All Forum Posts by: Kevin Young

@Matthew Dick welcome to bp! i've invested out of state, in state but out of the area, and have property in the east bay … so have a few perspectives. i'll be at the meet up friday … lets catch up if you venture over. else, PM me and we can chat. cheers!

welcome to BP chris!

@Christopher Hunter

IMHO, one shouldn't outsource the writing of a business plan. a business plan is a document that outlines for you, lenders, investors, etc your approach and strategic direction. asking someone on the other side of the planet who knows nothing about you and probably less about RE seems like a not-so-good approach.

if you need help fleshing out your ideas or help putting together a business plan, i'd suggest looking for help from organizations like SCORE http://www.score.org

SCORE brings together retired business people to help mentor and coach those who are getting started. its a free service.

i've done a LOT of outsourcing in my corporate career. as a general rule, i suggest you never outsource your brain type work. if you are going to outsource, start by identifying the 'brains' vs 'brawn' type of work. e.g., for one getting started, i would keep important things like cultivating broker relationships, deal analysis/underwriting, business plan writing ;-) close to my chest. on the other hand, i would outsource routine repetitive tasks like research, database entry, scheduling appointments, etc. i'm a believer in not outsourcing a problem. by that i mean understand what it takes to do the job. read: do it yourself first, then document and then outsource. this will help you evaluate if the VA is being efficient with his or her time. hope this helps.

@Princess Anujulu in a different thread, i shared my thoughts about why one should have an LLC if you are going into business with a partner … scroll to the end of the tread:

http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/12/topics/123354-forming-an-llc?page=2

@James Cheatham i learned a lot about PM while i was managing college apartments. not only did they pay me (not a lot) but my housing was included…a big bonus as a student.

i'd suggest calling around to the apt complexes near campus and inquire about any jobs they have. any position would give you a vantage point. also, i was also an RA as an undergrad … never knew it at the time, but what i learned in that position really helps me out with the people side of property management.

@Rodney Kuhl

http://www.buildium.com/pricing/

$25/mo for up to 25 units. expensive if you have 1 house, cheep if you have 25 units. the price scales over 25 units. i think they charge $13 per credit/criminal check. i have the credit check direct billed to me and collect $ from the prospective tenant to cover my costs.

as a data point, my PM is using rent manager for my HI properties. i pay $50/mo for RM and its clunky (for me) b/c it doesn't run natively on a mac

@Rodney Kuhl i use buildium, which has a partnership with transition/smartmove. for everything that's included, i think the SW is pretty reasonably priced.

among other things, it has a portal where perspective tenants complete secure online applications that feed automatically to TU/SM…which was a big selling feature for me. so far, i've been happy with it.

if you want to see what customized portal (and application link, click on apply now) looks like, you can check mine out: [REMOVED]

the site was super easy to set up…took about 10 mins. when i have openings, the unit description and pictures display when i list the unit … i'm 100% occupied right now…so you won't see a reference to available units. hope this helps.

@Rebecca Dillon i use buildium, which has a portal, online applications which feeds the tenant screening process/system. for the money, i found buildium to be the most robust. that said, its been 18 months since i looked deeply at PM software, so there may be something better. i would be interested in hearing what you find with your research.

@Jay Porras i'm not an attorney … not legal advice.

there are 2 bits to an LLC 1) the mechanics of creating the LLC with the state, i.e., paperwork with the secretary of state, etc, which is pretty straight forward if you know what you're doing and 2) the operating agreement.

you mentioned you are partnering with another person and for that reason, i STRONGLY suggest you spend a few extra $ and have an attorney develop a solid operating agreement that clearly spells out how things will work between you and your partner. i would not go with a legal zoom type of company to develop the operating agreement. they are not attorneys nor can they provide legal advice.

a solid operating agreement is important for when things don't go like you envisioned at the start. i've been there, done that, had was glad i had my attorney put together my operating agreement. the operating agreement is basically a contract that, amongst other things, lays out the rules of engagement should there be a disagreement, etc.

cover yourself and ensure you have a solid operating agreement.

@Steven Ellington i always look at investing in the 'path of progress', which you described pretty well in scenario 2. i'd look for properties that will give you solid returns #2.

avoid areas of decline. there are creative things you can do with student housing to boost your returned (e.g., rent by the room), higher returns, but more turnover.