then give
You an answer. That being said from my understanding yes you are correct. An insurance adjuster works for the insurance company. A public adjuster works for you in a sense. They are paid based on damage assessed so the more they find the more they get paid (good for you). As far as an insurance adjuster lowballing the bid, I think that could happen and how much it happens probably varies on which insurance company it is. Hope this helps
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
Thank you for your input! My phones been ringing like crazy and I think I'm in agreement with what you're saying. I think I'm going to move forward right now without a public adjuster. I'll be sure to reach out if I have any more questions.
Post: Electrical Fire @ Duplex--Do I need a Public Adjuster?
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
Hi BP!
Today my duplex caught on fire. Thankfully, only one of my tenants was there and she was able to get out safely and call the fire department. So thankful this didn't happen in the middle of the night. It could have been so much worse.
Turns out that it was an electrical fire originating from the breaker box in the basement. The place is currently uninhabitable. I've contacted insurance and secured the home, however, I've been getting many calls from "Public Adjusters." I even had some show up at the property immediately after, when the fire company was still there and everything (which I thought was pretty rude). I'll be honest, until today I didn't even know what a public adjuster was, but from what I learned today, it's someone who is there to represent me to the insurance company to help us maximize the money we receive for renovations? These guys made it seem like the adjuster from the insurance company will have the insurance companies best interest in mind. Meanwhile, if I were to hire a public adjuster, they would have my best interest in mind and make sure that I'm treated fairly?
Does anyone have any experience with this that could provide some insight? I have the adjuster from the insurance company coming out this Thursday. What should I do? Thanks!
Post: Funding the downpayment on a 7 unit
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
@Caleb Heimsoth very helpful! Thank you!
Post: Funding the downpayment on a 7 unit
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
Hey BP'ers!
Just found a 7 unit that we are very interested in, but we definitely don't have the capital to get in the door. We currently have 4 units and the lender we have gone through so far has been requiring us to put 25% down.
If we can find a way to fund the down payment, we are going to shop around to see if we can find another lender that would require a bit less of a down payment, but I'm unsure of how to even get this ball rolling. I'm not sure what would be considered a good deal for someone putting up a down payment of 40-50k or if anyone would even do that for us. Looking at the numbers, we could pay the private money lender back in 30 months (possibly 24 months)--is that too long? We could also pay them 15-20% interest on the money that we borrow.
The 7 unit is currently listed for 249,000 and hasn't been on the market very long.
How do we proceed and what constitutes a good deal for a lender? What are private money lenders looking for? Total newb when it comes to all of this.
Thank you!
Post: Advice on starting up PM company in NJ
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
@Patrick Liska i kind of figured :/ Thank you!
Post: Advice on starting up PM company in NJ
- Investor
- South Jersey
- Posts 109
- Votes 73
If the owner of a buy and hold is paying a PM company, then I'd assume they wouldn't want to pay an agent to conduct showings of a vacant rental, the PM company would just do that.