All Forum Posts by: Patrick M.

@Gail K. We did 2 of our units with the grip strip. I enjoyed working with it and it does hold up.

Lifeproof @ HD. Love the stuff. $2.99 a square foot, if you buy a pallet you get 5% off, And if you are a vet: 10% off.

We love it so much we shipped a bunch overseas to do apartments... Contractors in Europe were blown away with the quality.

I would not rent to a person with 2 cats who views (and likely treats) my rental as temporary housing and could care less about what I think of her (referral). The potential tenant is all but telling you that you have zero influence on her... and 2 cats! Yikes.

Have to agree with @Nathan Gesner. 

I am doing just fine in a state that has one of the most, if not the most, favorable tenant regimes, by governance, statute and court.

I don't blame my misfortunes on whatever political party is in power. I control what I can control and strive to do my best. From maintenance to screening to saving.

So far many of my newer tenants who have fled the city enjoy the way that I operate vs. the corporate landlords they left... I suspect that will be a selling point as both political parties try to hand over more inventory to the bigger players.

It reminds me of that viral meme interview:"Sir, what will you do if you win the lottery?"

"Cocaine and hookers!"

@Naomi Moore the bottom line is that you should not be throwing everything you have into a new venture even if you have all of the book smarts in the world. We all have to deal with the risk in its various forms, depending on the investment, and you may not have the stomach for it- be it tenants, property managers or neighbors.

I would get a handle on you finances with the "wealth management group" and see if you are really making out better then you would be managing your own wealth through indexes. You should know what markets your money is deployed in- not just "guessing"

Good luck. 

I am hesitant to reply to this because the original post lacks the financial sophistication of someone who knows how to earn and deploy money. Nevertheless, this is what I would recommend:

Take $3,700,000 and put it into a vanguard index fund that tracks the whole market or the S&P 500. I would then take $50,000 and open a business account. I would look to deploy no greater than $150,000 on an investment property and have $100,000 in savings.

You will have found yourself in a far-far better starting position then the majority of millionaire property investors on here. And as we all know- success breeds the drive and desire to find more properties and opportunities. But if you fail you can move on to other endeavors, and as someone pointed out- you will have still earned in the market.

Compound interest

Regardless of your real estate investments/holdings... regularly save and invest in a  low cost (by definition) index fund.

Appreciation for compound interest is wasted on the old!

The easiest utility to have transferred to a tenant and have attach to a tenant is the electric. Including water and heat is one thing- and a huge selling point, but I don't see the plus in all of the extra work to ensure someone is responsibly using electric? Just have it run in their name.

I have friends that rent out houses to multiple students and they just have the electric run in one, "head" students name and they divvy it up... It gets paid that way.

As for the water, I think you are going overkill a bit. A conservation, personal shower head makes showers end quicker then a fixed one (easy to rinse). How much is your water? I pay a fortune for water, have implemented many cost saving features... but my best was inserting a pressure regulator, (after seeing a kitchen faucet jump) Saves on the life pipes and cuts down on the amount of water released per second. The pressure on mine was through the roof... Perhaps check yours.

Personally- If I had to do over again I would have done my own house in Lifeproof Luxury Vinyl Floor Planks... And we did do it to our vacation apartment. F' hardwood, it is a relic of the past. Things that stand out or that I have otherwise heard in a showing:

Stainless steel appliances

Ceiling fans

Closet/storage space

personal showerheads

those detachable kitchen faucet heads- we use Moen

We did those radiator towel hangers in a couple of apartments... meh

We do all granite, we have a good connect... I don't think it is the selling point it may have been if you have the kitchen otherwise appointed... and we always do backsplashes in the kitchen and half tiled bathroom walls.