All Forum Posts by: Kelby K.

Welcome @Dimitri Lopez!!! I LOVE your story and it hits home for me as a close family member had a similar experience. You can do GREAT things with the burning in your soul. If I can shed a guiding light in any way just reach out. You have the desire, now just aim at a path and keep pushing the gas pedal. 

I can whole-heartedly agree with @Carrie Hiner about the quality of life compared to CA. Our family's life has changed DRAMATICALLY since we moved to Austin less than two years ago. We didn't realize how stressed the environment (and we) were in Northern CA until we moved here. The pace and people are extremely accommodating and friendly. The real estate still has plenty of room to grow, just make sure your location is nails or you're in an emerging area that is already built out. The thing about TX is that there's plenty of land in the "outskirts" of town (only a few miles from city center) where new inventory can pop up and slow your appreciation potential. It's not as land-locked by the ocean, bay, and mountains like the Bay Area. 

Hello @Henry Tse, 

  The Austin market isn't a quick find on a cash-flowing property. It's easier to find a value-add play that will cash flow a bit but there's better places in the US if you're looking for straight cash flow specifically. However, the appreciation can be good if you find the right neighborhood that's emerging. 

With all that being said, I moved here from the Bay Area a few years ago and Austin works for me because I live here. I.e. I pay no state sales tax, I know the areas of Austin metro extremely well (neighborhoods, traffic, troublesome foundation areas, etc.), and I can visit my properties, managers, and tradesmen within minutes. Another thing to know about this area compared to yours is that it is standard operating procedure for the property managers and agents that help place tenants to receive a fee for that service. A typical fee can be 50% of one months rent and a renewal is often also a % of the monthly rent. Even in this age of many great online apartment locators, the majority of tenants find properties through agents as opposed to doing it themselves. The final major expense is property taxes which are between 2.3-2.5%. 

Your dollar per square foot will definitely go much further here when compared to the Bay Area but it really boils down to your net at the end of the day and it may not be much better than nearby you unless you really drill down deep. 

@Aaron Deane

@Jason Carter just gave you the holy grail for getting things done while sitting in your office. I started out by going to investment meetings and meeting with contractors on site at our projects and now solely rely on posting to these platforms. It took quite a few meetings to find contractors that meshed well but now I found a few that will nail it when I reach out.  We don't even meet onsite we just have a 3 minute talk about the property and scope and it's pretty dialed in. You'll know when you find a good contractor that understands investors needs and that understands that both party's can win just as @kyle Nelson said. In a hot market like Austin at the moment, good contractors are busy enough to let you know what it will cost and still steer you in the right direction to subs or other contractors even if they can't take on the project. 

Also, I have found that it would be rare that a good (busy) contractor in Austin will have the time to drive to properties and create bids for quotes. They get most of their work through referrals of past clients and are vetted by the client that way. They will give quotes of cost per square foot over the phone or send a representative should you need a more detailed and specific scope of work breakdown. 

Message me and I'd be happy to share my contacts and experiences. 

@michaelbiggs What major problem are you speaking of and can you extrapolate further on what signs you see that would lead to it?

• Hi Cynthia, look into Maximus Residential. They have been Doug a great job for me and treat the budget like it's their own. Thanks to SFR ft the trf Trttt safer Wes Sqe

I highly recommend Michele Sweeten with Sweeten CPA. She handles our very complicated returns that are real estate intensive and does check-ins that keep us on track. She's in south Austin near Slaughter and Manchaca. 

Welcome Andres! How long have you been doing commercial in austin?!

I don't have experience with international investors but I do understand your challenge with helping the client feel comfortable when properties are moving so fast in a market like Austin. 

In general, conducting clear and quick communication while mitigating the feeling of being rushed is the key to my approach. I always send a video of the property as well as the neighborhood. Along with the typical comps and alternative exit strategies. I send them as much information about Austin from local/national real estate publications as I can as well. 

Unfortunately, there's no substitution for being confident about an investment like being able to see the property first hand and drive through the neighborhood to see the types of homes and tenants there. Locals may always have a slight advantage. :-)

I have experience syndicating smooth deals with out of state investors. What types of concerns do you have?