All Forum Posts by: Philip Johnson

Not everything on an old house to be completely replaced. Roofs can be repaired as needed. Cracked paint can be painted over and disclose lead to your renters. Most foundations get cracks in areas with trees or lots of rain. Fill them with concrete gap filler.

Most people spend more than they need to on a rehab. Like removing entire walls for example when mold is found instead of isolating the cause and replacing just what is needed followed by mold paint.

That being said I do an extremely nice job on mine, $30,000 diy with some Craigslist help here and there. 

Not everything on an old house to be completely replaced. Roofs can be repaired as needed. Cracked paint can be painted over and disclose lead to your renters. Most foundations get cracks in areas with trees or lots of rain. Fill them with concrete gap filler.

Most people spend more than they need to on a rehab. Like removing entire walls for example when mold is found instead of isolating the cause and replacing just what is needed followed by mold paint.

That being said I do an extremely nice job on mine, $30,000 diy with some Craigslist help here and there. 

  What is this about Morris invest being a fraud ? I like his YouTube channel. 

I'll check those out for my next place.  Right now I'm in Eureka , CA though with spectacular weather so I'll plant something a bit more exotic in my current job :D Rhododendrons grow naturally here with no watering! 

Mf syndicating sounds pretty cool to start with. But I'd get experience first. Pickup one SF that you can net a few hundred off and see if you like it. This business isn't for everyone. If you don't have any time you'll have to hire rehab out.do you already own your own home ? I'd start there. 

 Gotcha. Yes these $30,000 homes are tempting. I was looking in witchita and still am. But I like California because it's where I am and property values are quite high. Enabling me to get to the $500 easier and also take out more money when needed. 

I have an agent already. But these days recurring customers seem to get charged more than new customers. If I remember I'll reach out ! 

First plant some trees then worry about the rest. Find some fast growers that are hardy in your area. They will help you down the road, enabling you to put more sensitive plants in and more importantly water less. 

In California I like star jazmin. It fills in very quickly is extremely hardy and blooms twice a year. You can put sticks around it and it can grow as a vine. But it is not an invasive vine as it is not strong enough to grow up a fence or house. Star jaz is freeze tolerant.

Lawns are expensive but tenants like them. They're pretty and people do occasionally use them, kids all the time. 

I'd keep at least one lawn. Redesign the sprinklers ! Design it so you need only 2-4 sprinklers. You can do this by putting the 40 ft ones on the corners. Now you have reduced your expenses. Also plant a crawling grass in there they need less water but are hard to establish. St. Augustine is my favorite stay away from Bermuda. 

Plant trees in the lawns. Get a fast grower like maple or california sycamore. They have decent canopies and in 5 years you can reduce watering by 50-75 percent because the grass will be in the shade. 

Sure you might get roots into plumbing one day. But you are helping the environment and my only root repair on a property only cost $1000. They then put a root barrier around the pipe and it hasn't happened again. People also like trees so you get your money back. 

 Thanks, I have the same minimum. It is a very high number but when you calculate repairs and the time it takes to manage I love $500. 

But for this refi I need the cash. It is my first refi and I am currently rehabbing a live in rehab so I have a hole in my pocket. The $40,000 I plan on pulling out will be put towards an investment property, which I know will put another hole in my pocket but I I have $3500 excess cash flow after expenses so I can afford to fix as I go. 

So I will be left with $380 cash flow on the property I am refinancing, $320 after landscaping expenses. 

So my new rule is $300 for SF after refi and $250 per door on multi family after refi. 

How often do the $30000 incurrences happen? I am buying my multifamily in a C neighborhood.but relative to the area it is D. (Bad here is different than bad in LA). My other D property has the best cash flow of all so I don't know why people are scared of them.

Its kind of scary though.like too much risk in one property? I have room to refi all the other ones and take out about 30-40k