All Forum Posts by: Jon Kelly
Jon Kelly has started 24 posts and replied 904 times.
Post: How much would you spend on your first deal?

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@David Torreggiani Keep it simple on the first one. The least amount of steps required to get you in the game the higher likelihood you will get in the game.
Use your own funds so you don't have to raise additional capital. How much excess capital do you have today? $25k, $50k, $100k? That's the amount I would spend.
Assuming you will put 25% down you will be looking at deals between $100k ($25k down) - $400k ($100k). This could be a single, duplex or maybe a triplex.
Post: Tenant Not Paying Rent; What To Do?

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Manco Snead What does your lease say? What have you and your property manager agreed to do in these instances? It's so important to understand the role of your property manager, ESPECIALLY, if this is an out of state property.
Post: landlords, what major should your kids study?

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Tina Lee If she wants to be like you tell her to study whatever you studied
Post: Offering "all cash" w/ funds from HELOC vs. fixed-rate 2nd mort.

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Account Closed HELOCs can be a great option for short-term financing. You'd want to buy in cash using your HELOC, fund rehab using HELOC or other sources of cash and then refinance as quickly as possible. HELOCs often have higher interest rates so you don't want to maintain an open balance for too long.
Post: Tenant & Landlord Safety

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@James R McDowell I can't tell if this is a real question or you're being facetious...
You survived the first two years of covid. What makes you think the future will be any worse than the past 2 years?
You should consider investing in syndications. You never have to leave your basement and can earn 7-12% a year.
Post: Increasing rent of nice tenants

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Ben Lin Considering hiring a property manager
Post: Financing 2 homes in bundle

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Eileen L. Yes, this is possible. Look for local lenders offering portfolio or commercial loans.
Post: HOA for rental property

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Anna L. You're already under contract? What information changed from when you made your initial offer to now? Stop second guessing yourself. There was a reason you made an offer in the first place.
Post: Advice on Older Properties

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Chase Caudill it's all relative. A home built in the 1900s will be less expensive than a home built in the 2000s (all else equal). As you mentioned they can be great cash-flowing options since you can buy them at a discounted price.
The inspection becomes much more important on older homes. I wouldn't consider them money pits but you do need to adjust your assumptions accordingly.
A lot of my properties are built in the early 1900s. The biggest surprise I've come across is collapsed sewer lines... This is something that is rarely picked up during the inspection because it's all underground and your average inspection doesn't include scoping the sewer line. A replacement can run you between $3-8k on your standard 3 bed / 1 bath 1,200 sq. ft. home.
Don't let them scare you.
Post: Masks for walk though?

- Investor
- Bethlehem, PA
- Posts 927
- Votes 950
@Savannah Waggoner That's an appropriate response. I would delete the last part of your sentence since it's unnecessary, "we are more comfortable being able to breath and show our faces."
Can you open windows to make them more comfortable?