All Forum Posts by: Joehn B.

If you are new to investing, I would certainly stay away from a 1900 structure out of state.   Stick to local deals, newer builds 1980 and up until you master basic rebuild skills.   You are putting yourself (your capital) at RISK in a potential sinkhole.

I am somewhat experienced, and rehabbed a 1960 building (and it came out OK) but in retrospect I could have razed the house and built new and made even more money.  

Quote from @Eudith Vacio:

Hey @Josh Spears, someone will probably throw some backlash at me, but I know of people that have done work in their units without permits or general contractors and they were completely fine, and never got in any trouble. Just putting that out there :)

You can do anything you want. However, going permitless opens your to risks, like stated above insurance coverage, city fines. If you ever sell, you won't get the same value of a legal permitted addition. In my city with my SFR property I live in, the city allows me to be the GC, electrician, plumber etc. I did all the work, submitted my drawings and got a complete garage conversion, and rewired/replumbed the whole house. Not sure that would fly in a multifamily home, but worth asking the city. In contrast my neighbor just converted his garage into a family room without permits. that no longer meets city zoning requirements and might have trouble selling it but it's unlikely the city will find out. If it ever catches fire, the insurance will look at that space and might deny the claim due to the "work" done by the homeowner.

Quote from @John Morgan:

Paid 48k for a SFH (with a 401k loan-lol) and dropped 50k in the rehab, so all in for 100k. Did a cash out refi 5 months ago and the lender gave me back 168k. Rent is $1500/month. I took that 168k and bought 3 more houses with the cash in the last 3 months. Total net cash from all 4 houses is $3900/month after all my expenses.

you are buying 50k homes in the DFW area? or somewhere else?

Condo?  what kind of work does it need? Paint? can you do some of it?

Also, heads up, you might want to check your Condo association to make sure they allow STR, if not you have to rent it out long term (assuming they have not maxed out the "allowed rental percetage").

go to homedepot and when you see a painter, or plumber ask them if they are available for xyz repairs..  

you could always partner on the first few flips with another investor.  you put in the repair money and they do the managing, but you tag along to learn the ropes and help out where you can?  Flips are fun for me, I struggle more in the "finding property" stage.

Also, not sure if it posted earlier, I tried to update my prior comment to suggest house hacking your house if you have a spare bedroom to a female roomate.  lowering your spend gets you a lil more savings as well.

@Slim GeransarI was about to say.. but I'll echo.   Thread carefully with Turn key or Wholesale.   You must do your OWN due diligence on price and the condition of the home.   "There was a major repair" raises a due diligence flag with me, and the home looks to be old/poor condition.  85k does seem like a lot but I don't know that area. If you don't have the expertise to do the due diligence, bring in a broker for their opinion / aappraiser and a few contractors to look at the home structure/mechanical's.

Bad discs / "disability" but rides a bike every day?  hum...

Ok, here is am amicable solution.  Is there space behind the building where a lock bar / pole can be setup so she can lock the bike next to a wall or fence?  I'd try setup an alternative for her.  Just saw @Drew Sygit 's recommendation, she can pay for it, or you can do it if it's not much.

https://www.amazon.com/Simple-...

how old is the unit, and how old are the windows? could it be they are very old and you have a huge heat loss?

Other than that, simply write him a letter stating the heat works, and for the apartment to be warm, it needs to be controlled by the thermostat and that there isn't anything to "FIX", and to stop contacting you except to pay rent or report emergencies.

Do not renew his lease.

This being said, do check your windows.  Replace them if they are old.   Also check the main door weather strips, make sure there are no drafts.  (cheap to fix).

is there anything else not in the quote?  what about removing picture nails, prepping and patching tenant holes?  I had a painter (who was good , but a little pricey) but he would not "fix" or prep anything, that all had to be done prior to him painting.

would flips be an option for you?  you can start out and do 3-4 flips in a year to help capitalize your rental purchase?  something like flip four homes, keep the 5th.   Your real estate work exposes you to tons of contractors.