All Forum Posts by: David Wolber

Good to hear you're all set. We are located in New London county with properties mainly in Groton/New London/Norwich. If you ever move up the coast, keep us in mind!

Thanks!

Where are these properties?  Are you still looking for a PM?  I'm very small, but have several properties and a team I use in place.  :)

Thanks!

Dave

MOXIE Management

@John Mocker My issue isn't with the fact that they wanted me to fix things, my biggest issue is the way they went about COMMUNICATING the issues. 

The first property I was warned about needing to have to fix the sidewalks and driveway due to trip hazards by my commercial insurance broker.  What I didn't expect is the cost of removed the tree to fix the sidewalks.  Didn't see that 6K coming!  HAHA

My policy's vacancy clause is 60days.  I knew to ask this since I knew I was going to do some small renovations prior to moving in.  However, this comment was made by a different company agent since I'm not in the market for a new homeowners policy.  It also hit a nerve since I can't seem to get those done when they keep giving things to fix.

It was just an polar opposite experience between the residential sector and commercial sector.  I bought two properties within 4 months of each other and got hammered by big bills by both of them.  The first time all made sense and was clearly communicated to me as what was needed to be done.  The 2nd one seems all opinion based and nobody seems to know what they clearly want me to fix. 

So first we bought this 6 unit in New London, everything was going fine until the insurance company did their inspection. Got a letter in the mail of their “recommendations” that are mandatory that I complete. $10k later they are off my back.

Three months later…

We closed on this duplex in New London a month ago to house hack a bit and live mortgage free.Took me awhile to find an insurance company because of the age/size and style of the property (it’s 5600 sqft, Victorian built in 1900).We ended up going with State Farm.Usual thing happened; guy comes out and takes a look, gives a few things we should “look at”.Tells me about a tree that needs trimming and a set of stairs on the deck needs repaired; no big deal.Two weeks after closing we get a call from SF that we have been “randomly” selected for a 3rd party inspection.Two week after that we get a call from the agent saying we now have 4 things we must complete to include CUTTING said tree down, replacing windows, fixing the stairs and now I have to paint the CEDAR shingles on the garage because only half of it is painted.As you would expect, I took this news very well and only raised my voice with the guy a little.He told me I had 60 days to fix or start the repair and that a letter would be issued on the 20th of August.Silly me, I though this letter would outline what I needed to complete.NOPE, it was a letter from SF saying that my coverage was declined and was accompanied with a refund check for my premium.

Turns out that 60 days is from the date when the policy was issued, not the date of this letter.So we are now 30 days into the 60 days repair window and I’m just now getting the information… Oh and that 60 days also include a couple days to insure the agent has time to come out and re-inspect and send it to underwriting.So my 60 day window was actually only 20.

Additionally, every time I call them to ask a question, I get yet another list of things I should fix.Stop giving me your opinion about what you think I should do and tell the required recommendations you need me to do so I don’t lose my insurance policy!SF never once provided me a list of things in writing.

So the moral of my story here is don’t think since you’ve made it through closing you’re out of the financial woods yet.With these two properties alone, we have spent over $20k in repairs that were required within the first 60 days of ownership.Best part is the insurance agent told me I had to make the property looked lived in…how do you expect me to finish the interior renovations (we removed some walls and gutted the kitchen; started before our priorities were redirected for us) when you’ve got me dealing with a bunch of “recommendations!”

Anyone else have any terrific stories about insurance company hoops?I can’t be the only one hatting these guys right now…

Of course this would require a very absentee owner and an unethical PM.  and I guess some tenants who don't know any better....

Yeah I guess that wouldn't really work unless the PM was an old school bully and pushed the tenants for the "late" fee each month.

OK OK OK, you're right.... no sense.

I guess I was thinking about a few contracts I took over where the limit to contact the owner was $400 and the PM ALWAYS had a $375 - $390 maintenance fee each and every month.  However that didn't include the 3rd party of the tenants.

Mr. Turner,

Just a quick plug, I invest in the area as well, but in smaller units at the moment.  I don't quite have the capitol for the 12 and up range.  HOWEVER, should you like a small, local PM to assist you in managing the properties, a maintenance manager or somebody for lawn care and snow removal, I'd love to have the opportunity to discuss what me and my company MOXIE Management could do for you.

Thanks and have a great day!

-Dave Wolber

Agreed!

What stops the PM from collecting ALL the rent "late"??

Definetly check your agreement!!

Hey @Colin Peffley!

I am a real estate investor who was also stationed in Saratoga for a bit.  Only 6 months though, long enough to see it go from small town to Ferraris in the streets back to a small town!  HAHA

Anyway, my wife and I invest in SE CT and have been able to make some great deals work.  I've established a great team here and, like you, hope to live free and clear.  I stated a little later though and plan on quitting my "9-5" in about 5 years or so (at age 40), but then have my business(s) completely self sufficient by the time I'm 50.

I also have a property management business called MOXIE Management based in Groton.  I only do investment type properties, not large apartment complexes.  Single Fam, 2-3 multi-fam and small apartment houses.  Since I am prior military, I understand the uniqueness of the situation and able to adapt to the unique schedule.  OK, business plug over....haha

WELCOME, thank you for your service, reach out if you have any questions or just want to get a beer, good luck and most of all have fun.  If it's not fun, it's not worth doing!

-Dave

Hey!  and Welcome to BP!!   ...and Groton (Norwich) for that matter!  haha

The Southeastern CT Real Estate Investors have a meeting monthly, usually at the Groton Library.  Mathew O'Grady heads up the coordination.  I'll PM you to get your info to add you to the e-mail distro if you'd like to keep in the loop.

Hi @Calvin Lin

My experience is in SE CT (Groton-New London area) and I exclusively use Charter Oak Credit Union for all our business banking.

1) All of our commercial mortgages are 15/30 with 5/5 ARM, requiring 20-25% down. I know a local bank has a program specifically for multi-families, but you must have a min of 5 years landlord experience. This program will fund 80% property and 100% repair costs.

2) I've bought a property where the selling agent was Tess Cullen from Chozick Realty (https://www.chozickrealty.com/team) out of Hartford (Google it if you want her info, can't post it here).  They did a fantastic information package on the property we bough and really seemed to know what they were doing in the investment 6+ realm. 

3) This is a really tough question to answer.  What Market, what class, what demographic, how many bedrooms... How long does it take to catch a fish...

We are a big fan of LLCs. They are easy to set up in CT, the Secretary of State's website even has a step-by-step guide. Make an account and do it online. It's easy and usually done in about 3 days. Save your money and don't hire a lawyer to file the documents for you!! Also, under title, always be a member and never an owner. Then get an EIN from the IRS (free) and a bank account and your off and running. Be sure to have your LLC set up BEFORE you put in an official offer so the offer is in the name of the LLC.

Good luck!

-Dave