All Forum Posts by: Dan Baker

Hi All,

Wanted to introduce myself on the thread.  Currently buying in Michigan City and surrounding area, very interested in SB. 

Would love to get everyone together for a meetup sometime!

 For occupancy, go to Airbnb as if you were a guest.  Look at a hotel or rental unit near yours, check how many reviews they get per month.  Look at the calendar during the busy season (January - April) and check how many days are booked off. I did this and also spoke with local owners on one of the other islands and occupancy was 25+ nights a month.  The place we stayed was nearly booked 100% of the time.  These were "tree houses" on private property with ocean views, pricing was like $125 a night and we had our own kitchen.

That's a very popular tourism spot.  Only thing I would watch for is whether you're truly owning the property or doing a time share.  Last I checked, to purchase property in Belize the government requires you to keep a $100,000 USD balance in an account there.

Sounds like you should do one of the following:

1) Become "Pet Friendly" and leave the old carpet

2) Leave the carpet and drop the rent

3) Put in new carpet and leave the rent or even try to get a little more since everything will now look "fresh"

I have been in a similar situation and wanted to give some advice.

1. Would it be possible to just install an egress in the basement bedroom, and leave the living room unchanged?

  -> Yes, only the bedrooms require the egress window.

2. What are the implication of increasing seller concessions? Is an increase in 2.5k price with 2.5k seller concessions essentially nothing to them?

-> First, if you can get an egress window put in for only $2,500 then congrats.  It will likely be closer to $4,000 unless you're digging yourself. Second, you can always ask.  I don't think the seller would cancel the contract over it. I know in the Denver market, as a seller, I would not concede on this. I know they didn't put non-conforming in the description but a simple walkthrough and photos show that the windows are non-egress.

3. This is in the Denver area, I am expecting around 4k per window? Is this a good estimate? Builder recommendations appreciated!

  - >That sounds about right.  I have quotes from $4,000 to $5,000 but never had them installed.

4. Say I do not install egress windows and rent out the basement bedroom. If something happened, would I be covered under liability protection with my insurance.

-> I believe so but you should ask your insurance agent to walk you through this.  In our situation, we had 2 doors to exit the basement unit.  We took the door off and called it a studio, thus didn't have to install an egress because there was an exit door from the living room area.

5. What would you do in my situation?

-> I would try to get a little bit of money back from the sellers and install an egress window.  It will help with liability, makes the unit more attractive with natural light, and will make your property more desirable when you sell.  If the sellers decline to do anything about the egress window, just buy it anyway. It's Denver, this market is crazy, and if $2,500 stops you from making the investment then it's probably not great to begin with.

 I do Airbnb’s, some long distance. Peak season should cover your costs year round, off months are the profit. Look at listings in the area you want to buy, check how many reviews they get per month in the off season. Determine how comfortable you are with your revenue based on that assumption.

Jordan, I have the same problem in Denver, Colorado and am investing out of state. I have two live deals on my target market that will bring in a cap rate of 10% or higher. Message me if you want to hear more about it

also interested in this. I’m purchasing a commercial property in a qualified zone but cannot find anyone to help setup an O-Fund

Hey Bud,

I think your idea of renting out as just two tenants and one as a larger unit could work well. You might have to remove the stove or something to be legal as on 2 units, not sure what the regulations are for that where you're looking. A stove/ove was what technically made a mother-in-law a full out unit in Denver.

@Steve Miller It might work as a house hack. If you made it your primary residence, rented out one apartment full time, and then rented the basement out as a "private room" associated with your unit.