All Forum Posts by: Roy Gutierrez

Hi guys,

I have a house in Michigan (Oakland County), I'm getting decent rent $1,100 and was planning to have this house rented for as long as possible but with my parents getting older (they're in South Floria) I've been thinking of maybe investing in a property there (probably a vacation rental). Lately I've been hearing that the prices in my area have gone up higher than expected (Oakland County MI) and it's a total seller's market.

Here's my dilemma, the house is right at the exit ramp from the highway and getting out of the house is a hassle, when leaving the house usually you have to back up carefully to avoid all the cars exiting the highway, basically it's the house with the worse spot to get the car out of the house, my thinking was it should still be easy to rent because it's close to Royal Oak (hot city) and some young professionals will live with it because of the location and it's not their investment to stay there for a long time and that turned out to be true, had no problems finding a renter. The problem is that if I decide to sell and the parking situation turns out to be to much of an issue then I might have to sell for less than expected (or not sell and go back to renting) but this experiment could potentially cost me 3-4k because I lose my renter, need to fix up the place and find a new one.

Anyone else have this dilemma? I put the house in Zillow on Make Me Move yesterday but I'm about to take it down because I don't want anyone passing by the house and asking my renters if they're selling, not good. Talked to my realtor, she says it's a hot market and my price should sell but she would have to get into the house to give me a better estimate and because of the parking issue sellers might hardball to get discounts, it's just a complicated issue. My last option is to forget about selling and keep milking the cow.

How do you guys handle this type of issue? Any advice? 

Thank you!

I proposed to my previous tenant dates and times to show the house, if I remember correctly it was also 3 days during a particular week and since there was a lot of demand I told her I would show the house 1 more time after that and that would be the end. I didn't feel comfortable asking for more, they're paying me rent to be able to have a "normal" house and I'm very conscious that since I was able to show the house and I didn't want to abuse this fact, if you have demand you won't need more than 3 evenings to find a quality tenant with the right pricing. I actually wanted her to be in the house (for security reasons) but she didn't want to be there and it was nerve wracking because she left her jewelry all over her bedroom and I had to be extra careful (especially with bigger groups) so nothing got stolen.

To add to what Patrick said, if you can buy a house and you're living in it I would rent as many rooms as possible on airbnb and squeeze the profits, if you do it the right way it could cover your mortgage and then some.

@Eric DeVito, check airbnbn.com and homeaway.com and see the listings in your area, I have successfull vacation rentals in residential areas and people ask me, "do people really rent in xxxxxxxxx area????" basically they're quite surprised that anyone rents vacation rentals in my area, the only sure way is to list your property and see how many people inquire about booking, that's what happened to me, the amount of replies surprised me, I was planning of giving it a one month trial and it's 1 1/2 years later. I checked on airbnb and there's plenty.

If you're going to rent and it's already furnished have you thought of making it a vacation rental? More hands on but more profitable, flexibility if you need to move back in anytime.

Hi guys,

I have a friend that is renting out a home in Oak Park MI, this family moved in about 2-3 months ago, he took money for a security deposit and I imagine they have paid rent for the months they've been there, about a month ago he told me the renters were complaining about some things and they decided that it wasn't working out so they mutually agreed on a move out date, which is supposed to be today, so he talked to them today and the renters want their deposit back tomorrow, he's worried that they had done damage so he hasn't been clear with the renters when he's going to be giving the deposit back which I told him it's a mistake since it's better to not anger them and just to get them out asap, to complicate matters he said there's no signed agreement! Very interesting!

So in the worse case that they decide that they will not leave what are the options in evicting someone with no signed contract? Of course he needs to talk to a lawyer just want a little feedback from the pros here, I imagine all the utilities are under the renter's names.

Thank you.

Hi,

I started investing in 2012, accidental investor but here I am, I have 5 properties, 2 long term rentals, 2 vacation rentals, and my own home. I quit my job to keep my sanity so now I depend on my houses and some work on the side, was out of the loop for a year and a half, saw a great property and that got me curious again to keep investing, would like to know about my options as far as financing. I know not having a regular job is going to hurt me a lot, my 2 long time rentals are more than 2 years so I can count on that income to be counted, my vacation rentals are 1 1/2 years so not sure how that's going to play out with certain banks. I have 3 mortgages, 51K, 56K, 122K, (the 122k is FHA) and a SBA loan 31K against one of my properties, so only 1 property free and clear (rental), and probably have around 25K for a downpayment.

As an example, a house that I looked at is a huge house but needs a ton of work, I would try to get the property for around 65K-75K, and probably spend around 130K for rehabbing (would love to turn this one as a vacation rental!),I wouldn't mind buying it as an owner occupant, I would just move there, ideally I would like to get a loan that includes the rehabbing amount. 

What are my options? if not to good, I guess partnering could also be a possibility.

Thank you!

Are you forced to upgrade each time a new version comes out? If so how's the 2016 version?

Thanks

Hi @Daniel Hyman,

Thank you for the response, I read thru a lot of them, doesn't seem to exist anything that is hitting that sweet spot for the real estate investors with less than 10 properties, seemed Rental Property Manager might fit the bill but the reviews are not that good. Software changes are occurring all the time and so a lot of older posts could very have outdated info, surpassed with newer/better versions, newer products (hopefully!). 

Hi guys,

I have 5 properties under my belt, 2 long term rentals and 2 vacations rentals, and my house a part time VR. I don't figure to increase to much in the next few years (my 5-10 year plan is to increase to 10 if I find the right deals). I'm considering purchasing accounting software as opposed to using spreadsheets. It doesn't seem to me that I need something as advanced as Quickbooks, was thinking about Quicken 2016 Rental Property Manager which by the name seems well suited to the Real Estate business but the reviews are less than stellar (mostly software instability issues). What is the latest and greatest in the accounting software world that works well for a landlord trying to manage < 10 properties? Any software with new versions that are worth considering?

Thank you!