All Forum Posts by: Julia Rowling

a clear lease detailing your obligations as well as the tenant's, good tenant training and then it's just strong boundries....

@Joshua Dorkin  - I hope you have a wonderful Christmas with your family.  Thanks to you and the entire BP community for the priceless contributions I've found here.

Best to all for a prosperous 2015!

Lesson: MUST screen tenants thoroughly!  And take pictures of property at time of leasing!  And network with other landlords in the area!  And have a good lawyer on your side!  And not fall for any sweet-talking, suit-wearing con artists!

YIKES!!!

Hey Paul - Welcome aboard!  I'm fairly new to investing myself, and also to BP, but I can say with certainty that you've found an excellent resource here.  I've been listening to the podcasts, reading blogs and participating on the forums for a month or so and I'm amazed at how much I've been able to learn.  

All the best to you!

>1000 on my first deal (which I am still in the middle of closing - a long story which merits a whole other post) since becoming a BP member about a month ago.  This comes from a renegotiation with the buyer that brought an extra $5000 in earnings.  I attribute my success in the negotiation to the application of certain techniques that I read about, and decided to test out, in "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. I'm sure I would not have read this book if I had not heard it recommended on one of the BP podcasts I've listened to recently.

Thanks everybody!

@Craig Wilcox...Thanks for the post!  Great explanation of the different property types...

@Audrey Y. It seems from your comments that you are imagining the HOA fees as equivalent to what one might pay a property manager - which is often money well spent to save the landlord's time. However, as many posters have already pointed out, I think you are greatly exaggerating the imagined time-savings. As the HOA does not cover anything other than "common" areas, you will still have to deal with anything that goes wrong inside your unit. The people in charge of the HOA are not like managers who simply execute your decisions, but rather are making decisions for you that could affect the outcome of your investment that you might not agree with.  There are good reasons to want to be in control of your property...from what I can tell, being a "control freak" is generally a good trait in a successful landlord.  

I own a condo that I am in the process of selling and I can say that I would never buy another investment or even residential property in an association again - trying to reach a consensus among all the owners as to how the property should be kept up is a never-ending battle!

Congratulations on a job well done!  I hope to achieve the same result one day myself.  It is tremendously encouraging to hear inspiring success stories here on BP- to help get through the tough times of doubt and despair.

Thanks Glenn and all the best to you!

@Joe Villeneuve  Brilliant!  Thank you so much for giving me the formula I've been looking for!

I've painted a couple of floors and they didn't stay looking good for very long.  I would not recommend this.