All Forum Posts by: Tavis Stice

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Joliet.

Purchase price: $75,000
Cash invested: $40,000

Property was purchased as a short-sale and extensively rehabed prior to renting. Quite the learning experience with this one as the home was built in 1915 and there were multiple generations of poor renovation attempts.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Wanted to break into the rental market with a property that I could make the numbers work

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Through my real estate agent. Was not much room for negotiating as this was a short sale. At the time (2016), properties were still easy to come by. The home was listed for $78,000 and I offered $75,000.

How did you finance this deal?

25% down commercial loan

How did you add value to the deal?

Performed extensive rehab to the home. My wife and I put a lot of sweat equity into the work. Portions were farmed out for the roofing, electrical, basement drainage system, and driveway.

Rehab included: new roof, basement drain tiles/sump pump, bathroom renovation, kitchen renovation, upgraded lighting in kitchen&living room, new smoke detectors connected to power, ran electrical to detached garage, paved driveway, painted throughout, re-finished hardwood floors

What was the outcome?

Added $75,000 in value to the property

Rented the house for $1,600/month

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Lessons Learned:
Don't hesitate to hire for jobs that you're uncomfortable with. Attempting the work and later realizing you need to hire wastes a lot of time and money.
Time - time wasted dragging on a project that is being performed improperly and that the contractor has to undo
Money - money wasted in extending rehab duration. Money wasted in purchasing tooling and material that is unnecessary. Money wasted now paying a contractor extra to correct your work.

I'm in.  Thanks for setting up a meet-up!

$1,500 seems like a typical charge from Lisensed, bonded, insured company. You can find people to do this work for you on the side, but it will not be in the best interest of your property management company. I highly recommend doing some of that work yourself to save money or find room in your budget to account for it.

So I'm finishing up my first rental after a renovation and wanting to get it cleaned prior to the tenants moving in. Does anyone in the Joliet, IL area have a good reference?

Tom, that is some great insight that I didn't consider. I do want my properties to be inside of an LLC and it was my intention to do so once I get my second property. Is there a way to transfer this duplex to the LLC after purchase or after I move out?

Thanks guys! And thanks Nate!  I actually saved podcast 109 to my phone and will be following that advice pretty thoroughly.  That was my favorite episode!

So I've been listening to bigger pockets for some time now and have listened to nearly all the podcasts.  I feel I have enough knowledge to get out there and start my journey.  Not that I know everything... cause I know I don't.  I feel ready to start learning by doing.  I'm very excited to get the ball rolling and see where this takes me in life.  I currently have a good paying job, but I can't see myself staying there forever.  It's a cubicle job that really doesn't excite me.  I never saw myself being in that kind of job.  When people asked me what I want to be when I grow up, my answer was an entrepreneur.

Anyway, my plan on getting started is to first sell my 4-bedroom house and move into a duplex while renting the other half. My current home is financed through a VA loan and I have already got pre approval for the next VA loan.

I currently live in Minooka, IL and will be investing in the Minooka, Morris, Yorkville, Shorewood, Plainfield area.

My goal for this year is to buy my first two investment properties.

I intend on being active in the forums and posting questions to the community when I get stuck as I know I will.

It sounds like you have a ground in the line. Is this outlet in series with others? The insulation on the wire may be worn away or damaged which would require replacement.