All Forum Posts by: Matt Romano

Just a quick update.  I've since gotten a quote from Lowes for the Shaker style cabinets in my 7' X 10' kitchen. Roughly $900 for all the cabinets (base cabinets only, no wall cabinets for this project).  Although Lowes pre assembled cabinets do seem a little sturdier than Home Depots, they're still vinyl wrapped MDF, not painted. So longevity / durability is still a slight concern there.  I went to this "Remodelers Outlet" store in Fall River MA, and they offer cabinets from a brand called Wolf.  I priced out the same style (Shaker) in the same kitchen configuration, except these cabinets are all plywood construction, already painted white, and soft close doors and drawers, all for about $1900.  I am now trying to decide if its worth the extra $1000 for the upgrade with full solid wood, painted, AND soft close.  I am leaning towards yes, especially because I will be living in this unit for a couple of years (2-3 Max). It is only a 1/1 apartment.  But I think it may be worth the extra 1k in the long run.  Thoughts on this guys?  And while I'm at it, I might as well ask this too.  I can get Formica and DIY for around $500 for the 26 sq/ft countertop.  Or around $1500 for granite and they install w/ a new sink.  Is THAT worth the extra 1k?  I'm honestly not crazy about granite.  But I know its in, and may yield higher rents in the future? Thanks as always BP!

My speculation is that the ROI would be greater by looking for an extra room in a unit. Moving a wall, adding a closet, and likely not having to deal with electrical and plumbing would be MUCH cheaper than adding an entire unit. The extra $100+ / mo would pay off in no time. I see more value in that personally :) I have a 1 bed 1 bath that I'm renovating right now. And was pretty close too making it a 2/1. But with a 500 sq/ft apartment, bedrooms would've been just too small, I think I would have a hard time renting. So it'll remain as is. But for future in my case, I'll definitely keep my eyes peeled more for hidden rooms.

Loving all this feedback. Thank you so much guys!

I'm leaning towards using the Hampton Bay off the shelf cabinets (White) that Home Depot sells.  I am well aware, that they are of much cheaper quality than other options.  But, thats the whole point, its for a rental, I'll be able to have a full set of base cabinets for less than $900.  Cant really beat that!  Just wondering if anyone has had good luck with them in rental units, or what your thoughts on other options may be. thanks as always! 

@Calvin Matthes Welcome to BP, and congrats on setting your first big real estate goal.  I'm a neighbor of yours right here in Warren RI.  And I've just purchased my first rental property this past summer.  I'd love to connect over lunch sometime and help out in any way I can.  Send me a PM if you'd like. 

I'm really looking forward to this seminar.  When Rick announced this at the last REIG meeting, I was thrilled.  We're so fortunate to have these resources. See you there @Jimmy Murray 

I've recently purchased my first 2 family home, and it has only one heating system. There are 2 electrical services, but only one gas and water meter.  I'll be occupying the much smaller upstairs unit on this up / down style property.  I am strongly leaning towards doing an electric heating system for the upstairs apartment. currently there's a gas boiler with the old cast iron radiator steam heat.  And as far as I'm concerned, this is a pretty efficient type of heat, however, the 1930's home isn't very well insulated.  And the average monthly heating bill comes out to around $200 / mo.  (so around $60-$80 in the warmer months and upwards of $300+ in the cold winter) I'm in New England btw, so we do get cold winters.  

I could get this done for roughly $4000.  Between the electric base-boards themselves, the electric water heater, wiring / some piping etc.  I will only be living in the property for less than 2 years. So to have the gas bill in the first floor tenants name, and have the only landlord responsible utility being water, I think its a no brainer.  I just want to hear some other peoples opinions on the matter!

Also, simply out of curiosity, how many of your properties have separately metered water? Its not TOO common where I live.  Although, there are some older properties, typically larger multi-families (4+) where it is separate. I know the most ideal scenario is to have ALL the utilities in the tenants name.  And I've heard of partial utility billing to the tenants (on single metered water mainly) is this something that is pretty typical in certain areas? Or with much larger buildings perhaps? 

-Matt

Tons of interesting viewpoints on this matter.  I really like the concept of using cash for other purchases, rather than the pay down on this particular property.  I'll be living in one of the units for probably 2 years.  But once its fully rented, let the tenants pay off my mortgage. Thanks for all the insight!

           Good morning BP! This question has been a curiosity of mine since I've purchased my first property this past July!  I Used a conventional loan and went in with 20% down already.  My question is how do you guys typically structure your loan pay down?  I was told by the first lender I spoke with that if you make ONE additional P&I payment a year (whether in one lump sum, or spread out throughout the year), you shave off nearly 7 years of the 30 year mortgage term.  Now this honestly my first time ever really financing anything in my life (other than a few years worth of student loans and tool loans for my current job).  And I always paid more than the minimum (i.e.: towards the principle) and thus paid off the loan sooner than allowed.  In my eyes, this is seemingly a great strategy because you end up paying less in interest / less all together.  I'm under the impression that the strategy would follow true with my recent mortgage. Ive made 4 mortgage payments so far, and have paid an additional $500 towards the principle each month. If I were continuous with this pay down method, I feel like I could have this mortgage paid off in nearly 15-20 years instead of 30.   Are there any disadvantages to paying a decent amount towards the principle each month? really curious to hear peoples opinions about this, and hear about what they find to be the best strategy in loan pay down! thanks in advance everyone!!!  :)

WOW, what an insane start to your real estate career man. That is seemingly very discouraging, but its pretty clear that you're keeping your head up, and thats exactly what you need to do. Bigger Pockets is an incredible resource for information, networking, and in this case, encouragement. I believe a lot in philosophy, and as the clique goes "everything happens for a reason". I feel that strongly applies to this situation. Whether its a better opportunity for property, or a hidden reason to why that wouldn't have been best for you in the long-run. Let the search continue, and stay positive throughout the process. Overcoming something like this as a first experience, will make future deals and conditions seem like a walk in the park. Good luck to your REI career ahead @Benjamin DuPont