All Forum Posts by: Harry Schoeller

I am looking to finally enter the world of fix and flips. However I am having trouble finding a reputable contractor that is both willing to work with flippers and experienced doing so. I know a contractor can make or make a good deal and while I am skilled with my hands and good finding subs most of my hard money lender contacts are requiring work be managed and paid through a single GC.

If anyone knows any such contractors in the Pittsburgh area I would be wildly grateful for the reference. Please and thank you.

Jessica, Do you have a particular area in mind? I deal with all ends of the city.

Jeff, I’m a buyers agent in Pittsburgh with investor experience. The city is certainly ripe with opportunities. Are you looking for rehab and flips only? Difficult for a beginners to start flips in other cities if they’re not there to supervise rehab. Many people spend a lot of time building solid teams and contacts to perform reliable flips without immediate supervision. You’re welcome to PM me if you’d like to talk further.

Russell hit the nail on the head. And don't think when you hear $2,000 flat commission that's what we actually see when it's done. We have to split our commissions with our brokerage depending on our agreements with them. Many times this is 50% or so. How much traveling did we do to see the property, inspections, closing, and paperwork? In Pennsylvania a standard sales agreement is 13 pages long. That doesn't include the other 50 or so pages of paperwork that we have to do for a deal. Just the closing table alone can take several hours depending on the closing company. We have to pay $50 a month for access to the MLS, we have to pay for access to the lockbox eKEY system. Many of us pay Zillow anywhere from $200-$3,000 a month for those advertsiments you see us on. An agent has a lot of overhead to maintain a business and do this work everyday. But if an agents time constraints force them to prioritize between clients then unfortunately the nature of the business is we have to go with the deals that will keep the lights on in our own homes.

If you have a proper customer service oriented agent then it should not be a problem. It’s 2017, people have Zillow and Realtor and Trulia. Clients know what’s on the market for the most part and Can largely choose the properties they’d like to see. Our jobs are no longer as much about “selling” a property to clients as much as it is facilitating the purchase or sale after they’ve decided they want it. That being said, you need to be aware that the average commission for an agent for a property under 20k, after commission split with their broker (many clients don’t realize how this works), may only be a couple hundred bucks. Now to put this in perspective. If an agent has a client who wants to see 3 houses that are prices at 125k and they likely stand to make a few grand on that makes it hard to make time for a client who wants to see 5 properties for 20k which will likely pay a few hundred dollars by the time it’s done. Multiply that by having multiple clients and it becomes exponentially more difficult for them to profitably dedicate their time for you. I promise from an experienced agent that it’s nothing personal, it’s simply business. We’re independent contractors and technically self employees. I have a mortgage and bills to pay and a family to take care of. Time just has to be money.

I'm currently aware of a duplex for $45,000 that both units rent for $600 with one unit just having a new year long lease signed from a tenant that's been there for several years. You can get good returns in Pittsburgh but as other agents have said Monroeville has not seen the benefits the rest of the city has. Gateway School district (the school district of monroeville) has gone from AAAA sports to AAA which alone is an indicator of a decline in population. Especially the part of the population with children that are more likely to rent a SFM for 1200 a month than a young couple or couple who's children have left the nest.

Hey Andre Harris , I replied to your post in the other discussion. But welcome to BP and I wish you all the luck getting into this racket. No better proven way to build wealth but you need patience, education, and good people to work with. If there's anything I can do to help please feel free to contact me. I can be found on google or on BP. ,Harry A Schoeller

Damn iPhone auto correct makes my posts look like I'm illiterate

Andre Harris

Andre Harris Wilkinsburg and homewood are suitable for rental only. Lots of section 8 and the government is never late on rent. Buying a home for 20k here and renting it for $650 a month is not uncommon. But you are wasting your time and money if you do any major repairs or renovations. A new kitchen and bathroom don't fetch anymore rent with turnover rates like these areas have. The listed hot areas in the city aren't entirely wrong but each area can be "hot" for its own reasons. Good luck finding a perfect house to flip on squirrel hill. But finding a house that will appreciate greatly is easy. Bloomfield and lawrenceville are amazing opportunities for flips but specially deep capital ones. People buying houses in those areas are buying them for 80-200k but they're putting well into six figures into most of them. Was just in a house today 4715 Hatfield Street. They're asking 599k for it. They purchased it for 180k in April of 2015. Now I can only guess but I'd say this house had at least 150k put into it. Great profit but huge capital needed for such an undertaking. A hard money lender can definitely make it possible if you have the credit and some money of your own to put in. East liberty is a great place to buy a home for cheap if its run down and fix it. Rent it for another year or so. And then sell when the market starts to reach maximum velocity. You see there is houses that are not even BUILT yet up for sale in East Liberty for 500k. What's funny though is the lots where these half million dollar homes will be built are right next to properties that are still only selling for under 200k. These properties need some renovation. But a good flip here, 3 or more bedrooms with off street parking. Could be worth well into 300 or 400k in just a couple years if you've been paying attention to what's going on in East Liberty. I grew up across from Westinghouse park and I'm more than familiar with what's being going on in this area. If you need someone to talk to you about budget, goals, and finding some damn good deals then please contact me.