Originally posted by @Chris Miller:
@Lesley Resnick Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. This will help many. I have a few questions that could be even more helpful for those looking to start or implement the Brrr strategy in 2019. Can you mention all together the things you would tweak in the process or do differently now that you can look back on it? Its great that you documented everything can help newer ones to see the changes and why you made some of the changes. Such as your original goal was 3/1 with rent 800 appraisal 75k but you ended with 3/2 126k with rent of 1,000. You were able to adapt to different circumstances and had the money to do so. This was good to see because this happens often and we have to be able to be problem solvers or plan for unexpected changes.
Other than listing the property what other avenues do you use or plan to use to find the right tenant?
What about this loan that made it the easiest one that you done?
Thanks for the kind words, it is my goal to help others with the process. It has taken me more years than I would like to admit getting to this point! Hopefully, I can shorten the path others will have to travel.
I know the area and the price was good, so I pulled the trigger. This property would have been gone if I did not make a quick decision. I knew in a worst case scenario I could go with the house's initial configuration. The project sat idle for almost 2 months until I could get back to it. My plumber and contractors' pricing made adding a bathroom viable. The extra bathroom drove the rent and appraisal. I also thought it would be useful for people to see how my approach to the house changed. Staying flexible is key. I am always looking for value-add.
What would I do differently?
I need to plan and project manage better. Ordering materials and scheduling are critical. A simple example is if you have Lowes come out and measure, they will order the cheap blinds to fit exactly. I work with a lot of older houses that do not have standard size windows.
I used two different floor contractors. One did the refinishing and the other filled in the missing areas with manufactured planks. It took some doing to keep them timed correctly. Neither vendor installed transitions, they both thought the other would take care of it. My primary contractor fixed it. I will be sure it is included next time
I used a big box store to buy the cabinets and they looked good, but are poorly made. I was on a tight time schedule, so I used them. In the future, I will have them ordered from my contractor.
Other areas to be scheduled early:
Windows
Plumber
HVAC
I have a great property manager that will take on the responsibility for renting it out. On occasion, I have posted properties on CL with the property manager's contact info. My property manager validates neighborhoods and rents. Before I bought this one, I had a conversation with him about the area and rent.
My loan was so easy. Their team wanted the loan to close as much as I did. At no point did I feel like I was interrupting their day by calling. My experience with the big banks is you will run into low-level bureaucrat types that are annoyed with you calling.
I gave them about 10 pieces of documentation and was approved in days. The appraisal was the slowest part of the process. The refi happened on day 92 of the seasoning. I used the same closing attorney I always use. Keep in mind this was not a conventional loan, they underwrite their own loans and it is more expensive.
Happy to answer any other questions
