All Forum Posts by: Christine Smith

@Chris Mason, thanks for your detailed reply to this post. 

Do you mind elaborating a bit more about how someone might use contemporary artwork as collateral for an investment property purchase? Or which type of financial professional I should be seeking in my area to get further details about this (I'm in SoCal). 

Also, as to @Brennan Davis OP about the LLC, is it theoretically possible to setup an LLC around a collection of artwork, then to get a business loan to cover a downpayment on an investment property? If yes, then how would the balance be carried?

Thanks in advance for any info. 

I'm asking very similar questions right now, Brennan! Thank you for posting and for articulating so well. I'm curious, do you mind on expanding on the above (LLC) option? I don't quite understand how a business loan + LLC would get around having the downpayment?

Does it mean you'd use a business loan to cover the down, but then who's covering the balance? All private investor? If not, who is approving a loan to the LLC?

I'm still catching up on all the options, lingo, and strategies, so thanks in advance for any clarity you're willing to provide.

We use a service to screen tenants called Cozy (it's online). It offers a full background check and credit check. Plus, it takes handling taking check application payments out of my hands (it charges them directly) and then it doesn't ding the applicant's credit when they use it because it's personally requested rather than requested by a company (which is a selling point I use a lot). 

I always meet people in person first and ask a lot of questions. I usually offer an open house so this lets me see how they interact with the space, what they unconsciously talk about the space, and what questions they have for me, etc. If you're out of state (it sounds like your property may be) then it becomes really important to run both reports (credit, background), and check employment references. When I'm on the fence about someone these have made all the difference in the world. 

I will say, based on recent experience, that trusting my gut overall has been key. Our worst tenants were ones who looked great on paper but who I had an odd feeling about. We used their entire deposit on repairs and rehab ... AFTER they already paid for some major damage before they moved out. And our current tenant (one of our best) had a really bad application (bad credit) but showed up professional, prepared, communicated the details of her story clearly and articulately, and has been amazing. 

Hi Everyone! I'll be at the meetup later this month but wanted to say hello, too. I'm in Anaheim with a house hack in a 2-on a lot. Looking for our second purchase this year. :)

@Myles Taccini - great question! Thanks for posting. I'm in the same area and looking for the same thing (OC or LB). 

@Josh Quinn thanks for posting this. Similar boat, different market. Appreciate reading all the encouraging comments!

Thank you @Aaron K.!

Thanks @Aaron K. That's all really helpful.

It looks like you're also in SoCal, do you have any suggestions about "reasonable" (aka. non-offensive) percentages on ARV as a starting basis, or ballpark?

Hi @Aaron K. thanks for taking a look. I’m still very green at looking at deals. I just listen to one of the bigger pockets webinars, and the guy was talking about finding a number that makes the deal work. In these I was testing out what it would take to make a deal work in Southern California, because I would rather buy close to where I live. Since I’m new to the calculators, I was trying to see if my averages on other areas, like the ones that you mentioned were even close to the right ballpark.

Can you tell me what you mean about prop 13?

Also at listing prices how does anybody make money in SoCal? Given the numbers that I see in the report, I just don’t see how that’s even feasible.

Thank you again. 

@Aaron K. Thank you! I uploaded them to my Dropbox, let's see if this works:

Deal 1

Deal 2