All Forum Posts by: Scott McMillan

Hey all, with all the talk about President Elect Trump's plans to overhaul the tax code it got me thinking.

Trump wants to lower or consolidate the tax rates into 3 tax rates.  Personally I would most likely be moving from the 28% bracket into the 25% bracket.  Alongside this he has discussed eliminating the mortgage interest deduction for your personal residence.  With a republican Senate and House I think he has a good chance of enacting some sort of tax overhaul.

I own my personal residence and one investment property.  My thought was that it would be smart to pay January mortgage payments in December so that I can lock in the deductions for 2016 while tax rates are marginally higher while also locking in the mortgage interest deduction for at least one more month.  Accountants, am I on the right track?

Thanks!

Hey @Tyler Meigel I'm also in Suffolk County, what areas are you farming?

@Jerry Kisasonak I'm looking to do the same thing as @Richard Moreno, with duplex's and triplex's if possible.  I'm not familiar with the area though, I need to follow Richards model and schedule a trip out there for some scouting.

Joshua I would think a honest and reliable painting professional would always be of interest.  I would hand out business cards to property managers as well.

I think an important part of the discussion being missed is that our economy is radically different these days.  Not only have most millennials witnessed 2 major stock market crashes (Tech Crunch and Great Recession) as well as the housing crisis that accompanied the Great Recession but the job market does not function like it used to.  Employees are much more likely to be classified as independent contractors, work in the uber-economy, or if they do work for a corporation staying with the same one your whole career is almost unheard of these days.  Combined with the above mentioned student loans many students are saddled with these days it just doesn't bode well for first time home buyers in the millennial generation.  Personally I feel like many will choose to rent through most of their 20'sand wont look towards home ownership once they are more established in their 30's.  What this means I think is that there will be lots of opportunities for investors, especially as I believe the hedge funds who smelled an opportunity in rentals during the bottom will look for better returns elsewhere as the market approaches new highs.

Hey @Peter Stephan, I'm from Santa Rosa so can give you some perspective.  Santa Rosa has rebounded big time from the recession and prices are at an all time high.  Rents per month will probably average between .5-.8% of the purchase price which isn't great for a buy and hold.  Personally I don't think Santa Rosa and the surrounding cities are the best place to look at the moment unless you want to do a flip, and even then most of these communities are so new that the houses aren't really that old.

So depending on what you are looking for in an investment I may look closer to the I-5 corridor rather than the 101 corridor.

Also in response to @Michael Lee, while I'm not an attorney, I would definitely think twice about registering a LLC before you find something. California LLC's are the most expensive in the nation and cost $800 each year regardless if you made money or not. If you are just starting out and don't have many assets, then you may not need the asset protection of an LLC yet at all. In the future if a property has a lot of equity or your portfolio is growing rapidly you may want to look into one then.

Peter if you have any questions about Santa Rosa or other Sonoma County towns feel free to shoot me a message.

Good Luck

I live in Bayshore, let me know if you need anything. Flips are huge right now. My home was a flip and since we moved in a little over a year ago about 6 other homes on our street have been flipped. Not much appreciation in this area though as gang activity is on the rise in Brentwood.

Well don't forget the city tax from living in NYC limits.

I used to work on a construction crew with a good one, if he can't help you he might point you in the direction of another. I'm sorry I don't have his number in my phone but look in the white pages or google for Benjamin Bryant Construction.

I recently listened to Podcast #85, in it Mike McKinzie mentioned that his rule is that in markets with high appreciation that he sells and reinvests his capital when the ratio of monthly rent to value equals .5%.  Sounds smart to me, you may be able to sell your three properties and 1031 into an apartment complex of some sort or multiple single family homes if you prefer.