All Forum Posts by: Henry Clark

Looking through your past posts, you have done housing, multi family.  Some land/lot development.  

Recommend you get with your engineering firm and tell them what you want.  Also, the footprint of the buildings.  Don't have them do the actual building designs.  Get with the Building manufacturer or GC to do design.  Will be way cheaper.

Have the engineer, put together a cost list by line item.  Along with a site layout.

As @Cole Bigbee mentioned the approach is similar to any other development deal you have done.  The problem is there are a few more considerations versus say a 4 plex or similar investment.  You actually have to know the questions to be asked.  The engineer will know all of that.  If you do it, you will miss some big numbers.  Example:  On 6 acres you will need to put a fire hydrant to the back of the property, possibly two.  That could be $150,000.  Same with sewer.

Example:

Storm pond

Storm Sewer

Distance to fire hydrants

Bathrooms required

ADA

set backs

Permeable surface %

Landscaping

Road access

Parking requirements

Utilities to front of job site

Utilities to buildings

Types of utilities

Sewer lift stations?

Revenue wise, I would look out on Loopnet for Athens and look at similar properties for lease rates and NNN terms or not. On 6 acres you could actually get into trouble building to much of the wrong size of units an buildings. Your market for say 25 wide by 50 foot deep will be different than a 50 x 150 building.

Would get with a local engineer to do the layout and an estimate on costs.

Your buildable sqft seems really low.  An acre is 43,560 sqft.  Unless you have a triangle or real weird shape, you should get more buildable square feet.  You noted your water retention is off site, so that gives you more buildable space. 

Your soft costs are extremely high.

Site development is way over.

Have the engineer do a line item estimate to build out.  Tell him you want a square or rectangular building site, at the maximum building allowed.  Determine the type of customers you want though.  That will determine parking, access into doors, outside storage, etc.

Get the Building manufacturer or construction company to do the building prints and not an independent engineer.  This will save a lot of cost.

Get the Construction Company to be the General Contractor on the entire site.  In the future if you plan to do this again, you can do most of the planning and managing.

You can still do financing.  Are you preapproved for a working line of credit?  Then don’t do subject to financing.  

 @Josh Randall    The reason, I recommend not posting about GP's and their performance is two fold:  A.  Laziness on the part of the LP, using a list versus doing their due diligence., B.  Liability on the part of the poster.  I think we are in a land of Victimhood.  It's always someone else's fault.  They will degrade the GP, without explaining how they themselves screwed up.

To me being an LP (which we don't do) is the same as investing in the stock market.  If they want to make this type of investment, then they should invest in the Stock market where there already controls in place.

Please add another item to the checklist.  What happens if the GP dies or goes bankrupt on another deal?

The above action will be far more valuable to current and future LP's than who did or didn't have a bad deal.  We have had Bad deals, that we still made a lot of money on, because of our financial analysis and looking at potential cost over runs, occupancy slippage, locked in interest rate, and market rate slippage. But we did our due diligence on the deals we do.

You attached a list above.  For the benefit of other LP's.  Please make a separate post.  Ask them to improve on it, plus a Risk/Reward matrix.  Name some of the Syndications you have reviewed using your checklist and based on that why you did or didn't invest in them.  

Had two units broken into, around 3:30 on a Friday. Did our normal rounds of our 7 locations. Noticed the door latches broke. Called the police once we got a download on a memory stick we gave them. Notified the tenants to come check and help secure the doors. The officer who works 5PM to 5 AM shift called around 3 PM today. He got the guy, or at least knows who it is.

1. The plates were stolen.
2. Not a clear picture of the person.
3. Officer recognized the make, model and within 2 years the year.
4. He did a search on that car model and color and popped up several cases open from other law enforcement offices from other towns.
5. Based on their pictures he was able to also identify the same car and person.
6. We got him a quote to replace two doors. Over $1,500 so it will be a felony. With that he can get a warrant for the guys, girlfriends' residence who lives in that town. They just need to catch him now.,

Since we started about 9 years ago, security cameras have gotten a lot better. Originals were 1 mega pixel, now up to 4 meg. The pictures are both clearer and focused both in the day and the night. These pictures pick up more light and ambient light at night for a better picture. Used to have pictures direct in the broad daylight and couldn't read the license plate. Now we can see small scratches and stickers on vehicles.

Our NVR or recording machine has also gotten better. Now we can record up to 6 months of data, although I prefer to only do 2 weeks. Plus, the new systems flag activity during time periods so you don't have to look through all 24 hours to find movement. Just go to the highlighted period. All of our cameras can now record sound if we want, most we can use as a speaker and talk through, but we don't, and all have zoom capability. None of our earlier models had any of these features.

Probably won't get our damages back, but still feel happy adding to the thief's legal issues.

Our locations stay really clean now. Have notified all tenants its $100 for me to pick up a bubble gum wrapper. With these systems we find who tossed the trash out and tell them they have by the end of day to pick it up or I charge them $100.

We have other motion sensors that wake me up at night. Versus running down to check we can check on our phones or ipads at home.

Technology has really advanced and is more helpful in the last 3 to 4 years. At our largest location we have 84 cameras. Equipment has gotten far less expensive also.

@Dave Meyer. Please ask someone in the BP circle to write an article or post on LP syndication investing.  Have them include a risk reward matrix and a review checklist.  Then have BP do a LP syndication boot camp.  

Everyone on this post wanting the name of poor performing syndicators.  

Can you supply your risk reward matrix for evaluating syndication deals?

Can you provide your checklist for evaluating syndication deals?  

I have no problem investors losing money or all of it if they don’t have an approach or methodology.  They should stick to the stock market. 

    If you want to help future investors provide them with your matrix and checklist. .    

I have lost all of my money on an investment due to the arrogance of the CEO.  Was it his fault or mine?  Mine.  I was looking for a 30% gain and then he did the unthinkable.  What was his name?  I still remember after 40 years.  And it was still my fault.  

OP we invest inland and not on the island.  Although we did look at.  If I’m reading your post correctly you didn’t even drive out to the development?  It’s only a 20 minute golf cart ride from downtown.  

Looks like you’re thinking about investing overseas. Lots of different issues to learn.  Dredging for sand to build up a spot is pretty common anywhere.  They don’t use “Trash” they probably use “Trash” dirt fill.  

Whether they have a problem or not, building in an area like that requires some different considerations.  Driving pilings, sea wall retention systems, special sewer containment systems, home security, building quality, stainless steel fixtures for salt, etc.  If you don’t have pilings or sea wall retention your house will sink.  Especially if next to dredged canals for boat access.  

My brother moved to Italy.  They looked at around 40 houses.   All of them have technical deal issues.   Just part of that market.  

About 70% REI, 15% stock, 15% cash equivalents.

This is really dependent on the stage of your investment life.

At your age starting out I would be heavier into cash and 401k. Depending on how aggressive you are and your REI type by the time your 30 you might be at 70 REI.