All Forum Posts by: Christen G.

I have a 1 or 2, PM me and give me your email? FWIW - I've been told when they give you these/ask you for one of these it's a "brush off" - not sure what others' have to say about that here - but 2 or 3 commercial investors in the last month have told me that.

Gotta say - as it's this is lame FOR SURE. But there's a lotta belly-aching and dooms-dayin' here. Are you all writing (and calling) your state Senators or just complaining and hoping for the best (for you) on an echo-chamber thread? Maybe one of you can get a template together - something short and sweet as to why you think this is a bad idea and we can all copy and paste and share with our Senators?

I second the, "do you feel safe" versus "would you live there" statement. Also, think about, "would you live there" if you were 23 and working at Starbucks/A bar/Gamestop or whatever? I certainly own rentals that I wouldn't currently live in, but would have at 22 when I was just getting my feet under me. Lending restrictions in the time of the 'Rona have tightened up for sure. Be prepared for 30% down and as others said - have a lot of reserves. Mostly, get to talking to a few lenders and see what they're saying. I've heard, "find out what the tenants do for a living" - which - if you can get it, is helpful intel. The only other thing I'll add is to get the Trailing 12 and Utility statements from the seller - you'll want to make sure there are no delinquent tenants who aren't paying rent and can't be evicted b/c of rent moratoriums all over. And Utility statements can help you pull more accurate numbers together. Best of luck!

You'd be AMAZED what a fresh coat of paint and floors would do to a unit. Get some vinyl plank flooring (Cali Bamboo is durable!) knock out your windows and electrical first (after getting a few bids) then find a local handy-person to polish the rest of the turd. New cabinet seems like an expensive overkill. Sand and paint the ones you have. You got this, it's not that bad.

Welcome! I'd suggest digging into a couple books on how to be a landlord. @Brandon Turner has written some great ones and you can get the 'Landlording 101' basics in a few days/hours time. 

That being said, your first steps include can/will include: introducing yourself as the (new) property owner, letting them know how they will pay rent moving forward, getting into the units/scheduling a walk-through and getting photos (if you don't have a signed, move-in report), and deciding if you'd like to get them on a new lease, raise the rent or have them move-out for any renovations or upgrades you need to make. 

As to your strategy...that's up to you and what you'd like to do with the building. Feel free to DM me, I've got 8 units and started 3 years ago - I just passed my places off to a PM, but I am happy to help where I can. Best of luck!

Not knowing your financial situation, I think you'd be able to find something in Bremerton for sure. Tacoma is past competitive, so unless you're up for a pretty big project/rehab, you may want to stick to Bremerton. Welcome to Rainytown!

Echoing what the others have said: don't put your costs so low - if anything, go the other way w/ all that's going on right now...especially with "vacancy"

I'm sorry that this is happening - how frustrating (to say the least). Same advice as the others: Listen to your attourney, document everything, do not harass her (see: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/property-manager-accused-of-violating-eviction-moratorium-will-pay-tenants-nearly-300k-settling-states-first-coronavirus-emergency-enforcement-lawsuit/) And file the day the moratorium is lifted. Best of luck to you.

Welcome to BP and thanks for your service! Tacoma is a great city on an upward trend. I don't know much about VA loans, but they sound like great rates. Do you know what niche you want to focus in right now: single-family, small multifamiles, etc...? That's probably a good place to start.

Thanks @Greg Dickerson ! I am for sure on the education tip already - took a course, am reading all the books and devoting time to studying each day. The reason I posted is because I realized that whole, "big gap" that you speak of. @Rick Martin - I've got a lot to offer in fact - but I hear ya. I do not think I'm interested in doing an additional paid/masterclass route - but maybe? I was thinking however of calling around to some local commercial brokers and seeing if they needed any admin help or a grunt of some kind. At least that way I could get some mailroom osmosis, see what's going on/off market and expand my network while being paid. @Brian Briscoe - thank you, I think I'm on the right track as well - at least I hope so. And yes, I agree with you on attending the networking events - that was part of the impotence for this post. As for what I have to offer, I'd say: experience, capital, an incredible work ethic, time to devote and enthusiasm for the sector. FWIW - I have a great hook shot and am a mean cook as well. @Justin Elliott - thank you - I will check that out. Appreciate it, guys - thanks again.