All Forum Posts by: Nathan Gesner

Leads for what? Tenants? Sellers? Women that like fast cars and Thai food?

You don't need to hit a home run but you also don't need to get yourself into a financial bind that can derail your entire plan for investing. Wait for the right deal to come along.

Educate yourself on how to:

1. Find deals

2. Finance the deals

3. Manage the deals

Do you have an agent lined up to work with? Are you going to house hack? Invest in single-family or multi-family? What loan options are available and which lender will you use? Once it's purchased, how will you market, screen applications, and deal with problems like late rent, lease violations, unauthorized pets, etc?

Prepare as much as you can!

I think the market is ready for a correction but not a major crash. Rent rates and property values have increased dramatically over the last 8-10 years and it's not sustainable. A ton of new investors are jumping on rental property and we have new construction which is going to eventually saturate the market.

I predict it will slow in a year or so. I also expect a lot of newer investors to scatter in the next few years as they start to deal with rent reductions, less cash flow, tenant difficulties, etc.

Congratulations on your purchase, @Debbie Ream!

Sales contracts already include provisions to protect the earnest money. There should be an inspection phase where you can inspect the property, contracts, and other aspects to determine if the property is as advertised. There is a clause letting you out if you don't obtain the financing you desired, or if there are faults with the Title, or if the property doesn't appraise for the purchase price.

If you talk to a good agent, they can explain all this to you.

I recommend you find a real estate investors group in your area where you can network with local investors. You can learn a lot about the business through them and they can help you find agents, lenders, contractors, and deals.

@Wayne Brooks he's been posting his story like crazy. He found a tenant that really, really, really wants to rent the place so she can foster more kids. She may have lied on her application but I don't think that's important.

Tenant put money down in September and has already moved stuff in but is not living there. Water is leaking into the home and causing damages, possibly mold, so Aaron is working with contractors but they can't figure it out and stop the water. Tenant still insists she wants to rent the place and Aaron is afraid she will sue him if he terminates the contract.

I advised him to have the home deemed uninhabitable, tell the tenant to remove her stuff, and refund the deposit and any unused portion of rent. It sounds like he gave her notice and now wants to foreclose on the home and be done with it.

My problem with the latest technology is that it's an unproven technology and it can easily be replaced in 5 - 10 years with something even better, easier, and cheaper. Have you looked at www.landlordlocks.com? 

You can save a ton by using window units and requiring tenants to provide their own. As far as longevity, I see no issues with window units failing faster than central A/C. My big problem with window units is that tenants may cause damage during installation/removal and they don't look very nice sticking out of the window.