All Forum Posts by: Jenn Barona

Hey @Ben Morand! Welcome to the world of real estate investing. Prior to Covid there was a group of us that would meet on a regular basis with other agents, investors, lenders, title agents and more but we’ve kinda slacked on really getting it picked back up again. It’s time for another meetup so thanks for getting everyone talking about it again, we’ll make it happen. Someone mentioned above that house hacking was a good idea and I completely agree but make sure if you are within the city limits you can technically only have 3 unrelated people living under one roof. Deals are pretty hard to come by these days but not impossible. Have you tried any mailers or driving for dollars to pick up any off market deals? Being an agent that benefits the homeowner. If the numbers don’t work out for you, you can always pass the deal along to someone else or maybe partner with someone for your first deal. If they need actual market value you can list. It’s a win-win. 

I have 2 doors here in Gainesville and I am also a Realtor here as well. In terms of Cap rate you can find some higher numbers in some of the D neighborhoods but you will have turnover a lot more frequently and most of the tenants create issues and overall a lot more hands on. If you are going to be a long distance investor(I'm assuming only because I see your from Miami) make sure to add in your property management costs as you will need a great one. Like someone mentioned above you do have plenty of options other than just student rentals because you do have some major players here in town. Shands hospital, VA hospital, University of Florida, North Florida hospital, Info Tech and Santa Fe College. These bring in professors, nurses, doctors and employees year round.

Keep in mind Gainesville (Alachua County) has pretty high taxes compared to other Florida counties but the higher rental prices do help out. Depending on your budget there are several areas of town that make great rentals and even as flips. 

@Matt Berklacy I work and invest here in Gainesville and would be happy to assist. Feel free to reach out. 

I’m an agent/investor here in Gainesville, Florida, home of the University of Florida. I think this questions answer is going to be very based on each campus specifically. When it comes to undergraduate students most of them want to be as close as they can to the school. Walking distance is definitely great but as long as the city has good bus routes like here in Gainesville the students are not opposed to living farther out, especially since the prices get much cheaper.

On the other hand I have found that a lot of graduate students want to live fairly close but definitely not walking distance. They prefer to not live in a “college area” as they would rather pay extra to have peace and quiet and not have to worry about parties and just the loud atmosphere overall. They do not mind driving into campus. 

For sure. If you go further west than Gainesville you’ll get to “Jonesville” which is west of NW 143rd st before you get to Newberry. You’ll have more vacant land and larger lots to build on. If you’re looking to build out a neighborhood there are several large lots to develop out. Although if you are looking to keep as a rental I would maybe start looking in Gilchrist County. It’s about 10 minutes west of Newberry and your taxes will be split in half. Alachua has one of the highest taxes in the state. 

I actually live out in Newberry which is just a quick drive into town. Most residence who live here work in Gainesville or surrounding cities so it's a great location. Prices can be lower than Gainesville but unless your looking at one of the new construction neighborhoods you've got slim pickings especially if your searching only the MLS and not able to go driving for dollars. Rentals do go very quick as there is none available. It is completely different to the Gainesville market as you would have families or individuals renting and not college students.

Newberry overall is pretty small and there are only a handful of subdivisions and more options for land with a mobile or to build. 

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Gainesville.

Purchase price: $85,000
Cash invested: $43,000
Sale price: $155,000

Purchased this off market deal with a private lender. The house was "livable" but needed a complete makeover from top to bottom. One of the benefits was a 5 year old metal roof but later on in the remodel we realized it was put on by some rando and was completely incorrect. We ended up having roof replacement, HVAC installed (there was only window units), flooring, painting interior/exterior, light fixtures, new kitchen, and 2 new bathrooms. Once reno was completed we listed online and had several applications day 1. Rented out for $1500 a month with a 1 year lease. The neighborhood is a C classification but I live/work local so its just managed by me and my wife with no issues so far.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I knew the numbers would make since but I didn't have the cash myself for the purchase. I was planning on assigning it to an end buyer but I thought id see if we could work it out for a deal myself. I called a lender and he said he would be willing to partner with me.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I am known as the investor friendly, deals with crappy properties in my office so I had another Realtor in my office reach out to me and asked if I knew anyone who would be interested in buying it. I originally negotiated on the price and got it under contract.

How did you finance this deal?

Private lender

How did you add value to the deal?

I paid for and oversaw the project from day 1 and the private lender paid for 90% of the home. That way I had some skin in the game but he still made a good chunk when I refinance to pay him back.

What was the outcome?

For the most part the reno went as planned. Took a little longer than we expected and we ended up having to put on a new roof but in all it went fairly well.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Make sure you have a timeline that the contractor/handyman is going by. I had a friend/handyman do the project in between his full time job which took WAY longer than expected.

@Luis Serrano retiring a mobile home is when the mobile goes from being considered a automobile with a vin number that can be moved from one location to another and becomes real estate affixed to the land. Here is a website that give you a good breakdown. https://mobilehomeliving.org/m...

Mobile homes are a whole new ball game. Depending on the age, if they have ever been moved, what kind of tie downs and more it may not be able to get conventional financing from a buyer. Which means you would have to have a buyer who would be willing to buy it knowing they could never sell it using FHA/VA/USDA and even conventional loans with some banks. Moving it where I live in Gainesville, FL would cost upwards of $5,000 so depending on how much it's worth it may not be worth it. Check to see if the mobile home is retired too.

@Mike Miller Call Jennie Boymer with Watson Realty. She has been in the business for years and knows her stuff for sure.She can also probably do a discount for bringing multiple properties to her. Tell her I sent ya!