All Forum Posts by: Dave Carpenter

Interesting idea, especially if you have free chunks of hours! Could be useful during daylight to see buildings, but also at night to get a feel for crime/safety in later hours.

Ralph, it does depend on how many tenants. For my 8 units o use text and email. Easiest for the tenants, and it's in writing. I have made a point to ask my tenants to put the requests in writing (so I can remember). It's also helpful to have a fast medium like email and text so I can ask follow Up questions. Often someone will say that their sink is leaking with no detail. I can then follow up and ask where, or for pictures depending on the tenants. For me being 30 mins away, I'd want to understand the tools I need, and the time it takes before driving down there. I have found tenants have little interest into conforming to systems I'd want to use. Plus I don't want to have to login to websites all the time either. Most repairs are locks don't work, sink is clogged, etc. Doesn't need a fancy systems to get a few sentences of info and take care of it. Easy is certainly a factor for me, and the tenants.

Luis, I think this is an option, but a bit complicated. In my experience, the more complex a plan is in terms of financing, the more you want to know, and the more weary you want to be. If you opted to go this route, I'd recommend a lengthy conversation with at least one, or ideally a few people who have done this before. You would likely gain very very valuable insight regarding what to look for with this strategy and what to watch out for.

Walmsley Gedeon why not throw the numbers into the bigger pockets calculator? That will take in all the needed pieces and spit out all the answers you'd want. I'd do that first!

Kevin, I would do the FHA loan first and live in that property for a year. From there you have options on what to do. You could look for a 5% conventional mortgage for the home you plan to move into (or another investment type property that you could live in), or save for a rental which would require 20% or more down. One thing to look into is if you are able to get a 5% down loan for your primary residence. You may want to talk with a bank to make sure they will do that. Good luck!

Michael, the simplest but also less accurate way is to go on a site like zillow or Trulia and look for houses that are in the same area with similar sq ft, number of rooms and year built. This will not get you great numbers, but at this point it will at least give you an idea of generally what to be thinking about. There are lots of articles on bp about estimating arv. Also do some research on what houses cost to repair in your area. A very simple way to start might be one of those websites that give you cost per daft estimates for different repairs. It sounds like you are in the learning phase, so do lots of reading and maybe see if you can find some properties to evaluate for practice. As you start to get a sense for arvs, purchase prices and repair costs you could consider reaching out to a local investor in your area who is doing what you would like to do. Offer to take them to lunch or coffee and have them tell you about some of the deals they have done. Good luck!

I agree with Kim, start with the battery. If that doesn't do it, try a google search including type of opener and see if others have the same problem. If its a chamberlain, I recently had both of my openers replaced free of charge due to a recall. It was a top of the line opener. I don't recall the model, but had that "fancy" fake leather feel to the opener that goes in your car. 

Adam, in general I think you are posting it on the right locations online. Having said that, i would try and find out both how other investors in your area list their apartments and also talk to some people who have recently found apartments. I'd say it's nearly all online these days, but there may be some local sites that are most effective. On Zillow, I believe you can see how many times your listing has been viewed and liked. You may want to look at that number. If it has only been viewed 3 or 4 times, I would wonder if your pricing is competitive in the market. Another thing to consider is your pictures and description of the apartment. That's important and can make a large difference. Good luck!!

After agreeing with Marcus, and all things being equal, I'd go with option b to give a more desirable property. I think the demand for a nice master is stronger (especially for the buyers who will get they room) than adding an additional room. But again, Marcus hit the nail on the head so read that comment and chew on it a bit. He knows his stuff!

$25 per pet. Has helped to boost the income, and I have never had a tenant who has a problem with it.