All Forum Posts by: Rich Riesmeyer

The popcorn ceiling in our new house is cracked in spots. The house had been vacant for a year or so. I thought I could just chip off the loose spots and retexture. But it is almost literally falling off. The drywall wasn't primed so the only popcorn that is sticking is on the joint compound. This stuff has been painted previously and is very easy to scrape off. Should I be worried about excess moisture in the drywall? Or just prime it and re-apply? Any help is appreciated....

Just closed on my first property on Mon. Its a HUD house. The property condition report on the HUD site listed the heat and A/C as OK. I was quite surprised today to find that the in the house half was not connected to the outside half of the system. The good news is the inside part of the system is brand new. Manufactured about 9 months ago, the house had been vacant for over a year. Looks like HUD started to replace the system but didn't finish. I should have had an inspection done myself, but with the elec. power turned off I didn't think it would reveal anything I couldn't see already. My mistake..... Does anyone think I have any recourse on HUD. I expect to hear buyer beware, but I welcome any comments. Since I can do this work myself, its not the end of the world, just an expense and delay I could have done without.

OK, I'm convinced, this many investors can't be wrong.... Just glad this forum exists, it would be much more difficult to find the voice of experience without it.

Hi folks. I finally found my first rental property. It is a single family home in a subdivision, about 35 years old. It is a HUD property. All cash deal, $52000. This being a HUD home, in a subdivision, with our attorney doing the title search, I'm having a hard time believing that there might be a problem with the title. Is title ins. really worth it? I know its only a small premium, but it seems like a lot to cover such an unlikely possibility. Looking for your input, what would you do?

To clarify, that is $625 each side, tenant pays electric and gas. Taxes run about $2400 per year and my agent quoted ins at $300 per year. Units need no renovation to speak of, just normal paint and so on before a new tenant moves in. $85k is the total price. Payment, insurance and taxes I calculate at just about $6000 per year. Does this sound reasonable, or am I paying too much?

Looking to buy a duplex, both sides currently rented at $625 per mo. We will be putting $20K down and financing $65000. I will manage the property myself. Payment, insurance, and tax total $6000 per yr. If I am applying the 50% rule correctly, that means $1500 per year cash flow. Have I got that right? Does it sound like a decent deal?

Thanks for the reply. We will use an attorney for the first one I guess. Care to share some info on what goes into an operating agreement? We are rookies and it would be good to know a little something before we talk to the attorney.

About to buy our first property, with more to come, we hope. Should I attempt to file the LLC paperwork without an attorney? Filing seems straight forward, but what do I need to put into the operating agreement? Can my wife and I both be managing members?

I understand that LLC's must have separate bank accounts. Would protection still be achieved if the LLC's had similar names and the same mailing address? Such as Smith A LLC for one property and Smith B LLC for another, both receiving mail at Smith LLC PO box.

How is money from the LLC bank account passed thru to me?

All replies are appreciated.

Thanks, the name of a knowledgeable realtor would be great.

New investor here, with the first of many questions....

I am considering buying a property to rehab and rent, using my home equity line of credit. I understand that banks want to see at least 6 mo. rental history before they would refinance. During the 6-8 mo. before I finance the rental, is there a way to use the principle and interest on the home equity line to offset the income from the rental? Hope this questions makes sense.....

Also, what is a good accounting software to use to keep track of rental income and expenses?