All Forum Posts by: Mathew Wray

Hey Kevin, Congratulations on not having to do the long-distance relationship anymore. I know that puts a huge amount of stress on both people. It's gotta be a relief to have one less thing to worry about. 

I'm just down the road from your old stomping grounds, in Tualatin (we lived in Tigard for awhile too). Your flexibility with being able to move back in with your parents will be a great asset as you get your project off the ground. 

I know people will come on here and tell you not to do it, but you've obviously been thinking about this for awhile, have been doing your research (did you account for tear-down costs?),  and know this is what you want to do to help propel yourself forward. So, I'd say go for it. It sounds like you've got a really stable financial situation, so really you're risking money and time. You can make more money, but letting more time slip away isn't going to get you closer to your goal. Having multi-family property in (or near) a city like Portland, in the grips of a housing shortage, isn't a bad thing. 

PM me if you're still looking for contractors, construction lenders, etc. I'd be happy to help. 

Best of luck! 

Mathew 

It's not central (so I know it's outside your question), but the Alibi Room is great!! Good sized, lots of parking, accessible on MAX (if that's your thing), good freeway access and the biggest plus: if the conversation turns out to fizzle, you can always watch people sing karaoke in a tiki bar---so it's got that going for it! :) 

Hey Tara, 

Thanks for posting this! I think it's easy for "everything east of the 205" to get stigmatized (being a Portland native, I find myself part of this sometimes and work really hard to fight it). It's an unfair judgement on a huge swath of the metro area with a lot of good areas. At the same time, I think it's fair to say that there are definitely areas that are less desirable and others that are WAY less desirable. But, I think it's really a block by block (or at least sub-neighborhood by sub-neighborhood) proposition in a lot of the neighborhoods you mentioned. I agree with @Zach Davis that at some point it's probably easier to push out to Gresham and avoid the whims of the city council; the rents aren't much less and you can get plenty of people that have been priced out of Portland as a reasonable applicant pool. Like Zach said, it might take longer, but my experience has been that once in, (if we're talking about SFRs) the tenants tend to stay put. On the other hand, if you're talking about many of the apartments lining Stark, Division, and Burnside, then you're looking at a whole different issue that I'd rather not spend my time working with. Too much hassle and not enough return for my time. Like everywhere else, I think quality of applicant is going to depend on location and price. If you're talking about apartments on Division between the smoke shop and Carl's Jr., then you're going to get tenants who walk to the smoke shop and Carl's Jr. If you're talking about areas around Glenfair Elementary then you'll probably get middle-class families that make generally calm tenants. 

My .02 anyway

Best of luck!

Hi Nik,

Welcome to Portland! (Or welcome soon)

I’ll stay out of the tax questions (it’s definitely not my area of expertise) but if you’re interested in some CPA recommendations, please PM me and I’ll give you two I’ve used with my experiences. 

Portland has some down sides, but at its core, is filled with really nice people, good food, and great outdoor options. 

Mathew

Hey Jeff,

I know you posed a tax question, but as you know there are other considerations as well. Property tax in Portland jumped with all the levy’s and assessments that hit this year (and I don’t think that’ll stop in the future) while the city council wants to blame the homeless situation and housing crunch on landlords and have us be the only ones to foot the bill. And are pushing to make “renter protections” permanent/angling fit rent control. Since I live here, I still think investing here can make sense, but if I lived at a distance AND self-managed I might reconsider, as you are doing. 

I agree with the other commenters that you can find a good PM to manage it for you or do a partial 1031. Jay is right that Hood River should have some inventory. Even if they pass more anti-air B&B laws, people will still need a place to live in a great city-might be some good deals coming up. 

When it boils down, I see you’ve really only got two options if you’re at a distance and tired of managing yourself: get a PM or 1031. (Edit: Just saw we posted at the same time and you’re not interested in the PM route, sorry for the redundancy!!!)

Let us know what you decide/find if you do 1031.

Best of luck! 

Mathew

Hey Greg,

Congrats on the move (hopefully it’s a good thing) and turning your home into a money maker. There is so much that depends on the specifics of your property and situation that’s it hard to give you detailed insight.

In general, you stand to make a little more money renting the rooms individually. I never thought the extra work was worth the difference. Between the deposits, the dispute resolving, the he said/she said game, and the move-out accountability, I much prefer using a solid lease, with tenants who know each other, for a year at a time. 

Are you going to manage it from a distance yourself or use a PM?

If you need suggestions on good ones in the area, please shoot me a message and I’ll give you some advice. 

Thanks,

Mathew

Jackie, sorry you’re having trouble and not getting any support from your current PM.  

I’ve got a guy for you. 

Dan Hayes

Real Property Management Solutions. 

I sold him my Property Management business a couple years ago and his team has been managing my rentals since then. I’ve been really happy with the work they do and their communication. I can’t speak to price, but like so much in life, I’ve found that you get what you pay for. 

If you’re interested, shoot me a message and I’ll get you his contact info. 

If I can be of any help to you, let me know! 

Mathew

Hello Yong,

It sounds like you’ve got a good plan and solid, achievable, well thought out goals. The fact that you’ve already taken steps to invest in syndications is a big one. 

I lived in Long Beach for awhile in the early 2000s and my Marine reserve unit was out of Seal Beach, it’s a really nice area! I ended up back home in Portland, where I started investing in rental properties and had my own property management company. I became a licensed broker in Oregon so I can help potential investors like you gather data and make decisions that fit your plan and further your goals. 

Since you’re familiar with the Portland area because of your family connections, I’m sure you know that we don’t cash-flow in the same way that the Midwest markets you mentioned do. At the same time, there are many benefits to investing here, not the least of which is the proximity to your family. 

If I can be of any assistance, please let me know and whatever you decide, good luck! 

Mathew

I agree! I think there are far larger concerns in the city if the pursuit of “safety” is our goal. Installing sidewalks east of the 205, improving the dismal drop out rate, actually preparing for snow instead of waiting for it to happen, staffing the police, opening Wapato as a shelter, dealing with the homeless/heroin/opioid crisis instead of wishing it away or playing the blame game-any of these would actually improve safety in the city.  

Yeah, losing one lane in each direction will be rough. I don’t know how left turns will work...are they going to eliminate the turn outs too? If so, that’ll just block traffic even worse.  

Morning Kevin,

1. Heck, we need infrastructure work all over the city! Why Foster? I believe a couple of things are at work here. Politics (east Portland has long been neglected in the eyes of many residents.) There’s also safety-I  believe there have been multiple crashes with bicycle/pedestrian fatalities. Also, I think they’re thinking that it will encourage growth and development and generate more property tax revenues, quicker than comparable projects close-in where the yearly caps are already being met. These are just a number of ideas that have been tossed around in casual conversation with friends who live in the area, I’m not an expert on city development/planning!

2. Yup. It’s going to be brutal losing a lane on an already crowded arterial. 

3. Nope. Unless the businesses can tie it to a larger social issue, I don’t think the council will want to hear any dissenting views.