All Forum Posts by: Lesley Resnick

My contractor had a procedure this week.  My project has slowed.  He should be back in action early next week.

Good advice.  

I found a 69 year old man who is retired and has a pension and Soc Sec. Horrible credit, no criminal and he has an eviction that was due to him being hospitlaized and no one paid the rent while he was in the hospital.   

He lives alone and says he likes it that way.  I think he is the profile I am looking for

 I am setting him up on auto pay. 

Got the roof replaced for 8150.  It is a big house and it needed some decking work.

Thanks for the advice.  I think you are onto a solid approach.  The profit margin on these properties is just too good to pass up.   

I have a triplex in a c-d area (rent 700 for a 2/1) and I was wondering how others are screening tenants.  I am using a paid background check and call employer, current landlord.  I am requiring they make 2100 a month to even qualify.

I am regularly finding:

They do not have good credit

Many of them have been in trouble with the law

And so on.

I largely look at criminal, eviction and most important work history.

Any suggestions as to what criteria I should use?

At this point in your life and journey, I would recommend trying to use Fannie Mae money.  By that I mean house hack.  You can buy a duplex or larger, live in one side and rent the other. 

You could also take a 203(k) loan and buy a value add house and do work on it.  These loans have a one year owner occupied requirement.  

The loans are going to require w2 income.  Depending on where you are financially, the state often sponsors programs to help first time home buyers. 

It will be easier to go from Fannie Mae money to hard money than the other way.

SFH are not sexy or exciting like saying 100 unit multifamily. However, I would propose that multi-family only offers one significant advantage, scale. It would be tough to buy 100 sfh at a time. Beyond that they are an inferior asset class.

1.  Common expenses are higher - Trash, landscaping, lighting, etc

2. All things being equal, tenants will pay more and stay longer in SFH - garage, parking, yard.

3.  They are far more liquid than large properties.   You can buy and sell properties at will.

4.  I have complete control.  I make all the decisions and do not have a series of partners I need to convince we should mow the grass. 

5.  My portfolio is diversified.  I have A, B & C properties in different parts of the city.  

If you purchase a large scale property, you are going to need partners and more complex financing. It is far simpler to obtain an approval on a 100k, than 10 million. By that I mean you will need more experience, reserves, and you will get a lower LTV.

In today's market, I have more net income in SFH, than if I were to follow the gurus and bought something large. This is not to say that if the right project came along, I wouldn't consider it. I go where the numbers take me, not the gurus.

Paint Glorious Paint

Master

2nd bedroom

kitchen

Need to fix the cracks. The house is 100 and the plaster is tough to fix.

Some passer by stopped in and asked if we were selling the place.  HELL YEAH!  They looked through and touched every wall and said they would call me tomorrow about making an offer.  That is the ideal scenario to sell it off before it is completed.

Affordable housing is a huge issue in this country.  Could tiny houses be the solution?

The tv shows regularly outline custom built mahogany built ins.  It defeats the purpose if it costs as much as a stick built home.

I have know people who lived in Manhattan in 300 Sq Ft.  It just seems like it would be just uncomfortable to live in that little space.

Painted ceiling