All Forum Posts by: Mark Jones

@Jaron Walling if you have an inspection contingency and you’re still within the timeframe then no there shouldn’t be any reason you can’t renegotiate. The seller may balk though if it’s just because you couldn’t get it tested. 

If this is a long term rental for you and the rest of the numbers make sense, does it justify walking away? As long as you have cushion to replace if necessary, maybe just roll the dice. If they need replaced you can get new units in there and sleep well for 10+ years. And you can probably figure out a way to write it all off in the first year of taxes. 

@Jaron Walling why not put it in your name and get it checked or just drop your offer enough to cover a new furnace and water heater. Probably safer to assume they’re trash any way if they are old enough that you’re concerned about them. 

@Sean McCluskey not sure if the scope you plan for the rehab but a lot of these houses need replumbed anyway. In which case I’d say don’t worry about it. 

@Scott Passman for the intangibles, you need to find a property manager  (or local investor) with experience in the exact location you are targeting. Not just the same city, neighborhood, or zip code. Here in Indy, if someone is giving you feedback based on a property 5 blocks away, they very likely are giving you an apples to oranges comparison.

Another thing to consider is that you may be getting conservative feedback. If something is even close to a borderline deal, a trusted advisor will probably steer you away. Otherwise if anything goes south once you own it, they now have egg on their face. 

That’s why I’d find an experienced property manager who knows your goals and expectations. 

@Antoine Pippens

CIREIA, meets the first Thursday of every meeting month at Broadmoor Country Club. 

@Ryan Gibson I would expect your taxes to be double what you listed once you lose your homestead exemption. That will pretty much negate your yearly income. 

@Lamont Glover II

This is an achievable plan, trust me. First, buy in the nicest area you can afford. You want your place to have the most upside it can get with regard to rents. Find a place that has one side rentable. You need to live in the side that is less rentable and fix it up while living there. Then when that side is done, switch sides if needed so you can make improvements to the previously rented side. 

Stick to your improvement/budget plan. You will definitely get some scope creep. Once you start making improvements you’ll see other thing you didn’t plan to fix will tempt you into opening a new can of worms. 

When you get an inspection done, definitely have the main drain line scoped. With theses older duplexes, the main line, plumbing updates and rewiring are your biggest potential upgrade expenses. 

Improvements don’t need to be fancy but they do need to be bullet proof (figuratively speaking).

No carpet. 

If the sewer line looks good, you will probably be safe with a $4k emergency fund for the short term. That amount will cover a furnace going out and a major appliance going out in the same month. 

Good luck 

@Bruce Lee What side of town are you on/in?

Find a new tenant. 

I’ve never heard of asbestos being in rotted wood and old paint. 

@Tyler Richardson the best way to handle a reno on a house-hack duplex is to rent out the best side, live in and reno the worst side, and then you move into the tenant side when reno is done (at the end of their lease). Then you start reno all over again. 

This way you can be bringing in at least some rent the entire time. That’s me recommendation if you’re trying to do it on the cheap and potentially do some of the work yourself. 

If you have the cash and can reno the whole thing from the get go without any rent coming in though, that would probably give you the fewest headaches.