All Forum Posts by: Rick Albert

What do you mean by power lines going over? If you are talking about from the pole to the house, then that's an easy fix. Just run the line to the ADU, and then trench the rest of the line to the main house. That's what I did.

If you are talking about the city poles going over the ADU, then historically that was a no go on converting a garage or building of any kind under any circumstances. In 2023 they made many changes to the building code so you really need to consult with an ADU architect that knows the code inside and out.

Hey Chabeli,

Welcome to the BP community! This is a great place to start and you can make some great connections as an architect.

Happy to help where I can.

Best,

Rick

I tend to agree. 

I also tell people the following:

-If we have another crash like 2008, we have far bigger problems than you finding a deal.

-People who bought at the height of the market in 2008 are actually doing better than anyone buying today assuming they kept the property. They would be almost 2/3 of the way done with their mortgage and the value most likely has surpassed what they paid for it.

-Don't buy now, I'll take the deals for me and my clients. I don't need the competition. 

Ty answered most of it. The only caveat is you are only allowed one active FHA loan per customer. This means you would need to refinance the current house into a conventional loan before you can get another FHA loan.

That's a great question. I would ask your insurance carrier since you don't own the property anymore. I would also look up the statue of limitations for the tenants to come after you.

This might be a personal liability insurance question. Even an umbrella policy has to tie to a property initially.

A better question is do they have the right to stay there during the summer? Can they just show up randomly and stay there for a week?

I could make an argument that if they have the right to stay there, then they should pay. It is their choice to go home for the summer. Good news is that the bills will be extremely low.

You are not the first person to bring this up. I'm not an attorney but an argument can be made that it is only one family per household. With that said, on a practical basis I have NEVER heard of anyone enforcing it. The City of LA is short housing and having roommates is common. I do have to say that anything can happen. 

If it isn't subject to any laws, then there isn't any registering to do. 

Also, just an FYI if the condo/townhouse was built prior to 1978, it is likely subject to Los Angeles Rent Control. Most Realtors don't know this. Pull up the address on Zimas.LACity.Org and you can see on the left hand side under the "Housing" tab.

Are you allowed to do short term rentals in your condo? Most don't allow it. If that is the case, then I'm not sure any insurance carrier will cover you because you are violating the rules. Remember: Insurance companies want you to pay the bill and when it comes to their turn, will do everything they can to NOT pay.

I would get clear on that piece before proceeding further.

Hello!

I am in escrow on two multifamily properties in St. Louis and need vendors. I would love any recommendations.

This includes but not limited to:

-Electrician: One property has knob and tube wiring

-Roof: Some minor issues

-Foundation

Thank you!

Quote from @Vera Shokina:

Quote from @Rick Albert:

Neither, you need to dig into each sale yourself. The problem is these are automated values that don't factor things in like views, condition, or even if one block of homes sells for more or less than another. 

Thank you Rick and it makes sense.  I was curious if any of these companies have a better algorithm factoring these nuances.  The algorithms are different but consistent. Zillow always gives higher price than Redfin, irrespective of the neighborliness and condition of the house.

It can't for a couple of reasons. The first is they can only evaluate a property based on information provided. For example, Zillow does a horrible evaluation of my home because it doesn't factor in the fact that I spent over $200K in an addition, full remodel, and a garage conversion into an ADU. 

The second is the emotional factor. For example two properties could be in the same zip code, but one street is horrible and the other sells for a premium. Zillow would likely just do a radius and call it a day. Another is emotional factors such as views. Two properties can have views. One could be a dead on city view and the other partial. That can change the value but the AVM models can't factor that in.