All Forum Posts by: Kelly DeWinter

Check with the attny who set up the trust, they will be experienced with these ssi issues and can steer you. The type of Tenancy is a tenancy for life, but I'm fairly certain the trust has provisions for the sale of the property (asset) and assisted living.

. yes,  One of the best lessons I have learned is invest local, use local contractors and avoid the the quick too good to be true deal.

@Donnie White

The biggest issue you will have is making sure you give someone a power of attny to make decisions for you when you cannot be reached.

An example I am a PM and have a landlord (not a client of mine at the time) who was overseas for 10 months . Her tenant decided not to pay rent, knowing the landlord would be overseas with spotty cell coverage.  Bottom line it took and additional 8 months to remove the tenant. The landlord was out 17,000, plus the cost of paying the tenant to move. The judge ruled that the Landlord did not maintain the property or the Tenant Landlord relationship on good faith, by not being available or having a representative to act in her behalf.

. Most leases require x number of hours usually 24 notice to inspect a property, check your lease, the exceptions are things like water damage, sewer back up, smoke etc which you have the right to inspect fix asap

. Most leases require anyone over the age of 18 to be on the lease. check your lease. if it does and you have proof photos etc of more then lease tenants living there (neighbors testimony helps too)

I would do a surprise visit as receiving take along someone who can look and act like a hvac or furnace repairman. Knock on the door and ask to inspect the hvac under the pretext of capital improvements and getting an estimate to replace hvac. I'll bet they let you in, then inspect the furnace and all the ducts. that will probably get you inside. Then if there is evidence of people there other then tenants , confront the tenant

All you need is an addendum that says the Basement is not part of the lease. Make sure the property is zoned for 2 units and that the addendum contains verbiage that describes utilities and parking or yard access for basement tenant in needed.

Generally, what has your experiences been investing out-of-state?
. negative

What steps do you take to mitigate risks?
. hire a property manager and have 2 others in database - just in case
. be willing to hire a licenced general contractor
. have an exit strategy in place in case things don't work out

What are a few key things you look for in a realtor?
. one who knows how to work with investors or has flipped properties

Any general advice you would like to give to me would be greatly appreciated.
. expect everything to take 2X as long
. expect multiple trips until all of your ducks are in a row.

Congrats on being debt free;

Option on how to spend 100K

. Send it to me ( hey it doesn't hurt to ask)
. Start small with a 1-2 bedroom condo - we did paid cash, entire rent went to building down payment for next.
. Repeat 2 times
. Move into sf homes

Using cash builds equity quicker then paying interest, yes its slower, but you build net worth quicker.

I think your mindset may be similar as you waited until you were debt free (no debt,no paying interest)
You had the patience to wait, in 10 years you can have anywhere between 10 to 15 properties.

You are better off using the Built in COA, and setting up each property as a Bub Account, You can then run all of the QB financial reports by property - range of properties, etc.

Auctions can be a great way to acquire a property.

However the owners have an 8 month right of redemption period, then IF yo close on the sale you may have to evict the current occupants, Anything can happen to the property aft the auction, it could be trashed,the  appliances sold .

You als have not provided enough data to do a cost analysis.

Still go to the auction and learn from the process.

THe issue is that it is in Baltimore. The city is know to be Tenant favorable for Landlord/Tenant disputes, to the extreme, unless it is a part of the city. An inordinate number of sub 120K rentals end up in rent court. You may want to include in your calculations 3 to 6 months of non rent payment every 3 years.

Also 1200.00 per month is usually requires a unit to be in pretty good condition.