All Forum Posts by: Lana Lee

You live in one of the best markets in the country.  I'd stick there, but the traditional multi-family opportunity probably doesn't exist.  People bid up the properties, because they made money on appreciation.  Can you try some secondary places like Tacoma or Spokane?

There are good investing spots in Cincinnati and Philly. 

Hey Dave, my advice- don't limit yourself to a specific neighborhood. Philly has a ton of great areas that are perfect for buy and hold investors and if you only look in one of those areas, you are seriously hurting your chances of finding a good deal. When I look for deals for my investors, I am more focused on numbers than neighborhoods. While location plays a huge role in determining if numbers work out for any deal, I like to keep an open mind. Point Breeze is great, Brewerytown is great, and many other hot markets would fit your business model well. I would love to talk with you more about the buy and hold properties I've been moving. Shoot me a message if you'd like to continue this conversation!

Does anyone know if this is possible and/or a lender in Philadelphia, PA that would consider this scenario:

A personal (not business) HELOC for a Non-Occupant, Co-Applicant (or, if possible, sole applicant), Co-Owner (less than 12 mo on the deed)?

A parent co-owns and occupies it and it is not an investment property. Also, there is no mortgage or any other lien on the property. 

Thanks in advance.

I'm looking to dig out a relatively small basement (15'x20') to increase ceiling height. The current height from slab to ceiling joists is 6'4". Anything over 7' is the goal. It looks like a stone foundation with parging (pretty common in early 20th century Philadelphia rowhomes). My GC recommends that we first dig holes in the slab along each foundation wall and check the thickness. He believes there's a good chance we can remove the slab, pour a new 4" slab, and pick up 6-10" of ceiling height, all without underpinning. The cost is $6,000, but he says we'll know how deep we can go before committing the money. I'm not experienced in evaluating this, so I am throwing it out there for anyone to provide insight on. Basically, does this make sense? In all my research, it seems like people just recommend benching/underpinning. No one talks about shaving off thickness of the foundation slab. I'm guessing this is because I'm only looking to go 6-10" deeper and most people are inquiring about 2-3'. And my second concern is I don't see anyone saying that slabs are often 12" thick. It seems like slabs are more commonly 4-6" thick and sitting on the footers, so is it wishful thinking that my contractor is going to find a 12" thick slab, or am I misunderstanding what he's saying. Maybe he's saying dig out the slab entirely and then repour the new one inside the footers (so the top of the slab is flush with the top of the footer)...?

All insight appreciated. Thanks.

@Dave Godfrey Thanks for reaching out! Philly and it’s suburbs sounds good to me, I’m only an hour and ten minutes away. As far as what we’re looking for, a single or multi family residential home around $100k (a little more or less is fine) with traditional financing. All 3 of us have great jobs and great credit so securing a mortgage shouldn’t be a problem. Like it’s always said on the podcast and forums, I don’t need this first deal to be a homerun, I just need it for the main purpose of getting in the trenches and getting experience for the next 100 deals! A little cash flow would be great too :) Let me know if this sounds good and if you think we can get moving! 

Hi all,

I was reading Philadelphia Fire Code. And in section F-908.7.5 it stated that owner of the building (landlord) shall post a notice in common area and inform tenants about CO alarms and provide with manufacturer instructions.

Do you comply? 

If not, how it can backfire?

Hers is the excerpt from the code:

Information to tenants. Building owners, having tenants in the building, shall post a notice in a common area of the building informing tenants that the owner of the building is required by law to supply and install carbon monoxide alarms in accordance with Section 908 of the Philadelphia Fire Code, and shall provide at least one tenant per dwelling unit or rooming unit with a copy of the manufacturer’s instructions for the alarm to ensure that tenants understand the purpose of carbon monoxide alarms, how they operate and appropriate action to take when an alarm sounds.

Hi @Andrew Bateman, I disagree with @Account Closed, properties in Philadelphia can still cash flow in desirable areas. I own a portfolio with properties in Manayunk & Roxborough which all cash flow nicely. My tenants there are all young professionals and college students. You might have to add some sweat equity, but there are deals to be had in Philly.