All Forum Posts by: Anthony Angotti

Hello, I am wondering if any has/does own property in Pennsylvania? I am thinking of buying a rental there but Im not familiar with the market. Looking for some insight.

Hi everyone,

My partner and I are just starting out with investing in multi-family properties to generate cash flow in the Pittsburgh area. We would like to begin by finding real estate agents in the area to help us locate deals and eventually build a team that includes property management. I wanted to reach out to the BiggerPockets community to start building our network. Are there any real estate agents out there who can help us get started on our journey? Any help is much appreciated  

Cheers,

-Guchan

Hi everyone,

As my rental business expands, I'd like to ensure we're scaling properly by hiring property managers in the future. My husband and I are thinking of moving out of state, which would make this an absolute necessity. 

My question is have any of you tried alternative methods of compensating property managers, besides the usual % of rent? E.g. Giving a stake in your real estate? Something else to ensure reliable management of properties? I'd love to hear about your different compensation strategies! 

Thanks in advance!

- Marcela

What can I say, @Anthony Angotti, but good luck with your ongoing eviction-issue crapshow. I feel for you, and I wish it wasn't happening to a friend. I would like to know more. If you have time, can we go for coffee? Forewarned is forearmed.

Yeah, sure, Anthony, but Southwestern PA Legal Aid picks its battles, too. They mainly focus on cases where there actually IS abuse, often on the part of a crappy Pgh landlord, usually one with multiple strikes against him, i.e., a history of pulling shady shenanigans. The main thing is never to bring anything other than an absolutely open-and-shut case before a magistrate, especially not a magistrate you expect to see again and again in the course of doing business. Don't be afraid to take a tenant to court when you're in the right, and let expenses mount and mount as you try to figure out what to do.

That the best defense is being "a good landlord" has been said a lot, but it says a lot, too. You can't lord it over your tenants like a little dictator and expect things to work out in the long term.

@Anthony Angotti

So they filled out all the pauperis paperwork or came up with three months rent for escrow?

Hi guys. I want to start working on my blog here in a bit and write some longer, informed answers to commonly asked questions. One of the main questions I find myself answering for hopeful OOS investors over and over again happens to be, "Which state has the most landlord-friendly law?" To my mind, that is the WRONG question to ask if you're thinking about investing in areas where you think you'll probably have to evict sooner or later to get rid of tenants, to wit, low-C-minus areas shading into D-class, or (if you think that's what you want) the cheapest of the cheap war-zone, D-class areas.

I live and operate in PA, in Allegheny County, to be specific in the geographical City of Pittsburgh and just outside in some of the near suburbs. I operate in low-C-class territory. Nobody would call this particular region of the state of Pennsylvania "landlord-friendly." At the same time, I have never spent more than three hundred bucks in court to make an eviction happen. I have never had an eviction drag on longer than two months. Never had an case thrown out of court. And I am not in any way some kind of super local expert when it comes to the process.

So in this post, I'd like to ask the BP community: what are your thoughts on this? Do new posters here ask the RIGHT questions about eviction in your opinions? What SHOULD they be focusing on? Does investing a "landlord-friendly" state guarantee that your case going to end up in front of a sympathetic judge or magistrate? Does it guarantee that you'll have a PM representing you that the judges, informed as they usually are by the local police and their colleagues, will be favorably or at least neutrally listened to? Because I NEVER see THOSE questions asked in the forums here, and I believe those questions matter a whole hell of a lot of a lot more to eviction than if your state has "favorable" or "unfavorable" landlord-tenant laws.

Is the Borough of Homestead a good area to invest in? It’s located outside of Pittsburgh in Allegheny county. Thank you.

This might rub some people the wrong way. but in my short home buying history, the realtors i have worked with have provided paper work and a way to  get into the house for viewing. other than that i found the house through friends texting me or riding around or Zillow.  The homes I am looking at get a lot of attention (400k homes in need of minor work in highly sought after areas). The homes I'm looking for get multiple offers. Is it wrong to ask my realtor to drop her commission to 2% from 3%. I am already waiving inspections and sacrificing things on my part. why cant the realtor take 8000 in commission instead of 12000?  I minimize the realtors work by driving by the houses before hand to make sure I like the area. we have not looked at a house with the realtor yet. 

My offer would be $4000 stronger if the realtor takes 2% is my argument. Its not 1990 where 3 percent was a fair wage. 3 % on a 4-500k house is insane for paperwork, especially when i find the homes online or driving around and I'm waiving inspection and putting down 20%. End rant. but can i get some pros thoughts on this?

have flipped one house successfully and own 2 college rentals for experience level reference. Thanks! 

I am looking to get into house hacking (Preferably a duplex) and moved to Pittsburgh about 6 months ago. I was wondering what areas were up and coming to invest in. I am more open to outside of the city due to prices being high within the city limits. I have been recently looking into Carnegie, Green Tree, and Bridgeville areas. Wanted to hear others opinions.