All Forum Posts by: Ika Sargeant

@Suraj Haradagatti I was just lamenting in another discussion the difficulty in our area to cashflow. I would suggest looking at  Clarke county, may be  Winchester and perhaps going out to Front Royale. But in many instances if you move too far out from DC the rents drop. If this is your first property, you may want something close so you can get your hands dirty and save some money. Silver Spring is in our area, high taxes and high repair costs apply there too-same thing. Anyway good luck.

@Tom Cotter My office is based in Reston. I have attended a few investors meeting some helpful but others not so useful. One thing that 

I would love to talk to people about is the cost of repairs in our area. Recently I was doing a update on a rental property that we own and had to meet with 7 contractors before I found one I used. The whole experience left me feeling like, its getting impossible to cashflow our area even after 2-3 years. We are are aware its hard to cashflow right of the back but I my calculation put 2-3 years and you could begin to see some cashflow. Now I think this goes even further out. I could be wrong but would love to here what other think.

@Alex Johnson You could do a CMA and see what similar homes are selling for as well as cash flow analysis if that something you are interested in.

Estimating costs is a biggie- because everything is rising very quickly. 

@Maggie Smith check on the average number of days homes get rented in your area. It sounds like yours is already gone over I assume. did you ask potential renters for feedback-usually very helpful. This can be helpful and useful to see if its price or condition. Place the house on Zillow and pay $29.00- this might help a lot. Good luck.

@Billy Knox I am sure by now you understand on some level why you need to hire a real estate agent. I am very sure you understand having information or access to it, does not tell you everything. Experienced agents see the layers of information and understand which layer carries more weight. They know what to hunt for when you are buying a home of a certain age or certain neighborhood, we look at all the nuances including local laws. Real estate is like a giant octopus with so many tentacles and connections. Everything in your transaction went smoothly because your agent was plugging and closing every whole. Settlement lawyers I have come across use agent to buy, I will not go to any state that I am unlicensed in and buy without an  agent. All of us from the inside understand, things can go smoothly and then the octopus turns on its back. Suddenly you are out of thousands. But to reverse your question, simply ask... with so many changes in the industry and so many bright people ...why haven't we got rid of agents? 

@Joe Ko you are right our area is truly challenging for many people. Northern Virginia is a tough market. Prince William will likely turn something but even then you have to move up to 350K to see the few homes. And now that the market is gone back to behaving like the early to mid 2022 market, if you do find something in that low price point, there will be ten other people fighting for it. 

@June Yang Did you already send a notice to the tenant? I would also suggest if it was possible to see if they are willing to turn over keys to you. 

I just took possession of my townhouse because the tenants were having difficulty but I had not allowed it to go beyond one month. I did tell them if the home rented, they were no longer obligated to pay for the remainder of the lease. I really worked with them because it was important to get the property from them because the longer they sit there, the likely hood your home is trashed rises. You can try the following Thomas Breeded -703 688 7128, Heather Steele 703-506-9440. This is in no way a recommendation for the offices.  

I like Winchester and Fredericksburg.

@Taylor Stow Have never been to New Orleans. Just a quick feed back-beautiful color but its better to go neutral, think light colors. Too many close up of beautiful objects. Pictures should make sure I see the flow of the home within two seconds of been on the site. Please add the pictures of the interesting things nearby. I saw the descriptions but no pictures. I think overall looks good.

@Brandon Wagner Congrats on your home. Sounds like you made financially good choices and decisions.  Prove that in our area buyers can still get some properties and still come out ahead. Unfortunately we are seeing a churning market that is trying to bubble back up again. Do you mind sharing the city you bought in?