All Forum Posts by: Jeff Lee

Sounds good! I'll try to give a little more heads-up next time too...

Hey guys! 

I'm a new, buy-and-hold investor interested in meeting up with others in the North East Houston market.

I'll be at Grind Break at 114 1st St W, Humble, TX from about 5:00 - 7:00 on Wednesday. 

Anyone in the Humble , Atascocita, Kingwood, Porter, Huffman, or Crosby area come on out!

Point taken. Already told the management company no. However, in the interest of comedic value, feel free to finish this sentence: “I would rather ________ than allow a tenant with a 1750 lb aquarium...”

Happy Thursday, BP Nation!

The lease on my small rental property in Northern Virginia is about to be up and my property management company is screening new tenants. They sent me one that is otherwise qualified, but has a 200 gallon saltwater aquarium weighing approximately 1750lbs. The pro, according to the property management company, is that moving such a beast is a huge pain so they may be willing to stay for a while. The cons are fairly obvious, including crushing most flooring (this property has tile in the kitchen & bathroom and laminate flooring everywhere else).

Ready...set...thoughts!

Thanks, @Chrissy Parsons. Useful info. Do you use an agent, standard/custom forms, or some other method to actually convey the offer to the seller?

@Thomas Shaw - To be conservative, yeah, I'd assume annual turnover but hope for someone that stays for 20 years! That being said, I currently only have the one property so I'm still very much a newbie myself.

Hi @Joshua Jones,

Sounds like you are on your way! I also grew up in Pearland but I'm on the north side of Houston after a stint in DC for several years. I would say keep reading, save everything you reasonably can, take care of your mom, and start learning all the "grown up" topics they don't really teach in school (types of insurance, buy or rent? index or mutual funds?, general tax considerations, general retirement planning, leadership, etc. ). 

After reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad and listening to my first Dave Ramsey broadcast, I created a learning schedule for the first few years to jump start myself, which included financial topics like those above, but also motivational and leadership-related topics. I alternated books - one substantive/topical (I'm an international affairs guy), one leadership/motivational/spiritual, and one which I call "mind-expanding" which teaches the mind to think outside the box (e.g. anything by Malcolm Gladwell, Freakonomics, certain business or sociology/psychology-related books). 

The college years and early professional years are wonderful times of learning - absorb everything you can, experiment with some of the ideas, and keep moving forward!

Congrats @Thomas Shaw! I'm also in the Houston area (Northeast) but I have a rental property in Northern Virginia. Something to keep in mind is that property management may not just be a flat rate. 

For example, the month-to-month property management rate for my Virginia property is 8% of gross rents.

Marketing and placement of a new tenant is 80% of month. 1 month = 8.3% of gross rent, and .8 * 1 month (.083) = 6.67% of gross rent.

Renewing a tenant is $500 which is 27% of 1 month at my property. .27* 1 month (.083) = 2.25% of gross rent.

Minimum I pay= 10.25% of gross rents (8% +2.25%)

Max I pay = 14.67% of gross rents (8% + 6.67%), assuming the tenant turns over every year.

Some management companies also charge for inspections (like my former VA manager who I just fired).

Not sure what it runs here in Houston (yet), but watch out for all the other bits and pieces in the property management contract – they add up!

@Ryan Blake - Thanks for the advice! I'll probably print this out or save it somewhere for future reference :)

So is that the only paperwork really needed by the buyer-the offer to purchase? Obviously a seller would require more forms (e.g. lead based paint disclosure).

How does everyone make their actual offers? This part seems to be glossed over frequently in all the stories of how people make deals. Do you use an agent? Are you an agent? Does your wholesaler take care of the paperwork? Do you figure out all the paperwork in your state some other way? And what are the pros/cons of your preferred strategy?

Interested to learn all the different ways people approach this part of the process!