All Forum Posts by: Ursula B.

State Farm has my rentals. Their claims process is smooth so I'm satisfied. Only downside is they don't give multiple policy discounts for rentals.

Yes, the master covers the structure and your policy covers what's within your four walls. My last condo purchase was in March, and the insurance is about $190 a year. I paid cash but was sure to get a copy of the master insurance policy because I planned to refi it. Sure enough, the bank asked for a copy of the master policy when I refinanced.

If there's a master I see no need to overinsure the unit, but if there's no master, an owner is practically stuck if there's a structural disaster.

@William A. You got some great advice from @Gerald Harris . I actually prefer condos to SFRs despite the HOAs, but you have to buy into the right association. I'd also advise against owning more than two units in any one complex.  One $2K special assessment will mean $2K times the number of units you own.  Can get costly real quick!

Call the HOA management and find out what is going on. The last complex I was interested in had no master insurance policy because they were broke. So I could buy all of the insurance in the world, but if a strong wind blew over the building, it would be impossible for me to rebuild my 3rd floor unit.

Good luck to you!

I think it helps to know the area in which you are planning to invest, and to have a really great team set up, especially if you are planning to invest that far away.

I live in GA at the moment, but I still invest in the Winston-Salem area because I use to live there, I know that market, and have great connections. And since I'm only about 5 hours away, I am usually in the area every 6 weeks or so (sometimes more frequently because I have family there).

Not sure that you have to go out of state to get the ratios you want. Have you tried the Greenville market? I tried to break into that market this year, but I didn't have the agent connections I needed. There's a colleague here that may be able to help you in that market (@Matt Redden ) . I plan to pick up my first property there next year  (I'm an ECU alum). I would offer up the Triad area, but it's highly competitive for the good deals, multiple offers on every potential property. Even I'm a bit frustrated by the Triad market at the moment!

Best wishes to you in your investing career!

Has the tenant moved in?

@Simon Campbell Thanks! I ended up backing out of this deal.  The seller was just very slow to do anything, and I took it as a sign to move on.  Glad I did, the deal I'm working on now is 10x better than that one!

(Sorry for the delayed response - I'm not getting thread notifications anymore.  Need to check into that...)

I don't like it but try to keep an open mind.  I advertise 'pets considered', then I make my decision based on the breed and weight of the pet.  Usually my non-refundable pet fee is enough to make pet owners say no thanks, especially those with multiple pets.

If I had two equally qualified tenants, one with a pet and one without, I'd go with the tenant without the pet.

This is my approach as well.  Tenants call me, I select the repairman and pay.  If it was caused by the tenant, the repair cost is added to their next months rent and is due and payable at that time.

My lease requires a 30 day notice to vacate at the end of the lease term.  60 days prior, I send the tenants a notice stating their lease is about to be up, and give them the option to renew at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months or 1 year. They also get the option to go month-to-month.  The rent increases significantly for a 3, 6 or month-to-month term as an incentive to sign a year lease.  If they past the 30-day notice point with no response and no vacate notice, I bill them for the new month-to-month rate.  If they respond and select one of the other lease terms, I prepare the new lease for their signature, then begin billing for the new term accordingly.

I have an inspection and make a repair/rehab list based on that inspection.  I then give that list to my GC and ask for a line-item bid.  Based on the bid I decide what the GC completes and what I sub out.  Usually I end up going with a big box store on flooring and appliances, and the GC gets everything else.