All Forum Posts by: Jaysen Medhurst

Hi @Jordan Turner, good on you for getting started with clear goals in mind.

Your agent has a good point about starting with something that needs less work. It is probably worth seeing what comes up, run your numbers, and be strong in your due diligence. 

I do think you you have your expectations set unreasonably high. $300/month cashflow and 7% appreciation is not going to happen. Most investors shoot for $150-200/door CF/month. On average RE appreciates by 2-3%/year. Sure, some markets are on fire and see much higher appreciation, but there aren't any $90k properties in those markets and they rarely CF.

Typically, you get 1 or the other--CF or appreciation. Think of them on a sliding scale. More CF = less appreciation. I'm oversimplifying, but would hate for you to pass on a great deal because it didn't meat criteria that are out of whack.

One other thing to consider is looking at 3 or 4-family properties. Duplexes can be very hard to make work, because you only have 2 units to spread the fixed costs.

Good luck!

@Chris Lawson, no, I was renting that place, so didn't install. I've seen them friend's houses, seem to be effective, you just have to be thoughtful about the location and installation. 

@Patrick Mora, if you have no equity in the property, how will you pull money out?

@Ramon Luna, get it refinished. Laminate will look terrible on the treads. I also personally hate the way laminate feels underfoot--cheap. I can't believe materials and labor for laminate would be less than refinishing.

@Chris Lawson, I personally like having a vent. An old apartment of mine didn't have one and it stunk up the whole place whenever I cooked.

Have you considered a wall-through fan? Saw this on ATOH recently.

@Dom Smith, I think you're overlooking an opportunity. If you have great tenants, why not see if they are willing to buy the place? I would frame it as "giving them right of 1st refusal" and see if they are interested.

They will most likely qualify for an FHA loan, meaning they only have to come up with $6-8k. They're monthly mortgage will only be ~$1k/month (at $200k sales price), bit more with PMI and insurance. That's probably right in line with the rent they're paying.

CT even has a bunch of first-time home buyers assistance programs.

Worth a shot. 

There's no perfect answer, because it will vary widely by location and the actual property. 16%-18% pre-tax profit (of sales price) is a pretty good rule of thumb. More for cheaper properties, less for expensive ones. So, for a flip that sells for $200k, you want to walk with $32k after rehab, agent fees, holding costs, etc.

@Clyde Stackhouse, I usually start with Craigslist and Trulia to see what the rentals are like. Rentometer is the next step. Some of their stuff is free, then you have to pay. Not too much, I don't think. That site is geared towards landlords, so a great resource.

@Justin Nagy, an off-market deal, every investor's dream.

First, run your numbers and do your due diligence. What's the local cap rate? How much money would need to go into renovations/capital expenses?

Second, what opportunities are there to add value through sub-metering utilities, raising rents, etc.?

Third, what's your desired ROI. I suggest doing a deep dive to determine the Internal Rate of Return (IRR), which takes into account all potential profit as compared to other investments. There's a ton on BP about IRR.

Come up with some numbers and post them to the forums. There are plenty of other investors happy to poke holes and double check your math.

Good luck!

@Ben Vargas, I just moved out of the city. I'm looking at the Berkshires (around Pittsfield, MA), central CT-East of Hartford, Danbury/Waterbury.

Some parts of Westchester are attractive: Have you looked in Ossining or Tarrytown?

I have friends who are doing well in both Rochester and Albany.

Eastern PA also has some opportunity.