All Forum Posts by: Mario F.

Brent Coombs Hi Brett yes thats the property. I out an offer in on it today. The owner is very motivated to sell which is why its priced low compared to other units that have sold. According to the numbers, this should cash flow if i can get 1700 per month. There was a neighboring unit that just rented out for 1700 in that complex and another one that rented for 2k. What do you think about this deal?

Hello, I've been on the lookout for my first rental property in the los Angeles market. I may have found one in Tarzana which I put an offer down on but after reading a book called 

How An Economy Grows And Why It Crashes by Peter D Schiff, Andrew J Schiff, I can't help but be apprehensive.  They are predicting another big economic crash resulting from all the debt the US has acquired from keeping the economy afloat over the past few years. What are your thoughts on the market?   I'm wondering if I should still buy a property now or wait until this inevitable downturn comes.  It really does seem that the market is at a peak. Doesn't make sense to buy now, does it?  The property that I'm considering is a 2 bed 2 bath condo in Tarzana for 219k, which would cashflow if rented out for 1700. It looks like a pretty solid deal but I'm wondering if rent prices might go down if housing prices were to adjust. 

thanks

mario

Hello, I submitted an offer on a condo that needs a lot of work done. One of the maintenance workers in the complex offered to do some repairs and improvements for me but I don't think he has documents. Might be cash payments, etc.  So how do you account for this kind of work if payment is in cash?  I'd like to make sure I get the proper tax write off for any repairs. 

Thanks!

mario

Hello, I just finished reading "HOLD" for rental property investing. It was mentioned that there is a specific software by Quicken used for rental property and personal finance accounting.  I'm in the process of putting better accounting habits in place  to prepare myself for future investments. Would you recommend using that software? I'm curious to know what you guys do to manage your accounting and personal finance. 

thanks!

mario

@Max Gradowitz Those numbers are amazing compared to what we have here in LA right now haha.  I'm lucky to find something that might cash flow 100 per month out here.  The condo I'm looking to buy might get 50-100 once I leave but like I said, it'll serve as my home base while I continue to save up money and figure out what my next move is.  Bakersfield sounds like an amazing place to invest. I'll be visiting sometime soon. And when I do I'd like to meet up for more information on the city if you have time!

Hey @Account Closed what is considered a good price to rent ratio?  The condo I'm looking at is 10.9 if I get it for 190k.  

How can you open these files? When I open them they are just text files and kind of hard to read and understand.  I'm assuming the only important thing to understand is the ranking of the cities right? What are the numbers for though?

Yes I think my first move needs to be getting out of the rental market and reducing my spending by digging into a low mortgage.  I think what you guys are saying about investing in a place like Bakersfield is very interesting. How much cash flow is possible with properties in that city? I browsed Zillow last night and looked at a few properties but didn't see anything special cash flow wise. Of course, I'll need to put way more time in. 

thanks

mario

@Max Gradowitz I'd much rather buy a house and do without the HOA but it's not easy to do in LA. Hopefully the prices will come down a little bit in the next few years so I can slowly move up to SFR. This condo can serve as my home base for a while. The mortgage will be very low so perhaps I can save faster and start investing in areas where I'll get more ROI! Buying this condo is my attempt at not paying anymore rent haha. But I'm certainly praying that the HOA doesn't go up drastically. I'm submitting an offer for the condo tomorrow. It's kind of a low offer so chances are not good they will accept.

@Max Gradowitz But doesn't HOA take care of a lot of maintenance and capex expenses? A lot of HOAs grab a ton of money but every now and then I come across reasonable fees. There is a condo in Encino that I'm looking at which only has 270 per month HOA. It's a fixer upper so I'm looking to get it for around 190k hopefully. With another 10k invested into it for renovations, I'm looking to rent it out for around 1500 in that area after a year of living in the unit. I think it's very realistic considering the rent prices I'm seeing in the area. So for that price, I'll get some cash flow if I put 25 percent down. Maybe up to 100 per month. Might be a good way to start off right? Once I get my own home squared away I'll definitely be looking to invest in the areas you're suggesting. I'm trying to find a cheap way to get by for now so I can put more into saving for future investments.

@Max Gradowitz Hey Max, I looked into the duplex idea but even then, the prices are too high and won't cash flow. On top of it, the duplexes typically need tons of renovations.  So I think my strategy for the time being is to find something pretty low cost in the range of 200k so I can keep my monthly mortgage low enough to save for another property.  There are some options that could cash flow if areas farther away. The one condo I'm looking at right now is 1bd 1 bath in Encino going for 209k but needs a lot of work. I'm pretty sure I can get it down to 200k at least. According to my calculations, I should be able to cash flow after a year as rent for those apartments go for around 1500 a monht. Cash flow would be pretty low though. But something is better than nothing right?

@Account Closed This first property needs to be a place I can live in for at least a year which is why I need it to be LA.  I'm currently paying 1600 in rent and the mortgage for this 2bd would be around that much.  I'd like to move out after a year but it looks like I wouldn't be able to do that because of the negative cashflow I'd get.