All Forum Posts by: Ashley Yoviene

We have had a great experience working with Chris Contento (The Contento Company). He has worked on multiple projects with us. Chris and his crew provide professional estimates and project reviews as well as advise on what work is most important for increasing rents/values. He will help you work within your budget and focus on what is most important to the final outcome of the property. Chris is an investor himself and owns several properties in the area. His crew is capable to complete most scopes themselves and has connections to several other specialty contractors (electrician, mechanical, plumbing, roofing, etc) when necessary. We invest in Buffalo but live out of state and have no problem trusting his team to manage and complete work for us. I would strongly suggest reaching out to him to review your project. Please let me know and we can provide contact information. 

I like the idea of investing in Nashville, however as a newbie it might make more sense to start in Toledo.  While properties won't appreciate nearly as fast as they have in Nashville, cash flow is probably strong.  I invest in Buffalo (where I have connections) but would love to invest where I live in Vermont.  However as a new investor myself I did not have the funds to invest in a more expensive/competitive area.  I think of Buffalo as a place to get my feet wet at a lower cost of entry.  Then once you build a portfolio in Toledo, it will make it easier to get into higher appreciating markets.  

Like Jared said - a big part of the seller financing is teaching the seller about the offer you are presenting to them. It’s not the most conventional route.  I have made seller financing offers but personally haven’t had one accepted yet… (I’m only in year 1 of investing). For the offers I did make, I gave options

1. Low ball with cash

2. Under asking price with bank financing 

3. At/over asking price with seller financing - higher interest rate, balloon payment in 3 hrs. Break out the amortization schedule and make sure they understand what they are getting in interest while they are holding the loan. (Seller will need to have the property paid off/mostly paid off for seller financing)

We manage out business expenses out of a separate account. I have several bank accounts…

1. Personal savings/checking

2. Property acquisition checking (purchase and rehab costs)

3. Property management checking (income from rentals, property management charges, small repairs - anything that happens in the day to day post acquisition)

Make sure you get a copy of the lease. If they are month to month it will be much easier to get them out. If it’s a fixed lease - they will not be able to move out until end of lease term. Some states require to give the tenant more notice based on how long the tenant has lived there.  I would make sure the rent they are paying covers your expenses until they can move out.

Sounds great! Make sure you call your town and make sure you do everything you need to register the basement as a short term rental.  Also, call you insurance company to make sure they will provide coverage for a str claim.

Richard, it’s frustrating that the seller didn’t disclose the information, and poor timing that the rain came after the closing to reveal the problem.  Since you have already closed I don’t think there is much that can be done, if this happened before closing you could have negotiated some concession with the seller. 

I have borrowed from family as well, we agreed on interest rates and payback length, put it all in writing and signed it. Perhaps we should have done something more official, but my relative seemed content with the loan agreement so we moved forward.

In my opinion, the content on Biggerpockets is enough to start you out without paying extra for a mentor. I started by just listening to podcasts (Real Estate Rookie) and was able to purchase my first deal. I think you learn more by putting yourself out there and learning as you go. Then later on, you might gain clarity on specific topics you need more information on from a mentorship or program.

Hi Ben this is great! I think there is no "right way" to do it. Think about how much free time you have? Do you have time to manage a renovation construction project, or would you contract out? Personally, I've been able to keep a full time job (working 40+ hrs/week) while remotely coordinating construction. I would not be available to go to the house every day. If you were to get a HELOC it sounds like you have a good nest egg to get into vacation rentals as well, so I guess it depends again on how much free time you have to manage. Maybe just pick one and see it through to completion and check in with yourself to see how it went. Good luck!