All Forum Posts by: Robert Leitner

@Bob Okenwa, we share the same sentiment, thanks for the reply

@Lori Fentem, It's for a condo, single unit. I'm hearing demand for houses is high but inventory is low, would have thought fewer sales would result it appraisers sitting around - just my perception. Thanks for the reply. 

@Brad S., it's the same price I paid for a standard appraisal which is why I questioned it. You are correct, this is through a broker and it's for the loan company, but I had to approve it. They didn't stated desktop upfront, I didn't ask because I didn't know to ask, and when the appraisal came in significantly low I asked why. I will ask, or only approve based on it being a normal appraisal in the future since I'm paying for it. Thanks for the reply. 

Hi all, I was buying an investment property in Phoenix, which I backed out of today after learning of HOA restrictions. I contacted my broker and asked him to hold the appraisal, unfortunately found out today that I missed stopping it. My RE agent was confused because she said it was never scheduled, the broker told me it was a table top appraisal so it didn't need to be scheduled because they don't go in the property. I've never had a table top appraisal on any of my properties and I'm a little frustrated that I'm paying full appraisal price for something less than that. Not that it matters anymore because I backed out for other reasons, but the appraisal came in $58k, or 19% under selling price. It's a crazy market and I expected it might come in under, but comps even support something within 10% of the selling price. My questions regarding the appraisal-

1. 1. It was $585, does that seem high for a table top appraisal? (for Phoenix if it matters)
   
2. 2. Do they have to disclose that they’re doing a table top beforehand?

Thank you @Elizabeth Brown and @Bill Hampton. Yes, I am looking for someone that understands the tax laws in both CA and AZ, and want year round support for when I have questions or want to strategize as well as file taxes. Being local would be nice but not a requirement. 

Outside of the obvious that they must understand rental property and LLC, I'm not sure if there is other criteria I should be validating. My situation is that I'm fairly new to rental properties, they're all in AZ where my LLC is, but I live in CA. The person I've used seemed good, but getting a hold of them has been terrible. Not sure why, can only assume they're busy and I'm a small fish in a big pond.

Beyond other things to look for, would be great to know if there are any good resources out there to find one? 

Thanks for the help!

Thanks @Maria Guevara, I'm in a similar situation where I live in CA and my properties are in AZ

Thanks @Tracy Streich and @Account Closed for your input as well.

@Maria Guevara Thanks for the suggestion! It looks to be focused on the DIY landlord instead of the owner or investor, but I'll take a deeper look. I certainly don't mind if it has more features than I need.

Hi there, I'm somewhat new to rental property management, started with 1 house a couple years back and it's gone well so I've purchased 3 more in the last year. I do expect to purchase more in the future, but not sure I'll get into commercial or grow too rapidly. In going from 1 to 4 units I've found the work with tracking them increased considerably and I'm looking for some software to help. I did search the forums and google, but most posts and software I've found seems to be geared towards a property manager than the owner. I have property managers for my properties so I don't do the direct leasing, screening, marketing, etc, which seems to be what a lot of these apps (cozy, Rentec, rentigo, innago, buildium, avail) focus on, or are meant for larger portfolios (AppFolio). What I'm looking for would manage the financials (cash flow, NOI, income / expenses, appreciation, etc), leases and tenants info, property info, contacts (property manager, HOA, handyman, agent, broker, etc), and documents (lease, legal, closing).

I found an app call Stessa that I've been playing with which looks promising and is free, but it's missing the management of contacts and I'm suspect about how it connects to external resources like banks. Has anyone had any experience with this app? Or can suggest any others that haven't been mentioned above?