All Forum Posts by: Chris Eaker

Send me a private message and I'll send you the contact info my agent. He's great. I personally use Erie for most of my properties.

I'd paint the front door a nice solid color. Maybe burgundy. Also add shutters the same color as the front door. Is that green indoor/outdoor carpet on the front stoop? If so, remove it and paint it a dark gray along with the garage door.

@Alyshan T.

I'm in Knoxville, too, but my focus is buy and hold rentals, not flips. Where have you been looking for homes? The MLS? For flipping, the best route is either get on a reputable wholesaler's buyers list or send out your own direct mail pieces. You can find lots of information on Bigger Pockets about direct mail. It's probably the best way to find distressed home/sellers. You must pick the areas of town you want to focus on or it will be too expensive and overwhelming. Direct mail take time to work thought so don't expect an immediate return. Good luck.

Change our future.

@Lee London Please don't take this personally, but to me this looks like busy work. Instead of wasting time building this cost model, just go out and analyze deals and buy one.

@Robert Garcia I have not taken his course, but I learned about Vinod "Smile" Chopra after hearing his interview on Michael Blank's podcast. This man is a syndication machine and he sounds so genuine and eager to help people learn the business. He has a course on RealEstateU called "The Art of Syndication." Check it out.

Yes, I do, twice a year. I have a local company with great techs come out an do the service. Also, since I have my 5 rentals plus my primary residence with them, they cut me a deal. Instead of $139/yr they charge me $110.

@Carol Birnberg I assume that is the listing fee? That is the going rate in this area. You'll pay it when you buy and again when you sell, assuming you buy a property listed on the MLS and sell it via a realtor on the MLS, too. However, it's all negotiable, but you probably won't get it down much from that. You'd be better off buying off market deals and selling via Zillow. Depending on the price range and area of town the house will be in, the market is strong for sellers now.

@Eddie Memphis @Deanna McCormick @Thomas S.

Thanks for your feedback. Part of my hesitance to raising rent is because they're good tenants on a fixed income, but that's no reason to both lose money every month and take on the liability. I'll be raising their rent with plenty of notice up to market rates, not all at once, but over the next two years. They can decide whether it's worth staying or not.

I have used First State Financial out of Middlesboro, KY, on a few properties. They will do 85% LTV on 25-yr amort with no seasoning requirement. Last I checked, the rate was 4.5% fixed for 6 yrs. Send me a message and I'll give you contact info for my contact.