All Forum Posts by: Peter K.

Sellers will play games. I bought a Wells Fargo foreclosure this year and expected a bidding war. My offer was full price and they asked for highest and best. I did not up my offer and still got it. I wondered if there actually were any other offers. Last week I wrote for over ask on a highest and best request and didn't get it. That one was priced low. As was said above, write an offer you can live with either way. If you have studied the market enough you should be able to determine what that number is. Either way, good luck!

I'm going to miss this one too, but hope to make it to a Milwaukee meetup soon.

They are both good investments, but have different benefits and drawbacks. I love SFR's here in Milwaukee because they are cheap to buy, I can have the tenants pay the water bill, maintain the lawn, and own their own appliances, tenants stay longer, and you have the ability to sell to another landlord or to an owner occupant when it's time to move on. Perhaps my favorite part is I never have to listen to complaints about other tenants in the building.

On the flip side, every unit has its own roof, tax bill, etc. to maintain.  

Multis are great in that you have several units under one roof so it's easier to keep an eye on and maintain and building a portfolio takes less transactions.

My plan is to keep buying both.  If the market and my experience steer me toward one or the other, then I'll adapt and keep moving forward.

Have a chimney company or two come take a look.  That chimney needs to be taken down for sure, but the chimney company will be able to examine the liner and tell you if it is in good shape or not.  Have them give you a bid for taking the chimney down below roof level and replacing it with a B Vent.  It's essentially just a metal pipe with a rodent and water proof cap on it.  

I had one done this summer on a house where the chimney was shot but the liner was in good shape, and it was under $500.  I've got another one that I'm having done in spring where the liner is shot, and it's closer to $1k.  

With this info you may be in a better position to evaluate whether it's worth replacing the water heaters. 

I'd like to talk to him too. 

Hi Kou,

What part of town is the house in?

This is a pet peave of mine too. As landlords we need to work together to reinforce good tenant behavior and punish bad behavior.  

I'm happy to answer objective questions as my records support my answers. The questions I ask are the same for every application I screen and allow for objective answers so I am not putting the former landlord in a difficult situation.

I don't tell turn downs why they didn't pass the screening process and you shouldn't either. With this approach we can work together to protect our investments and income. Let the deadbeat tenants rent from unprofessional landlords who don't screen well. 

Good plan Tim.  I'm sure it will change over time, but good start.

Regarding the loans, you actually have the ability to get more than four loans.  Freddie recently changed their guidelines to allow up to 6 financed properties, and a lender who can place loans direct with Fannie can do up to 10 financed properties.  Beyond that, you can just go to commercial loans, though they won't be 30 year fixed products.

If you plan to have kids, get ready to spend a ton of money.  My wife and I both work full time and my daycare bills have far exceeded my mortgage payment for the last couple years!

Thanks for the positive feedback everyone.  Now that this one is up and running I'm looking for another one!

@Moises Guerrero it's on the northwest side, between Villard and Silver Spring.

If the numbers work, the numbers work!  Nothing wrong with buying a property that is ready I rent as is.