All Forum Posts by: William Butler

#6 other tips:

A) tips of things to watch out for: the way a tenant keeps their car interior may very well indicate how they'll keep their home (your investment)

B) over-engineering your rentals during the rehab portion with thicker drywall, tile vs carpet, and Quartz counters (in higher ends) to withstand children or student abuses.

I'm pretty sure both of those are from BP podcast #48 with Darren Sager.  It had quite a few other good tips as far as contracts, utility requirements, and tenant retention.  WELL worth a listen.  

Oh!  And his tip on putting the paint brand and color code in his contracts was awesome.  That way any touch ups later don't need to be guessed.  

Best Regards,

Will

Originally posted by @Steven Gillmer:

Ronnie, I am in Memphis and I was like you a couple years ago. I decided to not buy a turn key property, instead, I found a property manager and realtor that could also compete any necessary rehab for me, then searched for property.  Granted, this does require more cash after closing to pay for the rehab costs, which you will not have to come up with when your buy turn key. 

Another strategy I used is buying properties currently occupied with a tenant. Now there are certainly risks associated with that but you typically will be able to get a good price without major rehab costs and do not have to wait to start collecting rent. 

I would be more than happy to help if you want to talk through ideas. 

 You mention the risks of properties that are currently occupied.  What risks do you see or feel an investor should be aware when purchasing a home with an existing tenant?  

Good morning BP team! As you can tell by my few posts and my just joining the pro side of this community a week ago, I'm a fairly new investor (with only one rental currently). Having said that, I believe I have a line on a good buy and hold rental property in Texas. I need a little guidance because I don't have a team or a system set up yet but I also don't want to miss this opportunity. If there are any veterans that I could bounce a deal off of in TX, especially Houston, I would appreciate it. So far, I have a HML that has looked at my credit and exit strategy to refinance the property to a traditional out of the way. There are no prepayment penalties for that money. I have not inspected the property and don't know what language my offer should include with my earnest money to be able to allow me that inspection. I also don't have any form for an offer. Should I jump in and figure it out on the way or are there "wish I woulda done's" that I need to know before I move further? I would like to make my offer this morning and could REALLY use and highly appreciate a few moments of someone in the know. Thanks Will

Originally posted by @Andrew Syrios:

I highly recommend Flip and The Millionaire Real Estate Investor. J Scott's books, especially The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs and Brandon Turner's new book are quite good as well.

 Are you talking about Gary Kellers book, Flip?

Thank you all for your warm welcome. I'm enjoying the environment here and I'll try to keep you all posted.

I appreciate the tip, Mark and I'll be sure to check out the "learn "section for my resources. This afternoon I joined the meet up site and I'm hoping to attend a couple of real estate investor group meet ups before the end of next week.

I'm new and very happy to have found a place like biggerpockets.com.  I've owned one rental for the past few years and kept telling myself that I needed to buy more.  I've enjoyed a steady income from the one and want to duplicate it.  

So far, I've been listening to the BP podcasts and I'm trying to catch up to the vast knowledge that's here in the groups. In the past I've attended a couple of workshops at local REI groups in Houston, shelled out a bit of money for books over the years but I never got "connected."

 Fortunately, I'm in a good place to begin my RE portfolio and I feel like I have found this group just in time.  I'm reading BP's "Estimating Rehab Costs" book and will start "The Book on Flipping Houses" next.  

I would love to find some mentorship in the Houston buy/hold arena -especially the NE.

Thankful,

Will