All Forum Posts by: Amos Mainville

Hello BP

This is a fantastic resource for investors. Thanks to all of you.

My wife and I target the Elmira NY area with 8 doors and growing as a part of Chemung Valley Properties LLC. I love everything about real estate, buying it, managing it, protecting it (as a volunteer firefighter), and inspecting it. It has been a long journey to get here but financial independence is a great destination.

In the course of buying homes I became a NY Licensed home inspector and launched Chemung Valley Home Inspection LLC.

Hi Adam,

Local Home Inspector and real estate invetor.

We live in a fantastic area. Whether you focus on Corning or Elmira there is great opportunity.  My wife and I are heavily invested in Elmira while working for Corning as a diversification strategy. The risk with Corning is when C Inc lays off it usually isn't a small cut. Elmira has several manufacturers so tend to be more stable as a job market. The trade off is C Inc pays more so Corning rents are higher.

Always happy to connect and discuss real estate. I love building quality apartments and crawling through local homes. Went through 40 last year searching out our own investments.

@Ryan Bilack 

Welcome to BP. I invest heavily in towns in the southern tier but have looked at Rochester. SFH can be a tough margin but should be doable. Duplexes are where we decided to make our niche as they return better and possible vacancies don't leave us carrying the mortgage out of pocket.

As a NY Home Inspector I offer this. Take your time vetting properties. We looked at 40 properties to buy our first 4. In looking for your first property you want something that can bring you returns without never ending cash outlay. A "good deal" might bleed you dry if you don't vet it well. We targeted strong structures with new to midlife utilities and that strategy served us well. 

If you ever need an inspection give a shout!

Amos Mainville

Chemung Valley Home Inspection LLC

Excellent Post and spot on.

We invest in Elmira and have the same mindset facing similar demographics. Many properties that have been run by absentee slumlords  leaving some projects just too far gone.

As a Home Inspector we went through 40 properties to find 4 that did not need major work. Skmilarly I have inspected properties in Syracuse and saw a similar distribution. 

As an engineer I love developing quality housing and working to turn our city around.  I will never understand the benefit to running your property into the ground. 

Nice post.

The inner city definitely has its rough spots but the suburbs have some excellent communities. 

As a home inspector based in the fingerlakes, Rochester is within my range. What type of property are you seeking? What brought Rochester to your attention?

@Alex Smolowe

Steve is correct and an excellent judge of the market.

I love our Elmira market. Like any city though there are parts I won't invest in. There are projects I won't take on. There are some that I have taken from absent landlord's that let things go too long. It's all about thoroughly vetting a property and understanding the numbers. The area around LECOM has some quality units around it. Also has some of the too far gone units.

That said, while I love working in this market I do offer a cautionary tail. Due to our affordable housing stock and fair quantity of inventory we have seen long distance investors burned. They buy and waive the inspection or rely on immoral contractors and can be taken advantage of. Same Rick with any distance investing but the low buy in price means I have seen many cases of it.

If you aren't local you really need to build relationships local and acknowledge the risk.

For numbers sake, last year we targeted to contract 3 duplexes. Our criteria was no major structural, foundation, roof, siding, or utility issues. We evaluated 35 properties to secured 3 contracts. There were 5 others that we either made offers on or had in pocket as back up if other contracts were denied.

Those 3 duplexes will each net 650 or better per month. Each had 1 long term tenant which we kept in place. In 1 unit we did gut carpet to change for lvp as well as upgrade to recessed led lighting and of course fresh paint throughout. The other 2 empty units were primarily paint with 1 unit needing a fuse panel changed for a new breaker panel.

The key with any proper is focusing on building a durable product with quality finish and appearances. This doesn't have to cost a fortune. We buy units with garages on the property to warehouse materials and watch sales. At the end of the project that garage can be a nice add on for $250 to a units rent.

The southern tier is a fantastic market. I personally invest in Elmira Corning area but have evaluated deals in Binghamton 

As I started investing I fell in love with evaluating properties. So much so that I became a licensed home inspector. When you start shopping let's connect!

Good on you for looking ahead at the age of 21.

Sent a DM to both of you. As a home inspector and investor I can talk all day about gotchas. 

zoom happy hour some time. Bit cold for driveway happy hours

Corning is a solid market to invest in and don't underestimate Elmira either. We have 8 doors in Elmira ND looking at 2 more soon. 

As a NY home inspector the main watchout in this area is being cautious and buying the right deal as that first property. Everyone has the fixr upper bug. Last year in buying 6 doors we evaluated 35 properties. Being in the early stage of our business I wanted properties that only needed light remodeling. No electric panel swaps (although I did one on 1 propeery) no foundation issues, no gutted properties. You will want something that can cashflow with minimal capital outlay.

Blaine Minor with Corning credit union has been fantastic to work with as has Gabe Rosettie for a lawyer. Realtor Lauren Groth has been excellent as well. Dont be afraid to change realtors if the first one isn't working. We had to change.

A commercial loan shouldn't be too concerned about your work status as they evaluate the property as the supporting business. Yes it costs a little more than a conventional but the numbers still work well.

The Corning duplex market dried up a bit going into winter but there will be more inventory this year. We saw a lot of downstate investors park cash up here through covid. They will sell eventually,  they always do.

With 60k in our market you could likely acquire 2 duplexes and have 10k to invest in each. Focus on building quality systems to reduce maintenance impacts. Look at water heater and furnace ages as well as electric panel size/type and wiring. I still see Federal Pacific and Challenger panels in buildings and I wouldn't let anyone I loved or hated sleep in the same building.

Dm me if you want to chat more. I love the local market and we invested heavily in it over the last 2 years. 

Amos Mainville

Chemung Valley Home Inspection LLC

As a home inspector I would advise getting a video inspection performed to validate noting has collapsed in the line slowing flow.

I would check that it's not a "eco" or "low flow"  water conserving toilet as they only exacerbate the issue

lastly. Peace of mind would be worth the 1000$ super pooper. As an engineer I design my properties to incorporate anything that saves me maintenance phone calls. I never want a tenant performing maintenance either. They are more likely to cover up damage than a hired professional.