All Forum Posts by: Paul S.

She should not be offering up tax advice. Right now I am seeing a lot of multi-family (Duplex) investors cashing out. When I run the numbers they don't make sense for new investors except maybe for house hacking. If you can't do a value add and raise the rents significantly then move on.  

Can you still afford to buy if interest rates go up 1 or 2 points? If the answer is yes, then wait. You will have more to choose from and less competition once covid fears subside and rates rise. Right now everyone and their mother is getting approved for loans with 3.5-5% down. If you get 10 of those people bidding on a house, it drives the price way up, but guess who ultimately wins? The all-cash buyer or the buyer with 20% or more down. 

You can't live inside a bitcoin. Enjoy the ride but diversify. 

You should read up on what lead to the 2008 crash, maybe watch the movie "The Big Short". I don't have time to go into it here but basically, they gave mortgages to people who should have never gotten them. We're not heading that way now, but historically rates and prices have correlated. When rates rise housing pricing will come back in check. Also more people will put money in the bank because it will actually pay them something vs. now (they are paying NOTHING now, maybe .5% on a 1 yr CD?). That's why you see a lot of people parking cash in real estate these past few years. 

Hey Cody, 

Ocean/Monmouth  vs. Atlantic and parts of Cape May (Places like Ventnor, Wildwood, etc). 

Greetings from NJ. I have a good buddy who lives in Redwood City. Can't believe the home prices out there. Anyway, just in general, you'll want to know what the units rent for and see if the investment makes sense. You'll need to know gross rents, insurance costs, taxes, and maintenance costs. Take maintenance with a grain of salt as those numbers change year to year. You'll also want to know about utilities. Does each unit pay their own utilities (water, gas, electric) or are there any shared utilities and who is responsible to pay?  Also when is the current lease up and how much are they currently paying? Is the current rent at market or below?

I would also ask if the tenants are up to date with their rent, the last thing you want to do is inherit a non-paying tenant. I have no clue what the laws are in CA but something tells me they are tenant friendly? 

If the deal gets serious you can ask for proof of rent payments, etc. You'll also want to find out what improvements the owner has done to the building, so you'll know what you're up against as far as maintenance is concerned. And finally, you'll want to get the building inspected by a licensed home inspector before moving to the final step of the deal. Sorry this is just a rambling mess but these are most of the things to look at, I'm sure I missed something and others will chime in.  

Cody what are your thoughts on the southern beaches vs the northern beaches. Seems to be big price differences. 

NJ is insanely hard right now. In my area, the best multi-family properties get scooped up for all cash, a person with a low down payment mortgage doesn't have a shot. Stop listening to podcasts, they are all people from out of state or people who bought at much lower prices after the 2008 crash. Shoot me a message and I can give you a few tips regarding your license use trying to find deals. 

 Shout out to Dixon Lake! Went fishing there last time I was in San Diego. Honestly I wouldn't pay any mind to what BP says if your numbers are working for you. 

I don't know where you are located but with rates this low and inventory down to historic levels, the MLS listings you speak of are either overpriced or have a defect or feature that is turning people off or some other issue such as tenants not allowing showings. Or the house could be under contract and the agent was too lazy to update the MLS. My advice, call an agent, see the properties and their condition and have your agent mine some MLS data and see what they come up with. Once you put an offer in, you'll really know what the seller's deal is and if they want to play ball.