All Forum Posts by: Ethan M.

Ok, great. Thanks for the info!

Researching investing in rental property in NC, Triangle area.

I'm looking for a duplex. Maybe a triplex or quad.

When I'm estimating costs, which utilities should I factor in?

Electricity. Out here in CA, tenants usually pay their own electric bill. Same in NC?

Water.Usually the tenant here. Same in NC?

Sewer. Usually the tenant here. Same in NC?

Trash & recycling pickup. Landlord often pays that herer, though it varies. What's the story in NC?

How much do these bills typically run for a 2-bedroom unit if I have to pay them?

Alright, cool. Thanks for the assistance.

I'm looking at listings in the Raleigh, NC area.

I'll look at a listing and then I'll go to try to figure out the expenses.

I'm trying to understand how to work out the taxes.

Some listings on Realtor.com just tell you what the tax is, which is fine.

But some say no tax info available.

So then I looked at this official page here. Ok for Raleigh the property tax is 0.4038%.

But then I look at an actual listing like this one, and it appears that in 2015 they paid $2,285 on an assessed value of $218,716, or about 1.04%.

Why is that different from the official tax rate, and how can I estimate what taxes I'd expect to pay when I look at a listing?

Also are property taxes different if the property is your residence vs a rental/investment? Or does everyone pay the same rate regardless?

Thank you Andrew and Scott.

I'm sorry someone removed your post, Scott. That would have been interesting to see. I'll do a more careful search. Maybe I just didn't select the right filtering options or something.

I'm interested in buying a duplex, triplex, or four-unit building as an investment.

I'm looking in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill Triangle area of North Carolina.

If you check "multi-family home" in Zillow, Trulia, or Realtor.com, they think you mean "show me single units in multi-family buildings." I'm trying to buy a whole building.

I'm aware of loopnet.com but they charge $244.95/month and I'm not even sure how great their listings are. Maybe they're great. If so then fine, I'll pay for their service.

But before I shell out that kind of money, is there some website that has some listings where I can get an initial idea of prices and what kinds of properties are available in the area?

Maybe there isn't? Perhaps buying rental property is more a thing of knowing the right people?

Any insight or advice would be very appreciated.

Thanks!

I was reading my REI book and pondering things and I realized that in general, single-family homes are for investors who do things like flipping, rehabbing, and other strategies that depend price appreciation. For buy-and-hold/cash flow investors, it's better to purchase a multi-unit dwelling.

Price of single family home is jacked up (relative to rental income potential) because families will pay more for a home for emotional reasons. Also, it's just more efficient to buy and maintain several rental units at once.

Is that more or less true or is it debatable? Comments/insights appreciated.

Ethan

Douglas, thanks for the response. Sent a PM.

Corey, the reason is "asset protection." It doesn't necessarily have to be an LLC -- could be another corporate entity depending on your situation. The idea is that property is owned by the LLC, not by you directly. If someone falls down the stairs (or pretends to) and sues you, they can only go after the assets of the LLC, not everything else you own.

Thanks, Mark. I appreciate the reply. I'm just getting started, but I think that the cash flow, buy and hold approach best fits my circumstances. I'll check out the NC clubs as you suggested.