All Forum Posts by: Dave Poeppelmeier

If you search in most cities, there is some kind of crime tracker that gives you an idea of the makeup of neighborhoods. Also look at general property prices comparable to the rest of the area. The cheapest neighborhood in an area is the cheapest for a reason. It doesn't mean you can't make money in those areas, you just really need to know what you're doing. I can tell you about Toledo if you want to PM me but not so much on the other cities. 

Goals goals goals. Yes, you need to figure out what your goals are. What price ranges are you looking for? Do you have an certain cash flow or rate of return you're looking for? Most large metro areas in Ohio will have what you're looking for: B and C class neighborhoods, but Ohio is a big state. Spend a couple hours on here looking up the big cities: Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Akron, Canton, Dayton, etc., go to Realtor.com or something to see what the prices look like, then start to zoom in on a few different areas and your goals and ideas will start to come into focus. 

Personally, I've been raising rents here in Toledo for every vacant unit I've had and there has still been a ton of interest. The rental market here is very strong overall, but we are not a destination city, just a good ol' Midwestern city. 

Like @Bradley Barnhill said, Student Housing sounds like an option. But before you do that, you need someone that knows what the "rental culture" is around there. Do student really only stay for the school year or do they not go home for the summer? Are you allowed to do individual leases? There are drawbacks to individual leases, mainly one person not paying rent, so you try to evict only 1 person, etc. Finally, you need a PM who knows how to deal with Students. I love working with them but they are rightfully naïve, some of them it's the first house they've lived in besides their parents, so it takes a little more hand-holding. However, the premium rent you can charge make it all worth it in the end for me. Good luck!

I had some very difficult inherited tenants at the beginning of Covid. It depends on how long they have left on their lease. If it's coming up, just gut it out and don't extend their lease. Otherwise, look for anything in the lease that they have violated such as the subletting. Couple that with the lack of rent payment you probably have a good case. The other problem is that even if you get your Writ, getting the setout scheduled isn't easy in some areas and they can still play games then. I would find a good RE attorney (you get what you pay for) to help you with this process. 

@Renuka Khokale, most tenants legitimately try to pay the rent, but life happens due to Covid or something else. If someone isn't able to pay rent, there are other things a PM company can do. They can set up payment plans to allow tenants to stay in their home while they try to get back on their feet. They can give tenants resources for Rental Assistance programs in the area to help them get caught back up and stay in their home. If all of these are exhausted and the tenant can't pay rent, then they can still file for the eviction. It's taking longer everywhere now, and yes some tenants know how to game the system and there's not much you can do about that, but yes it sounds like your PM company should be doing more to protect your interests. Just don't think by switching PM companies that they are going to magically solve this involved problem it sounds like you have, it's going to take time. 

Screen. Your. Tenants. Make sure they are employed, verify the employment, even drive by their work and check to see if they work there (within reason). If they are working, they should have money to pay the rent. That's the simple answer. I agree with JD, don't use this as an excuse to stay on the sideline. You'll never learn to swim if you don't get in the water. 

You can still easily get 1%, even 1.5% in Toledo. If you get lucky there's still the elusive 2% out there...

I guess the first question is who sold this property to you? Did you know it was going to need that much rehab going in?

These are very difficult to find anywhere in Ohio right now, the Multi-family market is extremely hot. Even up here in Toledo, we had a nice 4-unit in a B neighborhood that was under contract in less than 24 hours with tons of offers way over asking. If you want to compete in this market you need to be 100% ready to go with Proof of Funds/Pre-approval in hand. You can still find deals, you just have to be aggressive.