All Forum Posts by: Andrew Powers

Small add... do not use beds with foot boards (hotels know this!). I'm 6ft and can't stand them, I have to sleep crooked. For a bunk bed (with foot board), you can get Twin XL to accomodate.

Hello congrats on the house! Many house hack and do not have LLC. I made a seperate checking account for escrow and bills. Living at the property, you can mitigate potential liabilities (ie make sure the snow is shoveled and put salt on the ground). Yes umbrella policies work. Maybe someone else can chime in to confirm tax info for a PM LLC for your own house.

A really simple and free way (takes some time): I learned through the forums here and the BP podcast about methods of creative financing. Each time I heard something new I wrote it down and investigated further. I created my own system. Now I use it as a playbook when an opportunity comes up. Unless you are a master of creative finance, it's extremely hard to think through all the ways of financing a deal, especially when you get in the weeds of an opportunity. Having a list (system) ensures you choose the right method instead of letting a deal slip by!

I had a boiler replaced in the area. I recommend FLAME heating and cooling or Cregger. Both were professional and seemed like they did quality work when quoting. I happened to choose FLAME but I'd use Cregger as well

So it sounds like you have 2 routes to finance the deal currently: private money and traditional bank financing. 7 months is sufficient time to find and buy a house... is there a shorter timeline with the private lender? 

Bank financing is very cheap right now so unless the private lender is giving you even better terms, I'd do the bank. And on top of that you can get low down payment loans since you will be owner occupying... FHA or there's a first time home buyer loan for single family that offers 3% down payment

Hello I recommend a BP search for ways to fund. Some ideas are hard money, cash, line of credit, partner, construction loan. Do you own the property or looking to buy it?

Get them on a lease asap, sometimes situations like that can turn out bad, unless you happen to have a really good relationship with them. I rent rooms and therefore do leases and payments individually. 

It depends on lender, but a rule of thumb I've seen is to have them on a 1 year lease minimum, no less. If they're not sure if they would stay for a year, you could have a clause in the lease that says they may leave early if they sublet the room, or something similar to that. There's usually standard language for this in your state's lease template. Or check out BP lease template for your state. 

Hello, there is a first time home buyer loan that I used, 3% down conventional but for single family only. Have you considered doing single family with a mother in law suite or accessory dwelling unit? Some ideas to look into. Good luck finding your property!

Hello, definitely pros and cons to each and there's no perfect way to do it. I'd say the simplest and most cost effective step would be to house hack where you live... this reduces or eliminates rent, and you will learn the ropes of REI / landlording.

Also consider if you have a long term place you want to live... do you expect to be in New York for a couple of years, or do you see yourself being there awhile. Since you are just starting out after college living somewhere new, it may be valuable to rent for 6 months to understand if you want to be in NY. And by renting / exploring the area, you can get a feel for the best area for you to buy the house hack. 

That's awesome,  congrats on the deal! That's good you guys had a solid relationship prior to doing the deal together. Good luck with the house, that's nice you can make an excuse to go to Hawaii now