All Forum Posts by: Steve Wilcox

Welcome to the site, i am a fellow Newark investor.

1. Dont worry about it until you have an actual deal tied up, and a strategy

2. Depends, 

3. Not gonna happen, maybe you can get a partner to pay your down payment, ect 

We pay between 10-18% with 2-6 points. Both the hard money lenders I use do not even have web sites, many of these are just old school guys with a bunch of cash. They will expect you to have at least 25% of skin in the game plus all closing costs, ect. Also they will require you to pay there legal fees (+/- $1500), appraisal, survey, among other things. 

Keep in mind you are doing your first deal, no track record, no experience. I believe its better to pay a high interest rate than it is to never do a deal. 

The most important thing is to make sure you can execute, that you are working with a qualified contractor (not the cheapest price from a random guy in a beat up van) as the interest can kill your deal if you go to long, and many lenders will call the note due at the end of 12 months. 

Be careful if your house is double the size of the other homes in the area. It could be a challenge with apprasing as it is an outlier.

as @Marcus Auerbach said most people who are looking in your area are not looking for a 500sqft house so you need to make sure there is a buyer out there for this. All areas have a ceiling, make sure you are not going to be the most expensive home sold in town, or be prepared to have a long time on the market.

What a challenge,

FYI I have had numerous similar experiences with heat, cooking gas, electric ect- 9 times out of 10 the tenant never turned on the utilities because for the first month or so there is a gap from when you get it out of your name until the service company comes out and formally shuts off the utilities.

I would start the process, and FYI security deposit is NEVER used to pay rent. It is not the last months rent, it is a deposit to ensure they leave your unit in good condition, not incase the decide not to pay rent.

Option 2 is not a real option unless you have discussed with her that she will leave, get her to sign off that she agrees to move out and leave the place in good order, and you are both mutually agreeing to break the lease. Check with your connection who is an attorney doing the evictions, and see what he needs lined up and make sure that trying option 2 does not create another free month before you have to implement option 1

In NJ you are required to provide a functioning stove. As @Franklin Romine  said often you just need to clean out the holes around the burner with a pin on gas stoves, especially if its a bit greasy looking. If you plan on trying to salvage the relationship with the tenants better fix it sooner than later

So the stove is your responsibility to fix. I also have bought both new and used appliances, and if you are going to be in the business It is a good idea to develop a relationship with a dealer (either new or used, there are pros and cons to each) to get good pricing and service long term.

Also be careful about what you think market rents are, especially if you are on a rough block, have dirty house that needs renovations, ect. Sometimes the devil you know can be better then the one you don't if the numbers still work.

NJ is tough on laws regarding rent increase, I am not sure specifically in regard to inherited tenants who are month to month, and you should check with an experienced local attorney or property manager who knows Newark on what you best options are. If you need refrences for any of those relationships you can pm and I can share some contacts.

Many areas do not work for house hacking. Where I live it does not, last year we moved and spent over a year looking for one of these duplex, triplex buildings that we could owner occupy where we could live rent freeish, or at least would be a solid investment once we left. For all those that live around NYC, SoCal, North NJ, you just can't do it.

We ended up moving from a large house to a smaller place in the same time to lower expenses but house hacking just does not work anywhere my lady would consider living in.

Investing is highly localized and some strategies work better than others in different areas, and you have to be honest about where you live and what your goals are. We consider moving to a cheaper part of the country as we would be years ahead of where we are now, but because of high paying jobs in NYC and family we are tied to this area.

The first step is to go into the office of the construction official, and see what if anything has been permited, inspected, and what special requirements they might impose for getting the work done.

There is a good chance as @Ron Drake stated that the work done is not compliant, failed inspection, or is somehow defective. If this is the case you are starting from 0 and, in NJ building a luxury home in this price point can cost $150-300 per sq-ft easily which would kill your deal. If you need to sheetrock, flooring, kitchens and bathrooms that could be a different story then if you needed to totally rebuild or correct major issues.

There is no way to give an estimate with the information given.

Hey  @Jeiby V.

1. Be HONEST. This person will know way more than you do, and will have more experience having actually done some deals. If they are inclined to help you and you show your willingness to work hard and you bring something to the relationship they may help. 

2. You should probably find an experienced realtor who does lots of transactions in your area and/or works with investors since even though you are an owner occupant you want to buy based on investment criteria and learn what to look for as you plan to try to buy more properties. 

I am not sure about working with the owner as I have always bought as is, and have never given a repair credit on houses I have sold as all have been fully rehabbed, however I imagine something in the form of a repair credit (but I know FHA will not you buy anything that requires alot of work). I also wonder if your program allows you to get cash back at closing (or FHA)

I have some of the same issues with list source, in a market we flip in I wanted to try some direct mail and am looking for houses with at least 3 bedrooms, but in that zip code the public records must not upload bedrooms because the count comes back at 0. 

BAsed on what @Jerry Puckett just showed I think you need to learn how to play with list source and ask the same question a few different ways to get the answer you are looking for. 

400 is CHEAP

I have been paying about $750 for residential appraisals on refinances and on commercial stuff (sometimes lenders will make you do commercial on a 2-4 family depending ont he financing) can be around $3500

This is generally non negotiable- take it or leave it