All Forum Posts by: Harvey Levin

@Steve   I am a very strong believer in solar power. W all have experienced getting into a car on a very sunny but cold day and felt the warmth. That is solar at its most basic form. However, on the same cold day with no sun and heavy clouds the car is still cold .  The issue we have in Indiana is the number of heavy cloud days vs Colorado or California. It has been used in some areas here for electricity but the mass amounts of panels that I have seen would be to much in a residential location due to zoning restrictions. In a larger industrial application there is room for large quantities of panels and they work fine. If you visit Indianapolis you will see a solar field very close to the airport. New technology is invented all the time so I am sure there have been improvements but they still will need the sun to produce the energy. 

@Steve K.undefined

A third option would be to use a reputable realtor  who can find your property  that will help you accomplish your specific needs and goals . We manage a lot of properties for investors that utilize Realtors very successfully

I would recommend you take a hard look at the payback.  First Solar  in the  early 80s  I was in the solar energy installation  business but the true calculations based on Indiana's cloudy days made the pay back an extremely long. Of time and money was better spent on other Investments  I closed my doors after one year because I felt that  it was misleading to the consumer because it really wasn't a good opportunity and back then 65% of the cost was rebated through  direct reduction in your taxes

@Tom Campone We manage a lot of duplexes in Indy (I also own quite a few in C class areas for over 39 years)

We currently manage one  2 blocks south on Randolph. It is a very challenging area for quality tenants.   I see no way for you to have a successful long term investment at that purchase price.   @Mike D'Arrigo based on my experience in that area at the purchase price I feel the return after ALL costs including turnover and new placement fees will drive this property int a 1-3% at best.

Just to clarify, I LOVE C class duplexes but only in the right area and at the right price. They are not right for every investor as the management style is much different than used on SFH.

@Robert Belushi We manage lots of 2 units in C, a few in B and a couple of 4 units in C. 4 units are a challenge here in C so finding the right ones is very hard. 3 units are mostly big SFH conversion and very few have been rehabbed properly so we stay away from them. PM me if you want to talk

Harvey

Harvey Property Management Group LLC

@Ross Denman Thank you for the kind words. 

@Nathan Asher Robson If you would like to have a conversation PM me 

With doubles selling in the high 60's low 70's  getting same rents why buy at 129k? Also as far as taxes those will increase with the sale most likely. 

@Bryan Richardson   The ONLY time we ever pay utility Section 8 or NON, is if it is a double with a common water meter which is about 60% of the time in Indianapolis.  Section 8 has a set utility allowance for all utilities which is adjusted annually. This allowance is calculated into the max affordable rent based on each individual house. If tenant provided it is a deduction from the max affordable rent. If the owner provided it is added to the max affordable rent. Prior to the new sewer calculations which have no standardized calculations that make sense, it was actually a great profit center on a double to pay the water with a single meter. Now each month is different with each property so it all depends.

We only manage small apartments and of these, we will not manage anything that has any other utilities paid except water (sewer is a part of the water bill)   

I agree you should walk away. We manage a double on the same block and 2 bed rents are 650 for it. I have a 3 bed I personally own a few blocks directly east  that is a 3 bed in great shape. There have been a few sales a little over 100 for owner-occupied that had fantastic high-end remodels but in my opinion the demand was all hype. Lastly, we have a 3 bed on Primrose a few blocks west that is rent ready at 850 getting ready to list at 79900

in Marion County as well as most counties in the United States that I have been aware of there are habitability standards that are the requirement of the owner. in Indianapolis those standards are almost exactly the same as the Section 8 standards the difference is that the only time the county or city gets involved is if they happen to drive past or if they have a complaint. If there is a lease with the tenant it is up to the owner or through its agent the property manager to back charge the tenant or sue the tenant for lease specific damages . As a landlord and property manager for 38 years I have found the city and county are very willing to work with us so long as we have good communication and they know that we are working on solving the problems. To me it sounds like there's a piece missing from this scenario. Bigger issue is if there are violations from prior to the purchase many times those violations do not appear on a title search and there's a buyer everyone should always ask the title company to perform the additional search of all Marion County city in County violations. Typically that search is around $100 and well worth it.