All Forum Posts by: Steve B.

Don't forget about the Albany area either! Only 3 hours north of Brooklyn and multis can be purchased for less than 75k as well. Lowest unemployment in Upstate except for Ithaca, rising population, diverse economy, and a very tight rental market combine for a great marker to begin your buy and hold strategy. 

@Rashad Brooks Saratoga Springs is crazy hot right now, but its confined to within the city and to a lesser extent Saratoga county. The rest of the surrounding area.....busier than past years but still slow and steady. 

I've seen this property floating around craigslist and other sites for awhile now and I'm skeptical. The exterior pictures were taken in 2012 and it looks like it needs work. One of the pictures is of a different house all together. The interior pictures are recent but it looks completely rehabbed and ready for a retail sale! Whats the story with this place?

@Brian Degener Welcome to BP, glad to see more local investors joining this forum! I'm a wholesaler as well out near Schenectady, but I market all over the Capital District for homes. Don't really do land unless its at a tax sale, but haven't found anything that was suitable for development. Mostly landlocked "islands" with no road access or weird and odd shaped lots at the tax sales.

Thanks Eric, I'll add them to my list

@Steven Hamilton II Thanks for the advice and the interview questions, thats the best list I have come across. 

You definitely need someone qualified, they do not have to be a CPA, could be an Enrolled Agent or an attorney. Just make sure they specialize in tax and have significant experience dealing with real estate investors.

This is the key, finding someone that fits this description. I should say in addition to help with my tax returns I want a relationship with someone that will help further my business and reduce my tax burden going forward.

Send me your NY contact, we are the highest taxed state in the nation and need all the help I can get on the state level as well.

Can anyone recommend a good accountant (CPA) in the Albany, NY area? Even if they are in Glens Falls, Saratoga, Troy, or Kingston is fine. Tax day is fast approaching and I need some help with last years tax return. Specifically want one that has a large % of their client base made up of real estate investors. I received a name from the local REIA meeting but I want to see if BP can help as well, thanks!

I use BP on my mobile phone a lot more often than on my computer, as I'm sure lots of people here do. However I'm using an android device, and when I respond to a forum post, the @ mention feature does not work. It doesn't matter if I'm using the app or using BP within the chrome browser, when I type @ and the person's name, nothing shows up. Frankly this is very annoying as it works fine on my computer, and when I respond to a post I always like to mention the person I'm responding to, so that they are notified of a response and it keeps the conversation going. I've noticed other users complain about this problem as well, can someone in tech support look into this?

Thanks

@ Sue Lupinski

Welcome to BP! I am in the same boat as you, working a full time job and wholesaling. I suggest you become a master of time management before you start wholesaling as you will need it. Be prepared to say goodbye to social lunches with your coworkers and use that time to work on your business, returning phone calls, setting appointments, etc. Same goes for happy hour, you have to hustle or this won't work. 

I would recommend you find a good real estate investor friendly attorney in your area and set a meeting. Discuss contracts and how the process works, NY is very specific on how closings work. I have just learned different parts of the state do things differently as well, its all very local what is customary and what isn't. Do not just print out some contract on the internet, this won't work here. 

Your market is smaller than mine so be prepared to spend a lot of time driving to get deals, that's when I catch up on my podcasts! 

Which REI club did you join?

What if we already sold the property? Is there anyway to minimize the tax burden? Such as carrying over previous losses, etc. Depreciation is great until you sell, then the IRS gets you.

I use a locally owned copy and print store that has mailboxes. $75 a year, can't beat that! I get a real street address and they will sign for packages from FedEx or UPS. 

I would not use my personal address for my business and I don't think anybody should, keep your work and personal life separate. I've read stories on BP of angry people showing up at their house with the postcard that was mailed to them and disgruntled tenants showing up to harass you, no thanks! 

I don't like PO Boxes because at least here in NY you must use a physical address for LLC paperwork and also it's much better to use a physical address when filling out real estate contracts.