All Forum Posts by: Mark Updegraff

i'm not suprised.  Everyone is slammed with work.  If you get a quote it will probably be high.  You're attempting to get a job done exactly the same time as everyone else.  

Hi Everyone,

     If you or anyone you know is looking for work in the real estate industry in Rochester NY please have them send me a PM or colleague request.  We're in search of passionate people to develop into our systems and help us build a different sort of real estate company.  We're all professionals who enjoy working closely with each other.  We have a need for any real estate related skill set from construction to management to sales.  

Sincerely,

Mark Updegraff

Welcome Mike!

       I tried to provide some good insight on the Rochester investment market on my podcast.  Check it out if you have a change.  We're blessed in ROC with low acquisition cost and strong rental market.  The area we're targeting now is rapidly appreciating.  I think all the people that didn't listen to me last year are kicking themselves right now.  We've seen a spike of over 30% in value in some areas this season.  Insane!  We keep hunkering down and scooping up the best properties for our clients as the growth continues.  Being strategic has definitely worked, and is proving to work yet again!  Feel free to reach out if you need any assistance.  I'll send you a PM.

Cheers!
Mark

If you have a minute we would REALLY appreciate it!!

https://99designs.com/brand-identity-pack/vote-qqhz9u

I wouldn't buy it personally, but I don't buy in that area either.  $21 / sq ft is cheap for sure. The advertised gross rent is exaggerated.  I would put this at 18,000 gross before PM, Vacancy, Capital reserve, and repair.  

If you would like some local help, I'm available.  Send me a PM and we can chat.  

Cheers,
Mark

Get lots of bids on projects and keep detailed records.  Find people who do this sort of work and ask them for their ballpark estimates on what you define as your standard (i.e. - if most of the stock you'll be looking at is colonial construction with 1500 sq ft, use that as the basis of your questions).

Know every price for that house and then see how it translates to different houses by adjusting up or down according to the various housing stock you may encounter in your area.

Determining the vintage of the current components in a house can help.  Old moldings can be nice, where old plumbing can be suspect.  So, if you're going through you'll start to dissect the house into components and then put an age and condition on them.  You can then make generalizations, for instance, a 1920's construction home may typically warrant new windows when they've never been updated.  

The major categories are fine

repaint interior house

replace windows (per window)

repaint exterior house

replace roof

replace soffits

replace gutters

replace bathroom

install carpet

install tile kitchen

insulate

reside

new electrical panel and wiring

new furnace 

H20

etc

Welcome Noah!

     Next step is finding a good lender to work with.  Find one who will give 10 mortgages per person and doesn't have an income seasoning period for qualifying rents.

Once you've been prequalified start looking for the best deals you can afford.  The more restrictions you put on an investment search, the more limited your pool of potential prospects.  By shopping in a limited pool you're competing with more buyers and not getting the best deals.  A good practice would be monitoring investment opportunities over a slightly broader range to determine if you need to be focusing on timing your investment versus getting right in. 

In the end it will all come down to the pro forma analysis and the accuracy of your ability to correctly gauge the correct rental rate.  In general you'll find lower returns in nicer areas and higher returns in worse areas.  The problem with the worse areas is that most people overpay and end up loosing money.  Try to avoid that by staying true a solid approach to estimating expenses (I use 35% off gross rents for PM, Vacancy, Repairs, and Capital Reserves) before subtracting out operating expenses like taxes, insurance, and any other bills paid by the landlord.

Hope it helps!

Mark

welcome @Beke Jordan ! 
You're in the right place if you want to get started in RE investment the right way!

Come to Rochester, we have better deals than Chicago  :D

When you're ready for some serious cash flow, we're ready to go!

Cheers!
Mark