All Forum Posts by: Alex Saleeby

@Ferryawaty Effendi - recommend contacting Carlton Hatch Insurance Agency and Parigi Property Management for your insurance and property management needs. Should be able to find them only. PM me if you need more specifics or contact info.

@Ferryawaty Effendi, as far MF properties in Oaks Historic district, especially around 7th and Hazel, you want to proceed with caution for two reasons: Oak District POA as well as neighborhood. Some investors I know make a distinction between the east and west sides of 7th St (west of 7th is more desirable). Type of renters may differ as well. A competent property management co handling matters is highly recommended.

@Minh Le I also agree with @Sam B.'s recommendation. There are pockets in 77707 that are good as well (south of the shaded area). Basically, areas west of I-10/Hwy 69 are considered more desirable
"West-end" with 77706 being the most desirable (and most expensive) with the "best schools". Nothing like spending some time on the ground getting to know the area and working with a competent agent.

Note that the Beaumont school district does have its fair share of issues. Generally speaking, school districts outside Beaumont (in just about every direction) are better and more desirable than Beaumont. Nevertheless, this town is still the central hub and area landmark, and home to 120,000+ people.

@Minh Le you are asking very good and loaded questions, ones are may be difficult to answer thoroughly in a thread like this.

Think of Beaumont MSA as a miniaturized version of Houston MSA. By that I mean an economy that is mainly driven by the chemical and O&G industries. Beaumont is part of what's referred to as the "Gold Triangle Area" comprised of Beaumont-Orange-Port Arthur. Besides those three main cities, there are a number of cities and towns spread out through Jefferson and Orange counties, each with it's own attributes, so it is a bit difficult to generalize.

When you speak of targeting Beaumont, are you limiting yourself to the City of Beaumont only? If so, you might be missing out on many other areas nearby. As far as keeping up with happenings in the economy, here's some good resources.

 https://beaumontbusinessjournal.com/

http://www.bmtcoc.org/

In the Beaumont MSA, there are numerous chemical plants (too many to list but include some of the largest refineries and chemical plants in the country). Port of Beaumont is one of the top ports in the nation (ranked 3 or 4, overall, and #1 for military support). LAMAR university is one of the best kept secrets with top notch STEM programs. It is expanding as well. Beaumont is also home to HQ of several known regional companies like Jason's Deli, Tex Joy, Seaport Coffee, etc.

Having said that, there are some downsides as well. Overall crime rate is higher than what it should be. City services are not up to par either, in my opinion.

Due to the relative small size of the cities and towns in this area, data sources such as rentometer and others may not be so accurate. Rent rates also can vary considerably by the neighborhood and product quality. Your best bet is to work with local agents who know the area well and have expertise in buy-and-hold investing. Depending on what cities and towns you end up targeting around here, you me need to work with more than one agent (avoiding overlap of course). I'm happy to refer you to select agents I know personally and trust. PM if you like more info.

Lastly, there are two active REIA groups that meet here monthly. Consider attending.

I think I've said enough for now. Good luck.

In Beaumont, Parigi Property Management is #1. They are also the largest. Depends on what you're looking for in a PM co.

So the moral of the story here @Ronald Roetsel is: Don't put a high-end fridge in a rental unit with potentially low-end tenants. Go with your basic, no frills variety - top freezer, NO ice maker, metal wire shelves and fairly indestructible. 

Having said that, as far as the particular dilemma that you are in, why waste so much time trying to be scientific about how much to deduct, etc. How much is your time worth to you? If you are still able to communicate with the former tenant, what about making them part of the solution. Why not inform them that if they want to see any of their security deposit back, they need to solve the problem that they created (and acknowledged it!) either by finding and buying the replacement parts for you, or by buying a replacement fridge for you that meets your criteria. You may specify finish, capacity, and other basic features. If the tenant is agreeable to that arrangement, you save yourself a bunch of time and get the problem resolved. 

Keep in mind that lost opportunity of re-renting the now vacant unit as well. Put a time limit on this endeavor and don't let it drag on. Get a new, better screened tenant in the vacant unit to get some positive cash flow going again.

What do you think?

Hi there Sam Evans Welcome to SETX investing. Look for some BP instructional videos by Brandon Turner. He's got some good ones on rental property analysis and buying older properties. I'm in Jefferson county and absolutely get flood insurance for every property. Taxes and insurance tend to be pricy so I find that I need to be closer to 1.5% for any decent cash flow. The higher the better of course. Without looking at the deal specifics, I would tend to agree that you may be paying too much for the property. Feel free to PM me if need additional help or contacts. There are a couple of REIA groups that meet monthly in Bmt. I encourage you to attend one or both.

Welcome Chris Caffey Always nice to hear from investors who are active our neck of the woods. For your benefit, there are two REIA groups that meet monthly. Both can be found listed on Meetup, or you're welcome to PM me and I'll be happy to send you more specifics. I look forward to meeting you in person soon.

Great question Terry Fox and one that I've often wondered about both as a (former) tenant and now as a landlord. I'm mainly referring to shutters and property protection. As far as supplies, filling bathtubs, etc. this is really the tenant's responsibility. Information of this nature is readily available in areas accustomed to dealing with hurricanes. Here are some resources for you: https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2012/08/27/us/hurricane-preparation/index.html https://www.redcross.org/images/MEDIA_CustomProductCatalog/m4340160_Hurricane.pdf As for shuttering the windows and doors, I would think that's your decision. If a window or door fails, the property will get damaged and the contents ruined. Contents should be covered by renters insurance. Property damage should be covered by your insurance coverages for the property. Do you have the right coverage? Are you willing to take the risk? What about the loss of rental income during the recovery period? Will your insurance policy compensate you for lost income? Furthermore, the tenant may have the right to break the lease in the event of property damage. How will that impact your business. Those are all questions that you need to answer and determine if it makes sense for you to invest in property protection measures. If you leave it up to the tenant, there is a good chance that nothing would get done to protect your property.

Mau Pan going after good school districts is a good strategy the is use myself as well but is not the only metric to use. Furthermore, your list is missing quite a few. Of the ones you shared, 163. 154 & 152 are good. Suggest you look up schools using https://www.greatschools.org