All Forum Posts by: Alice K.

Originally posted by @Yang Zhang:

@Alice K. many thanks for the advice! 

By the way, I think I remember you. We met at a local event in SF Chinatown library :)

 Yes!! I updated that earlier response as I just saw your updates-- Big Congratulations!! So excited for you :D

@Yang Zhang Congrats on the purchase! @Nick Dumas is right, if they're good tenants, try to keep them. 

I would do what @Andrew K. said about upgrading and raising the price. You should be able to add a rider to the contract I would think (may want to ask an attorney and check local laws in PA). Best bet is have them sign an entirely new, very buttoned up contract.

You can also tell your Property Manager to fork over their tightest contract so you can have that be signed. (Check that over to make sure it covers all bases-- an entirely separate post in itself.)

They'll probably want to say "evict!" so they can get a tenant in and charge you a $250 fee (or whatever their flat fee is for finding a new tenant) but try to avoid that as much as possible.

Cheers

On the topic of gifts, setting aside all of our own greediness, assuming we are friends/on good terms with the people who impact our lives--

A lesson I learned when my family ran an RV park: Our tenants are our partners.
If our tenant does not succeed in life, then we don't succeed.

To me, at least right now *knock on wood* they are like family. 

My mom showed me that when she started hosting potlucks for guests. It wasn't about money, it was about relationships without thinking "what do I get out of this". In fact, we probably lost plenty of money, but when we left that park, so did many clients... That business now has less than half the occupancy compared to when my mom was there giving many things away making people feel welcome. (Then again, she also yelled at people an awful lot... haha) 

Also I'm laughing, realized this was an old post. Ignore that comment, but I suppose now everyone can see my thoughts on all brokerages! (Laughs while swirling wine.)

Watch out. Everyone and their mom probably wants to recruit you in here haha. In the end, just pick the one that you think meshes with your personality, trains, and has a decent split. I'd pick the one that gets you a mentor to follow around. Some charge crazy fees as well. At the end of the day, it's the broker and the agents. You'll likely end up changing anyways, so don't stress out too hard like I did. :) Good luck!

Welcome to BP! I like what Scott Ellis up there mentioned. Not a lot of cash flow I've seen these past few months. I don't know about the rest of you, but coming from a mid-class family I have a hard time with the thought of raising rents on folks just to make a buck because I bought wrong. Would love to connect with you all when I'm back over there. Cheers! ~Alice

Arthur! Come back to SF! Also, if that person turns out any good would love their contact info. But seriously, come back to the land of 2.5-3% cap rates.

I'm certainly going to deduct my purchase, if you do this as a business you should be able to.
My account is 100% for real estate and books related to encouraging me to do even more business, so I would include it and see what your CPA says.

Another thought is a percentage of use-- For example, for my phone I use it per month anywhere from 60 - 80% on real estate / agent work, so I'm deducting that monthly bill as well (e.g.: total amount * percentage used). 

Welcome @Sagar Mata!
Everyone in the area and BP is a wonderful resource (well, most!) 
@Chris Mason is always around here and has some great witty insight. 

Yes! Get out of that hard money loan (I'm assuming it's higher interest than a traditional loan). The bank will consider the rental amount income when you have a renter. (Time period wise depends on the bank.) The primary question won't just be the home but your credit and other factors as well (as you probably know). They also want to ensure the unit is livable so if a default should occur (heaven forbid) they can sell it in a hurry. (And, they need the house in good shape to sell your mortgage on the secondary market should they choose.)