All Forum Posts by: Ryan Bray

Thanks again for your post and reply Shelby. :)

My lender has proven to be completely inept over the last 24 hours. HUD has been more responsive than the people supposedly representing me at Chase. It has become clear the "client care specialist" is not communicating openly with my realtor and I. Also now clear that the lender is not doing their proper due diligence or even reading what we are giving them.

I think I'm going to write up a cautionary tale to post on biggerpockets when this thing is done. I chose Chase because they had a lower rate than the local lender I talked to in Alaska but now I can see that was a big mistake. Seems that I have landed myself in a penny wise, pound foolish situation by working with a group of careless corporate zombies at a big company. 

I'm planning to make more investments in Anchorage over the next 18 months. I've already decided Chase will not be my lender for those deals.

It is a conventional loan.

My realtor is great and has started the conversation with HUD to get the water on and de-winterize (~$750 cost). She also hustled up a pipe pressure testing place if we can do that in lieu of turning on the water. She also checked the last 6 appraisals she has seen on winterized HUD properties and only one had noted that the power was on (no mention of water on any of them) during the appraisal... So if we had not been proactive on this, there is a good chance Chase never would have noticed or cared about it. Now it is on their radar. :-/

I'm waiting for word back from underwriter now as to whether or not this is a real requirement, but of course I'm not allowed to talk directly to anyone that matters or has answers because Chase. 

I'm facing the same challenge right now on a property in Anchorage. Chase is telling me I have to get HUD to turn utilities on but that cost (~$750) is not included in the appraisal estimate for the loan.

I will look into your pressure test suggestion Shelby... :)

I'm trying to buy up there right now but as an investor. I'm looking at condo/townhouse properties with an HOA so maybe different than your situation. My uncle has been there since 1976 and he has given me a lot of advice. Basically it is more expensive to fix places up in AK than where I live due to high labor/material costs and you have to build for -20F temps, snow, etc... I'm handy but live in CA so pretty much only looking at new-ish construction, foreclosure properties which have higher up front cash requirements (closing costs, 20%+ down, etc) but there are some good deals out there... AK real estate prices are relatively low right now. IMO it is a great time to buy in AK, not unlike when we bought our house in CA in 2013.

Our family loves the outdoors and we are super excited to own in Alaska.

Good luck!

Update on our progress... We got an offer accepted on a 3bed/2bath foreclosure property in Northeast Anchorage. I'm pretty happy with the deal as it currently stands.

Looking for prop management recommendations... I got one for all-star property management but interested to hear other options. If we can get a tenant in there by February, I may look at picking up another similar property before winter is over. If not, will be back in market next November. 

This is our first investment property... Exciting stuff!

DOUBLE POST OOPS

Thanks Chris! Really appreciate the tips. I had figured the military transfers run year round.

I had noticed the issue with high HOAs... Am trying to get in under $250/month. One place I was looking at was $172/month but it is now pending... :-/

I definitely would prefer SFH if I was up there, but investing remotely makes me nervous about things, some of which a decent HOA can handle.

Thanks for the response. Yes understood about appreciation. I'm not looking for market returns in the near term (5-10 years). I see investing in Ak as more of a hedge against our other investments. I.e. CA real estate, stock market, and the tech industry (aka our employers).

Hi Alaskan Real Estate Gurus!

First time post...

I'm looking to buy an investment property in Anchorage before the year ends. I have spent some time in AK (never in winter though). enjoy fishing/hunting, and my Uncle lives in Anchorage. My wife and I really like it up there and are looking to invest in rental properties (Uncle has 3 rentals), potentially buying 3 or 4 solely for ROI over the next 2 years. I am in contact with a very experienced local agent in Anchorage. I'm hoping to pay $200k or less on a "newish" 3bed/2bath townhome/condo on the east side. I want to make ~$250/month in positive cash flow when it's occupied (this includes all expenses including a property manager). My agent didn't tell me this was impossible but I also didn't get a warm and fuzzies when I said these are the numbers I'm looking for. Looking at all the expenses (HOA, taxes, etc) and the price of rentals, it seems doable to me.

There are tax implications for us due to our income, my napkin calculations showed that closing a deal in 2019 would save us about $3000 vs waiting until 2020. Unfortunately, we won't have a down payment ready until November. My agent has said it is certainly possible to close by end of December if I have loan approval by mid-November. So, that is our current plan. I had a few questions about this, mostly looking to get second opinions outside of my Uncle and the agent I'm working with.

- Everything else being equal, is it worth the $3k tax savings to buy in nov/dec 2019 vs wait until sometime 2020 (we can be flexible when we buy in 2020)? 

-Are sellers looking to "unload" properties this time of year (i.e. before winter really really sets in)? Our agent informed me that properties sell for 98% of list on average and I shouldn't expect to throw offers at 90% of list for places that have been on the market for a while (which was my perhaps overly optimistic plan) in November.

- Is it hard to find renters in the winter?

- Should I consider foreclosures off the table during this timeframe?

I really appreciate any responses you can provide. I have no experience as a landlord or a real estate investor but I'm excited to start this chapter in our lives.

Warm Regards,
Ryan Bray