All Forum Posts by: Dan Maciejewski

Well, St Pete doesn't allow more than 3 STR turns in a 365-day period, so you can do that, seasonal rentals (over 30 days), Get a long-term rental, or choose one of the other cities that allow it.

Our market is tougher for out of state investors to get a cash-flowing long-term rental because the prices are a little high.  And it's harder to find, rehab, and rent a value-add property from long-distance.  You can get great contractors that will help, but they cost and eat into your value-added appreciation.

I do assume you meant the entire area. Pinellas County has 24 cities that each have their own STR rules, and depending on your budget and goals, there are a ton of opportunities here.

Let me know if you have any questions and I'll answer!

 Your offer stands out because

1. The listing agent can tell the seller that he can represent the seller's best interests and there's no "professional" negotiator on the buy side.

2. The listing agent gets the full commission and doesn't have to split it with the buyer's agent.

Oof.  The contract 'should' say units ____ and ____ to be delivered vacant.    

I don't think you can be blamed for not writing that unless this had happened to you before.  Unfortunately, everything will come down to what the contract specifies -- with nothing there, it's the seller's property up to close.

If the tenant hasn't moved in already, I'd se what we could do to stop this. If they have moved in, maybe wait and offer them moving costs to get out early. If they're not bad, maybe wait the year and see what happens. Worst case scenario, you can back out and ask for your EMD back (worst case is you lose it).  I might argue that the tenant was placed in bad faith and they should give the deposit back.  

Hopefully you can fix it and it's still a good deal!

You mean listing agent.  The selling agent is the buyer's agent.

Otherwise, wew, what a clickbait post!  Not you, Phil. . . the OP

There are some people that definitely don't need a Realtor, for sure.  Before I had my license, I was fine with off-market transactions.  I did the research and the work, though.   I do find that the vast majority of unrepresented sellers and buyers just want to cheat and get the work done for free or at the expense of the party that is paying.  Most people do not have any transaction management experience or tools and want to ride the coattails of the people paying thousands per year for the tools.

Just my 2¢

Great!  I was just coming over to say hi!  
Our market is getting a bit tougher for long term buy and holds unless you're doing some bigger volume or adding a ton of value.  

Short term rentals are still a great way to invest around here. I know Pinellas and all of (or most of) their rules for each city for STR. It gets a little sticky but the returns are great. Hillsborough county is way more lenient but the occupancy and returns drop off a little bit.

Money is as cheap as it's ever going to be, so that is one factor you should consider.

Prices do not look like they are going to go backwards, and even if appreciation slows, there will still be appreciation. That means that you're likely looking at the lowest prices you'll see going forward. Unfortunately, 4 units and under are valued on comps, not NOI or other commercial metrics, so they can sell down to 4% cap rates and below.

Rents are stable and only going up in our county.  The demand for rentals -- especially in the rent ranges you'll be looking at, isn't going down.  We are bringing in a lot of high earners and the luxury apartments are being built for them but nobody is building new affordable housing -- by affordable, I mean rents under $2,000/month.

Right now, in our county, you can't expect to cash flow in a 2-unit house hack.  Maybe in a 3, most likely in a 4.  BUT. in any of those cases, you will drop your housing expense while building equity and learning.  It depends on your goals and your outlook for the next 2-5 years to determine what makes sense to you.

Your best bet in the current market is to find a value-add that is under-rented for the ARV. Then put some money and sweat equity into it and put great, market rent tenants in. Anything close to turnkey is looking like a 6 cap at best, and not usually even that. I looked at a small multifamily last week that was offered at a 3 cap and would go up to a 6 after some equity and maintenance -- not a good deal!

Right now there are 17 small multifamily properties under 400k in Pinellas county.  They are at an inventory point where you look at each individually and run numbers as they come up.   

My advice is don't rush into anything just to buy it -=- that can be a very expensive lesson.  But, keep looking and as you keep running numbers, estimating rents, learning neighborhoods and what market rents could be, you'll see something that looks promising.  

We have been around a 4-6% appreciation month over month for the past few months, so you are correct.  The longer you wait, the less is out there.  The good news is that interest rates just dropped a bit, so money is still cheap!

That's it all above.  

Non-renew the non-paying tenant.  The best way is to rack up the damages (99% chance that a tenant that hasn't been paying isn't taking care of the property) on a bill and have them sign that you'll waive the collection when the vacate and sign over the property.

I have found that it rarely works out keeping inherited tenants.  They are the reason that the owner is selling.  If they were great and the property is turning a profit, why would they sell?  I know there are plenty of reasons to get rid of a property, but more often than not, the inherited tenants aren't superstars. 

If you keep them, screen them like you would screen the next tenant.  Background checks, credit and employment checks, interviews, etc.

I go with no.  There's hotels and motels for this.

IF you did, it should be under a lease with a full background and credit check.   AND  only if your jurisdiction is processing evictions -- Just In Case.

Things like this are never a problem.  Until they are!

 I always want to be a step above my competition. Even if I can't charge much more, I get a better pick of applicants!

Worst-case, you already know.  You have to sell at a discount to someone else willing to take it on, or they absolutely destroy the property costing tens of thousands of dollars.  Or both!

You'll want to talk to a local eviction attorney to see what they are seeing happen.  They will know the judges and sheriffs and systems in that area.

Your best bet is probably to get the tenant out before you take possession.  As you know, as a negotiator, things aren't always black and white or non-zero.  There is a solution that will work for both owner and tenant.