All Forum Posts by: Sharon Tzib

I refer all my Houston investor clients to @Jerry Ta. He's got great service at very affordable rates, which helps your bottom line :) He covers most of greater Houston.

http://www.har.com/content/newsroom

Houston Real Estate Highlights in March:

• Single-family home sales declined 2.2 percent compared to last March;
• On a year-to-date basis, single-family home sales are up 1.0 percent;
• Total property sales declined 1.0 percent to 7,375 units;
• Total dollar volume fell 2.5 percent to $1.9 billion;
• At 272,658, the single-family home average price was down 1.6 percent compared to last March;
• The single-family home median price rose 2.4 percent year-over-year to an all-time March high of $215,000;
• Single-family homes months of inventory climbed to a 3.6-months supply versus 2.8 months a year earlier;
• Townhomes/condominium sales rose 1.9 percent with the average price down 2.0 percent to $193,483 and the median price up 4.9 percent to $150,000;
• Leases of single-family homes climbed 9.0 percent with rents up a fractional 0.6 percent to $1,736;
• Leases of townhomes/condominiums rose 7.4 percent with rents up 1.7 percent to $1,596.

Hey @Katie Brewer! My husband is from San Ignacio and I lived there for 2+ years (I also lived in Placencia and Ambergris Caye). I really like the Cayo District a lot. Very affordable, super nice people (both locals and expats), close proximity to rivers, rainforests and ruins, as well as the Guatemala border for shopping and medical runs. My husband is there right now visiting family :) Glad you enjoyed it.

Hi @Vincent Grant! I highly recommend @Jerry Ta. I refer all my clients to him and they are very happy with his service and reasonable rates.

Definitely take the conventional. I have a FHA transaction right now where the FHA appraiser demanded the foundation be inspected and the drainage around the property be upgraded prior to close. We had already had the foundation inspected and a credit back to the buyer agreed to prior to this, but the lender is demanding the repairs be done before closing, so this will delay closing at least ten days. With a conventional lender, the buyer could take the credit and perform the work themselves after close. If an FHA appraiser feels there are any major defects to the home, you will be thrust back into negotiations, and this is generally after the option period has passed. Not fun!

http://www.har.com/content/newsroom

Highlights:

• Single-family home sales rose 2.2 percent compared to last February, marking the first increase since September 2015;
• Total property sales were unchanged at 5,548 units;
• Total dollar volume increased 1.2 percent to $1.4 billion;
• At 260,872, the single-family home average price reached its highest level ever for a February;
• The single-family home median price was unchanged from a year earlier at $200,000;
• Single-family homes months of inventory climbed to a 3.4-months supply versus 2.7 months a year earlier;
• Townhomes/condominium sales fell 17.8 percent with the average price down 1.3 percent at $199,205 and the median price up 2.8 percent to $150,000;
• Leases of single-family homes soared 14.6 percent with rents up a fractional 0.6 percent at $1,688;
• Leases of townhomes/condominiums climbed 10.3 percent with rents up 2.5 percent to $1,545.

#2 is standard industry wide, so you will have a hard time finding a PM who will do it for less. Also, in Houston, PMs cooperate w/ realtors to find tenants for you, so half of that may not even go to the PM, so keep that in mind. But even if it did, it is a tremendous amount of work finding a "Qualified" tenant for a rental. Basically, the property is like a mini-listing, only it's not for sale. PMs still have to photograph it, list it on HAR, respond to all the inquiries, weed out the non-desirables (which there are plenty of, trust me), show the unit, accept the application, screen the tenant, prepare the lease, coordinate receiving the funds, and handing off the home to the new tenant(s). I don't think one month's rent is in any way usurious for that amount of work.

#1 is definitely negotiable, but the main purpose there is to allow a PM to quickly respond to tenant complaints without having to try to reach you and get your approval on every little thing. This provides better customer service to the tenant (never forget, they are your customer, this is a business). If, however, you find a PM that is constantly abusing the trust you are giving them by allowing this, time for a new PM.

#3 is also negotiable, but may be area specific too. I know for my Indy rentals, I pay 25%, which includes an annual home inspection by the PM at the time of signing the renewal.

Lastly, I highly recommend @Jerry Ta. He is who I refer all of my investor clients to, does a great job, and I believe has very fair rates. I'd take him up on his offer.

Most offers in Houston are made electronically and Option Fee/EMD is not due, unless the seller expressly requires it to be, until the offer is accepted. Lots of banks like to see a copy of the EMD check with the offer if it is a foreclosure situation, but for the majority of offers I write, it is dealt with post-acceptance. As a side note, also, most banks will give you an inspection contingency period, but they do not want to collect any option money at all.

Hi @Kaz Lawal. I work w/ buy and hold investors, and have been one myself for years. I'll PM you my details. Welcome to BP!

You are going to need to have reserves to get your career going regardless of which way you decide to go. It can take two solid years of prospecting, marketing and hard work to get really established in residential real estate, unless you have a large sphere of influence ready, willing, and able to give you business and referrals. I'm sure commercial has its start-up phase as well.

At first blush, your background makes this offer seem like a great fit for you. And the hospitality industry in Houston is booming right now. The convention center saw record bookings last year and project even better in 2016. 

Fred is right though. Only you can make the decision about what is right for you.