All Forum Posts by: Maria D'Aura

@Brandon Rush

Thank you! Those locks are a great idea.

Hello,

I'm in the process of buying a fully occupied, 4-unit, with all long term tenants. The current owner does not use a property manager. My other investment properties all were vacant when I bought them and I've self managed all but one. The one that had property managers in place I kept on as PM. This is my first dealing with existing tenants and no property manager so I have some questions.

First off I'm thinking of not hiring a PM. I only have one for one 4-unit and the others I've self managed for many years. This new one is just a little further away, but still less than a hour drive so I'm going to give it a go with self managing. My only concern is tenants getting locked out. It's not been an issue with my others since I'm less than 5 miles away, but I'm not going to want to drive a hour each way to bring keys to a tenant. What are my options? Lockboxes? Locksmith fee listed in lease?

All the current tenants are month to month right now. I'd like to get them on 1 year leases. Rents are currently a below market so I want to address this with the new lease as well. Finally, I've been using cozy.co for the properties I self manage, but they're no longer going to be an option as of the end of this month. Looks like the size is sending to apartments.com. Looking for suggestions on a replacement for self managing under 10 units. 

Thanks for the help.

I suggest going to the Livermore building permit center and ask them about getting it permitted and changed on the tax records. I have found them to be very helpful in answer questions. https://www.cityoflivermore.ne...

@Adam Kuszczak

If you're firm on moving out of the property in 2-5 years you could run into issues if the market takes a turn.Timing is everything and flexibility will save you. If that isn't a firm time-frame and you could extend it if needed then you're in a better position. Or at least if you could afford to hang on to it longer if the market turned. Of course it depends on your long-term goals. I had a property that was cash flow negative when I moved out of it. It remained that way for years. I hung onto it for a lot of different reasons, but the last few years I owned it there was a small amount of cash flow. The thing is it was in the Silicon Valley and hanging onto it ended up paying off in the end. 1031'd into a 4 unit I was able to pay cash for. It just depends on what your goal is. Do you want cashflow now or wealth later?

Also, buying an investment in the Bay Area can be tricky. Not a lot of them cashflow when you run the numbers. You need to get really creative in your thinking and how you look at properties. Can you see a value add? How much space do you really need for yourself? More challenging if you have a family with kids, but I'll tell you if I were single with no kids my strategy would be different. I'd be looking for a single family fixer with a floor plan that lended itself well to creating two separate living spaces within the existing space. It's something I have a knack for seeing and visualizing when looking at floor plans. I have another single family that has a perfect layout to be a 2 unit property with very little construction costs. I have great tenants so I'm leaving it alone for now, but if they ever move out I have a plan for that property. 

Just my 2 cents.  

@George Adkins

Congratulations!!!!

Now for the next steps. If you have questions feel free to message me.

Hi Joshua,

I've been with eXp since 2017. It was, and still is, the best place for me to hang my license. Like you, I initially started in real estate while I had another business. It was never my intention to be a full time realtor, but after a short time I found I enjoyed it more than I expected and transitioned to being full-time. There are a lot of agents that make it work part-time and a lot depends on what your goal is. Being an agent means you are running a business. You can define what works for you and set your goals to align. 

The great thing I've found about eXp is my fellow agents are very giving of their time and sharing of their experience. I'm grateful for how easy it is to connect with them for extra advice and for the priceless (and numerous) training sessions I can participate in every week. There's no one size fit's all for being an agent. I love that I can learn from many different agents what is working from them, decide if there's some part of what they're doing that I want to do in my business, and even get their input if I need it. 

As someone mentioned before some people shop for a sponsor based one what they can offer them. Some agents have training programs they charge for, but will give you for free if you're in their downline. Some offer weekly calls or meetings. It just depends. I'm in Brent Gove's team. I love Brent! When I started in 2017 he was very helpful, I could even get him on the phone! But keep in mind that the bigger business that agent with the free training is, the less time they will actually have to take a phone call from you. Some don't even publish their phone numbers anymore because they'd never have a moment of peace if they did. They have answering services and assistances who take those calls for them. BUT...I'm not directly below Brent, I'm maybe 3 away and in those 3 I have some other very experienced agents and coaches that I lean on often. I've never actually shared that before, but with the growth of eXp and even a few celebrity agents coming on board I think it's easy for new people to want to join under them for celebrity sake. If someone is new I think it's good to have a sponsor who is accessible to you when you need them. Having a great mentor AND an accessible sponsor is the ideal situation. If your sponsor is too busy to answer your call how helpful will they be to you?

Best of luck! Happy to answer any questions you have. If you were closer I might be hitting you up for a root canal some day! ;-) just kidding. 

@George Adkins

Take your time. Read it twice. Narrow it down by eliminating the obvious wrong options.

I know it’s easier said than done. I tend to rush through reading things and once again have had to force myself to slow down as I try to help my kids through school this year.

Absolutely. A lot depends on ones age and stage of life.  I also think there are some areas where you can have a balance and get both appreciation and build long term wealth. I didn't realize perks of getting a balance of both when I sold in Silicon Valley and bought a multifamily in the Central Valley. My goal was primarily to gain cashflow, but to my surprise the property has also gained quite a bit of value in just the 10 months since I've owned it. Who knows if it will hold or not for the long haul, but even if it doesn't it was the right move for me.

I think it depends on how you invest the appreciation when you sell. I may find myself thinking... man if only I hadn't sold! However, by selling and reinvesting into a property with much higher cashflow it has significantly improved my financial position today. Currently saving that cashflow and if the market takes a hit in the next year or two I'll buy again in SV for future appreciation. 

@Jack Hou - I'm curious... what you have decided to do?

Looking for a plumber or general handyman to fix a plumbing issue. Also, for some other minor repairs and updating.

South Hampton area STL

Who's your go-to guy or gal you keep on speed dial?

Thanks