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All Forum Posts by: Becca F.

Becca F. has started 24 posts and replied 816 times.

Post: Advice on Loan Rates Needed

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Johanna Kerns

I'm closing on a SFH this week. Conventional loan, 6.998%. It was 2.97% points ($3089 + $1040 loan origination fee). My loan is much smaller than yours, $104,000. I used a mortgage broker. He said I could I could get a lower rate if I had a larger loan.

Post: Still Buying Investment Property or Waiting to See What Happens?

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210
Quote from @Carlos Ptriawan:
Quote from @Sophie Grizzle:

Hi everyone! 

I'm an agent/investor in Nashville and I also do dispositions for a local investment group. 

Investors & Cash Buyers - are you still buying investment properties right now? Why or why not? I'm curious to see what people think about the current market conditions and what their strategy is in alignment with that. 


 no, i no longer buying rental, buy  flip SF, more money and price has a big discount for some houses.


 Carlos, where are you buying to flip? I'm interested in flipping but it seems risky. 

Post: Most positive cash flow cities, tax friendly states, Landlord friendly states?

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Brian Jackson

I'm in the S.F. Bay Area. I can understand you wanting to keep a cash flow negative property. Historically California properties have appreciated a lot. How much cash flow negative are you projecting? -$100? -$500? 

I'm buying in the Midwest, which is landlord friendly. I have a SFH in an Indianapolis suburb that I bought almost 10 years ago, Class A neighborhood with great tenants. It's appreciated quite a bit, not as much as a Bay Area house, percentage wise but it was such a great value with low interest rate. The only thing in that county is that I pay a higher property tax rate as an investor vs. a homeowner. The state tax is much lower than California and I haven't had to pay state income tax in Indiana on the rental income I'm getting,

I'm closing on another SFH next week in Indianapolis, different county and property taxes are lower. For a quick analysis, I get as close to the 1% price to rent ratio rule for cash flow in Indiana when I was doing my search and narrowing down properties. I'm getting 1.1% on the Indy suburban house since it bought it a while ago. Rental comps show I'll probably get 0.76% on this new house. I wouldn't get this on a house in Bay Area if I bought an $800,000 house, no way I can charge $8,000 rent, maybe $4000 or $4500.

I've also looked in Cincinnati and Memphis. I've heard other Bay Area investors say Kansas City, Missouri is a good market. 

Post: Multi Fam or SFR out of State

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Chris Lamm

I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area. That's interesting that your friend said the landlord laws in Tennessee aren't are landlord friendly as you had hoped. I've considered buying in Memphis. Nashville was my preferred location but the price points are a bit higher than I want to pay right now. I'm a little curious as to what the TN landlord laws. 

My vote is for Indianapolis. I have a SFH rental in a Hamilton County suburb north of Indy. I bought the house 10 years ago (was my primary residence). It's in a Class A neighborhood with a great school district, and appreciated a lot in the last 3 years and have great tenants. I put in an offer recently and will be closing on a SFH next week. I was searching for turnkey/move in ready and most of them at $180,000 or less. I know that I would get the equity if I did a rehab. I didn't want to do an out-of-state rehab (after doing a local renovation which was stressful). I think the value for purchase price is great in the Midwest although my California investor friends think the Bay Area is a better investment - I love the California appreciation but not the pro-tenant laws here and the high price points right now. I will likely buy another property in Indy after this one closes.

Post: Converting a property with personal mortgage to an LLC.

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210
Quote from @John Underwood:
Quote from @Aydin F.:

@John Underwood Thanks for your reply. Could you please also give some explanations that sheds light on your thought process? at what point forming an LLC makes sense?


When you have multiple properties that are paid off it makes sense to get one or more LLC's.


I'm also confused about getting LLCs. I have 3 properties and a soon to be fourth property, SFH in escrow right now. I called the lender of one of the SFHs and she said I would need to refinance it to put in into an LLC. I'm definitely not doing that since my interest rate is in the 3.875%. I have umbrella insurance of $1 million beyond the landlord/rental dwelling insurance. I'm considering increasing it to $2 million.

I won't be paying off any of the properties in next 5 years, so does that mean I shouldn't get an LLC? I would think most investors have mortgages. It's possible I could pay off the one with the lowest mortgage. My investor friends in California who own 1 to 4 rentals don't have LLCs, which surprised me. The only person I know with an LLC owns 11 rental properties and he said I should really get an LLC. California also charges an $800 tax on each LLC. If I get an LLC through another state, such as Wyoming using a registered agent for anonymity, I'm guessing I have to pay that $800 California tax since I live here.

Post: Do I need a CPA?

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Matthijs Pol

I've done my taxes through TurboTax Premium with two rentals, one a multi-unit, where the property management team sends me monthly reports and a 12 month cash flow sheet. It takes a lot of time. I had to call the TurboTax help and one of their CPAs checked my returns and walked me through an error I found. Depending on who you talk to, the TurboTax CPA can be helpful, the last one I spoke with was also a real estate investor. Last year I did a major renovation on rental property #3 so I paid a contractor in addition to buying some of the materials myself. I'm starting my taxes now. 

No one I know has a recommendation for a CPA locally - the two people I know with rental property wouldn't recommend their CPAs, not a good sign. I know should I get a CPA. 

Post: Self Managing Process

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Ty Johnson

Excel spreadsheet for my self-managed property. You might laugh but I'm a notebook and pen person and I actually wrote out my repairs, what I paid to the contractor, window repair etc on paper. Not a most efficient way to keep track of my books and if I ever get audited by the IRS I'll be handing them a file folder full of paper. I'm putting everything in spreadsheet now. 

Post: Still Buying Investment Property or Waiting to See What Happens?

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

@Sophie Grizzle

I'm still buying in Indiana right now, closing on a property next week, move-in ready. Sellers are willing to negotiate. Cincinnati and Memphis are on my list but it's hard to venture out into unfamiliar locations. Florida Panhandle is a distant possibility (need to get insurance quotes first). I know San Francisco Bay Area and Indianapolis metro area well so probably Indianapolis again. I'm interested in flipping to raise more capital but my realtor says margins are small so it seems a little risky.

Post: The BIG problem with buying/selling houses in the suburbs!

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210
Quote from @Patricia Drew:

Hurricanes Michael, Dennis and Opal would like a word.  Those are just the worst of many.  Not as many as South Florida, but not uncommon. 

Before buying in the Florida Panhandle, get an insurance quote. A policy for a $500,000 home will be in the neighborhood of $6,500 and that's if you're not in a flood zone. Following Hurricane Ian, insurance rates are predicted to go up by 20%-40% in the next year.

Over four years later, we're still recovering from Hurricane Michael, a Cat 5 that is the fourth strongest recorded storm to ever hit the U.S.  Almost every home in Mexico Beach was destroyed.  I would guess at least 30% of the commercial buildings in the Panama City area sustained severe to catastrophic damage.  

I think Michael was quickly forgotten by most people because it caused little damage in Panama City Beach.  Had it made landfall 10 miles to the west...


Yikes! I don't know anything about Florida and so will ask an insurance agent for quotes. This real estate agent was telling me that those areas are appreciating a lot more than Midwest and he didn't mention Hurricane Michael and any building or home damage when I asked.The price points were much higher than Indiana home prices so it wasn't on my radar for making an offer, at least in the next year. 

Post: The BIG problem with buying/selling houses in the suburbs!

Becca F.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Posts 823
  • Votes 1,210

I have a SFH in an Indianapolis suburb. I bought it about 10 years ago (it was my primary residence) and rented it out instead of selling when I moved to California. I paid such a low price for that house less than a Tesla :) no renovations needed but at some point if when my tenants move out, I'll probably put in quartz countertops and take the carpet out and do LVP floors. It's in a Class A neighborhood with great school district and have high quality tenants. I have a low interest rate so it doesn't make sense to sell it. I disagree with houses not appreciating in suburbs - I don't know the Manhattan or New York market but in Indiana and California suburban houses appreciate, especially in nice areas in California. I get multiple calls/texts each week asking to buy my SFH in Indiana and Bay Area so I think SFHs hold their value.

I wouldn't buy a condo as an investment property but some people can find condo deals. The ever increasing HOA fees will reduce your cash flow a lot. My method of house hacking in San Francisco Bay Area was to buy a condo, live in it for a few years and rent it out. I wound up selling the condo. The HOA was badly managed and our HOA fees increase 3 times in the 2.5 years while I lived there. Also it was in a city that was very pro-tenant so I decided to cut my losses (didn't do my due diligence so learned a big lesson). I took what little money I got out of it and am buying a SFH. I bought a fully renovated house from a flipper.

I think the Midwest has great price to rent ratios. For a quick analysis, if you can't meet the 1% rule, it's probably a good deal. For example, if a house costs $100,000 and you can get $1000 rent (1% of the purchase price). 1% is really difficult to hit in expensive markets like NYC, California especially at the higher interest rates and prices now.  My price to rent ratio on the house I put an offer on is 0.76% (projected rent since I haven't closed on the house yet or put it on the rental market yet). If I tried to buy a house in SF Bay Area I'm paying over $800,000 and there's no way I could charge $8000 rent, maybe $4000. There are other metrics to look at besides the 1% rule but it's a quick way to narrow down your search. 

If you're just starting out, I would think buying in Manhattan or an expensive area is nearly impossible. Also look at an area if it's landlord friendly - I'm going to guess NYC isn't. If it takes months to evict a non-paying tenant or you have to pay them a relocation fee (for example if you want to sell the property or move back in as the owner), be super cautious about buying in those areas. SFHs are easier to get into as a beginning investor. Also there are a lot more SFHs on the market than duplex, triplex or four plex properties. I found hundreds of houses vs. finding 3 duplexes or four plexes in my search. Buying 5 units or larger is buying commercial - haven't looked into that yet. 

I think the Midwest (Indiana, Ohio) and Tennessee (Memphis is more affordable but Nashville is a hot market for house but prices have gone up) are great rental markets. You can buy turnkey/move in ready for under $180,000. If you want to do a rehab, under $100,000. I also talked to a realtor in Florida who suggested I look in the Panhandle area (Fort Walton Beach, Navarre, Panama City Beach). That area doesn't seem to get hit hard by hurricanes as Miami area. I may consider buying in Florida in the future since it seems like a lot of people are moving there and there's flexibility with buying a SFH as a long-term rental, mid-term rental (to travel nurses and business professionals) and short-term rentals (AirBnbs). Texas is landlord friendly and their homes have appreciated a lot. Property taxes are high but if you can make the numbers work it's a good deal. Good luck!