All Forum Posts by: Matthew Poff

Would you ever buy an apartment complex in an area with a population under 3,500 people?  It's within 20 minutes from a town with over 100,000.  

It would produce about $1,600/month in profit if fully rented.  

Thanks Solomon, the town is within reasonable proximity to a large university and hospital (about 20 miles away).  Do you still think it’s a large gamble?  

If I were you and just starting I would do either or both of these: Find a house or duplex you like and house hack it. If I weren’t married with 4 kids I would be using this strategy as much as I could! The other thing I would do would be to send out yellow letters, drive for dollars, etc. and find someone willing to sell their house below market. Then I would talk to friends and family to see if anyone wanted to invest in your deal. I think many people are intimidated to talk to their friends and family about investing but I also think a lot more people want to invest than you think. For example, I’ve been in real estate and investing for over 11 years know and just last year I was talking to my dad and he said, “I’d love to do that too but I just don’t know what to do.” He’s a doctor who’s about to retire too. Anyway, I’d find a great deal then find an investor to partner with. If you can’t find an investor their is always a hard money lender, credit cards, personal loans, etc. Where there’s a will there’s a way. Good luck to you! Can’t wait to hear your success stories!

Hello all, I am in need of some advise from all you multi-family experts out there. I have an opportunity to purchase a 10 unit apartment building and a 2 unit house. The details are: Purchase Price = $425,000 Repairs Needed = $50,000 Terms = Land Contract- 7.5% down at 6.25%-20 year am 5 year balloon. Potential Cashflow after PITI, vacancy, cap x, etc is $1,600/month. My issue is that the apartments are in a small town of only about 3,500 people. There is a good mix of some low, middle and high end apartments in this town. The current owner has lost some loved ones over the last few years and hasn’t had the units rented in over 3 years so there isn’t really any rental history. She has started to remodel some of the units and currently 7 of the 12 are rent ready. I should also note that she would be willing to give me some time to make the repairs before making a mortgage payment to her....like 60-120 days. My only real concern is having a good rental pool based on the low population. The nearest large town is about 25 minutes away. Has anyone dealt with this situation in the past or does anyone have any advise? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!!

I am somewhere between a veteran and newbie when it comes to real estate investing.  I started investing in 2012 and have owned 3 different rental homes (5 total units) at one time.  I am currently looking at purchasing 2 properties as a package deal.  One is an 11 unit building and the other is a 2 unit house.  Currently 7 of the 13 units are ready to be rented and the others need a little work.  

I can purchase the property for 7.5% down at 6% interest for 5 years at which time a balloon payment will be due.  My question is whether or not I should bring on a partner for this deal.  All in all I will need about $75,000 to buy and fix the property (which I do have with about $20,000 in reserves as well).  After all expenses (mortgage, taxes, ins., cap x, vacancies, etc) the property should cash flow about $1,700/month.  I have some experience and also know some construction.  My partner has pretty deep pockets but would still want to split everything 50/50.  I should also note that he owns a drywall company as well.  I am pretty well connected with repair guys, etc so honestly I would only be bringing someone on to split the burden...financially and otherwise.  Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.  

Thanks!

I haven't actually seen the bills but the owner has told me what he used to pay per year and it all seems accurate.  

I would be putting about $30k in to it so I don't anticipate there being a ton of repairs but I have estimated around $175/month for repairs and maintenance.  

I would also check the water bills!!

I have not but I did go and look at one recently that I was interested in buying and was shocked at the amount of "inner workings" of a car wash.  I was pretty overwhelmed when I saw how much was actually in a car wash.  I would definitely make sure the plumbing is good before I invest in it or make sure you have someone who can do the repairs that knows what they are doing.  

I am interested in buying a 4-unit property in my area.  The rents are/should be around $1,150, $725, $725 and $500....the property is currently vacant and has been for over a year.  Owner pays all expenses and utilities since none of the utilities are separated.    I would be putting around $25,00-$30,000 into the property of my own money plus 10% down payment.  I would have about $40,000 total invested into the property with repairs and down payment.  After all expenses are paid including mortgage, utilities, taxes and insurance it would cash flow around $1,000/month.  From what I can see it seems like a decent deal if I can get it for the right price.  I currently own 3 other rentals in the area but this would be the largest.  Am I missing anything or not considering anything?

Thanks!